NOVEMBER 2018 • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 11
BIG MAN BIG DREAMS Chris Silva looks to lead Carolina back to NCAAs
Ty Harris leads Staley’s new-look attack
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November 2018
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Publishing Schedule
Contents
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purs & Feathers is the official publication of the University of South Carolina Gamecock Club. It is published monthly, 12 times per year and is available to Gamecock Club members as well as additional subscribers. To opt in or subscribe, email subscribe@spursandfeathers.com or call 803-7650707 x. 141. The Gamecock Club and Spurs & Feathers THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
10 Cock Tales
Below is our publication schedule for 2018: Jan. 22 Feb. 21 March 21 April 25 May 23 June 20
July 25 Aug. 29 Sept. 26 Oct. 24 Nov. 21 Dec. 19
gamecock club 5
Got a Gamecock Club event you’d like us to list? Email jowens@spursandfeathers.com
16 Wild One
34 World Series heroes Basketball
Owens: It’s more than winning to Martin
Kotsar ready to take next step
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World Series heroes make Tanner proud
22
Silva dreaming big in final season
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Men’s Schedule
The real Gamecock: Sir Big Spur
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Women’s Schedule
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Staley developing new identity
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Jennings ready to deliver in post
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Texas A&M Recap: Battling back
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Tennessee Recap: Rush day
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Ole Miss Recap: Fight to the finish
GAMECOCK CLUB • TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Legendary Fan: Hickman loves them all
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Hopkins SC’s Mr. Gamecock
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football
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SOCCER 36
ON THE COVER: Photo by SC Athletics Design by Lisa Heinz
@SpursFeathers
Grace Fisk brings fearless approach
columns 38
Gunter: My favorite sports month
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Girardeau: Muschamp among best in Year 3
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SPURS & FEATHERS, 1534 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
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Final Four vets, fab freshmen bring hope
Legendary Fan: Summerville’s Mr. Gamecock
Postal Information: SPURS & FEATHERS (USPS 12779) (ISSN7454368X) is published 12 times a year, monthly January-December. The annual subscription price is $50 for non Gamecock Club Members. Members of the Gamecock Club receive a discounted subscription as a member benefit. Spurs & Feathers is published by Evening Post Industries., 1534 Main Street, Columbia, SC, 29201. Periodicals postage paid at Columbia, SC
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Chase Heatherly Publisher & Advertising Director cheatherly@spursandfeathers.com 803-765-0707 x129
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Jenny Dilworth Photographer
Lauren A. Haley Layout and Graphic Design
November 2018
Winning games not the most important thing to Frank Martin By Jeff Owens | Executive Editor
F
rank Martin is a sensitive guy. For a fiery, aggressive coach who displays the intensity and passion he does on the court, Martin has really thin skin. He takes offense when someone criticizes him or his team and he will let you know in a hurry. He’ll even argue with the tone or wording of a question if you don’t phrase it just right. That’s just who he is. No one cares more about his players and program and he will defend it no matter what. He still remembers a cheap shot a local writer took at him early in his South Carolina career. “Someone in the local media said they were tired of hearing me say I’m trying to make men, and if that’s what I’m interested in, I should go to the Army and stop coaching basketball. I will never forget that,” Martin said. “That’s cheap because anyone who knows me to my core knows that’s what I care about. “The score of the games are going to come and go, and if I lose my job because we don’t win enough games,
I can live at peace because I have helped young people become better prepared to succeed.” That’s what’s most important to Martin. Molding young men to become better on and off the court. If they struggle with basketball, he can live with that. As long as they mature and develop into quality young men. Martin has two examples close to him. Chris Silva (see page 22) came to Columbia as a raw, unpolished basketball player who could speak little English and, in many ways, was lost in a world thousand of miles from his home in Gabon, Africa. But under Martin’s tutelage, Silva has become one of the best college basketball players in the country, one who draws praise from rival teams and coaches for his effort and work ethic. He has also matured into an upstanding young man who is close to earning his college degree and possibly even realizing his dream of playing in the NBA. Asked what he has learned most
from Martin, Silva said “how to be a man.” “You only have two rules with him,” Silva said. “Come on time, be ready and give it everything you have got. That is one of the biggest things I am trying to lead my life by. Try to be on time, be ready and just give it everything I’ve got.” Martin tries to instill those traits into all his players and followers. The other example is even closer to his heart. When South Carolina opened its season Nov. 6 against USC Upstate, his son, Brandon, was playing for the Spartans. Despite being raised by one of the most successful college coaches in the country, Brandon was not highly recruited coming out of high school. Instead, he worked and scrapped and, using the lessons his father taught him, developed into a good enough player to earn a Division I scholarship. That kind of desire and determination is what makes Martin proud.
