South Carolina vs Alabama: A Friday Preview With Bama Central's Joe Gaither

Gameday is less than 24 hours away and the South Carolina Gamecocks are gearing up for a battle with Alabama. To get you ready for what you may see in Saturday afternoon's action, we brought in Bama Central's Joe Gaither who covers the Tide for Alabama Crimson Tide On SI to get his take on the matchup. Here's what he had to say about how tomorrow's game could unfold.

1) Coming into the season there was a lot of unknowns surrounding Alabama QB Ty Simpson, but now it seems he’s been one of the best players at his position in the country. Can you talk about what you’ve seen from him and how he’s playing in this offense?

Gaither: What I’ve seen from Ty Simpson is a quarterback that’s in total command of the offense. He didn’t quite look comfortable in the season opener against Florida State, but has settled in since and looks like one of the best quarterbacks in the nation. Simpson is in control at the line of scrimmage, getting Alabama into and out of plays and adjusting the protection to his liking. He’s giving his elite wide receiving corps opportunities to make plays and the offense is rewarding Simpson by making plays, showing they trust one another.

Simpson’s done all this with an offensive line that’s been heavily rotating and an inconsistent running game, making his play and production all the more impressive. The one area I’ve seen him struggle is knowing when to give up on a play. He has athletic ability to extend plays, and could improve in deciding to throw the ball away, or tuck it and scramble for a positive gain.

2) Speaking of the offense, this may be the best wide receiver core South Carolina will see all year long. Tell us about the guys in that room and what makes them so tough to cover for DBs?

Gaither: The wide receiver room is versatile and talented. Ryan Williams obviously gets all the attention, but the most well-rounded and consistent player is Germie Bernard. Bernard’s ability to run crisp routes, work in the running game with the ball in his hands, and block on the outside makes him Alabama’s most reliable player on offense. Williams is learning still to operate in the slot and still has the talent to play on the outside. Williams did an excellent job against Tennessee catching the football with his hands instead of his body and while he’s battled drops this season, he’s also fought through minor injuries and still maintained his threat to defenses.

Alabama welcomed Isaiah Horton from Miami this fall and he serves as a big bodied target to go up and make contested catches. Horton’s hauled in five touchdown receptions this season and his size and skill ensure defensive backs can’t turn all the attention to Bernard and Williams.
The main trio gets all the headlines, but Rico Scott and Lotzier Brooks have also proven to be dangerous in limited action. Both have outstanding speed and have shown toughness to make plays over the middle, providing Alabama other options when the top-line trio needs a break.

3) From covering the team and looking at the Gamecocks, what worries the Alabama team/fanbase the most about this South Carolina offense?

Gaither: LaNorris Sellers strikes fear in the hearts of Alabama fans due to his dual-threat ability. Alabama defenses have struggled with dual-threat quarterbacks dating back to the Nick Saban days. Diego Pavia, Jackson Arnold and Nico Iamaleava all hurt Kane Wommack’s defense with their legs last season, and Thomas Castellanos continued the troubles in the week one loss to Florida State. If Sellers can put his Superman cape on, he can hurt Alabama’s defense with his legs, and keep the Gamecocks in the matchup.

4) Alabama has a very talented defensive back room that South Carolina will try to attack this weekend. How have you seen that unit progress and who will pull the Nyck Harbor assignment this weekend?

Gaither: The Alabama defensive back room is likely its most talented area of the Crimson Tide defense. Alabama will start sophomore Zabien Brown at one cornerback spot, but has an interesting situation at the other cornerback spot. Domani Jackson started the season, but appeared to lose his starting position to true freshman Dijon Lee because Jackson hasn’t played with physicality against the run. Lee has played well as he’s getting more comfortable with college football and looks like the making of a real star.

The safety play has been solid with Keon Sabb and Bray Hubbard after the week one loss. Hubbard has played the run well and come away with a handful of takeaways.

I predict the Crimson Tide will play Zabien Brown on Nyck Harbor when he’s on the boundary, and Lee and Jackson when he’s to the field. When Harbor is in the slot the Crimson Tide will likely use Xavier Mincey and Red Morgan on him and each have played well and have good length to contend with Harbor’s size. I think Alabama will play lots of zone coverages and keep their collective eyes on Sellers in case he escapes the pass rush and takes off to run.

5) Finally, who do you think comes out on top in this one? Do you see another close battle like last season? Or does the Tide continue to roll and establish themselves further as one of the best teams in the country?

Gaither: I think Alabama will win handily. I think the Crimson Tide has learned the lessons that any week any team can win, therefore every week you have to play hard and focused, regardless of the opponent. It took the program under DeBoer several losses to learn this lesson, but I do think it’s sunk into Alabama’s DNA and therefore the Crimson Tide will enter Williams-Brice Stadium ready to play a full four quarters.

I think Alabama will be able to run the football better than it has in other Power 4 matchups, and Ty Simpson will take care of the football. LaNorris Sellers is likely to make a few outstanding plays, but I predict he won’t be able to play consistently enough through the four quarters to match Simpson and the Alabama offense. I predict Alabama wins 38-17.

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