He sought out his son after the game to tell him that. “I needed to make sure he knew that I am extremely proud of who he has become and who he has grown into and to stay the course,” Martin said. “To see him out there playing well … to see him play with the aggression and courage that he played with, that’s who I am and it makes me proud to see my son doing that.” That’s who Frank Martin is and who he tries to get his players to be. Winning seasons and winning teams come and go, but those core values last forever.
Jeff Owens can be reached at jowens@spursandfeathers.com or on Twitter @Jowens_SpursUp.
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Summerville’s Mr. Gamecock honored as Legendary Fan By Brian Hand/Contributing writer
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t’s only fitting that Mr. Gamecock would be honored as the Legendary Fan of the Game, and that’s just what happened when Cecil Buddin received the prestigious honor before the Texas A&M game on Saturday, Oct. 13. Known as Mr. Gamecock around the Summerville area for his commitment to South Carolina athletics is something Buddin will always cherish. In fact, after years of devotion to the Gamecocks, it’s an honor he hoped he would receive because he always wanted one of the special jackets that honorees receive on the field before the game. “For about five or six years, I would sit with the same people and every time they had the Legendary Fan out on the field, I would look at my friend and say, ‘I am going to get me one of those jackets one day,’� Buddin joked. All jokes aside, Buddin’s honor is well-deserved. Buddin has been a
loyal Gamecock Club member for 40-plus years and has served as the President of the Dorchester County Gamecock Club for well over 20 years. In addition, Buddin has served on numerous committees with the USC Executive Committee and is presently part of the Policy and Procedures Committee. The honor as Legendary Fan of the Game left him thankful to be acknowledged for his passion for all things Gamecock. “When they told me about it, we couldn’t believe it,� Buddin said. “My family was so excited for me because we are Gamecocks through and through. It was an experience that you just do not forget.� Buddin currently has seats in different areas at Williams-Brice Stadium, but has been sitting in the same place more than 50 years. Buddin’s first Gamecock football game in person was when he came to see his friend and former Sum-
Photo by Allen Sharpe
merville quarterback Bobby Bunch and South Carolina take on NC State at Carolina Stadium on Nov. 22, 1958. Bunch helped lead South Carolina to a 12-7 win over the Wolfpack. It was one of seven wins in a 1958 season that saw the Gamecocks go 7-3 under third-year head coach Warren Giese. The Gamecocks were ranked as high as No. 15 nationally. That was just the first of many Gamecock games for Buddin, who attends all home games and many away games with his family. Buddin’s son and daughter are both South Carolina graduates along
with many other family members. There is nothing his family loves more than tailgating before Gamecock games. Like many, Buddin’s favorite Gamecock is the incomparable George Rogers, but his favorite memory is one that all Gamecocks would cherish. In 1977, he took a chartered flight to Hawaii with South Carolina fans to cheer on the Gamecocks against the University of Hawaii. For Buddin, being a member of the Gamecock Club is something he truly cherishes. “I’m a Gamecock fan forever,� he said.
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To Legendary Fan Midge Hickman, all Gamecocks are special By Brian Hand/Contributing writer
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idge Hickman does not have a favorite Gamecock. It’s not because she is not a huge Gamecock fan. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. She is just so thankful for all of them. “All of them are special because they all give their all for South Carolina,” Hickman mused. “To me they are all special.” Hickman’s thoughts are why it was a no-brainer that she was honored as the Legendary Fan of the Game before South Carolina’s 27-24 win over Tennessee at WilliamsBrice Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 27. The honor was not something that Hickman was expecting, but she is truly thankful. “It was a wonderful experience and one that I never expected, and I am really grateful to the Gamecock Club and the university for recognizing me,” Hickman said. “It was one of the nicest things that has ever happened to me in my life just to be recognized.”
Photo by Allen Sharpe
Hickman and her late husband, Bud, are longtime members of the Gamecock Club. Bud served as president of the Sumter County Gamecock Club. “What we do for the Gamecocks,
we do because we love the university,” Hickman said. “For me and my husband, we loved sports. That’s why we do what we do. It’s worth every minute of time and dollars that we spend to support the Gamecocks.”
Hickman may not have a favorite Gamecock, but she does have her favorite Gamecock memory. Her favorite memories are some of the same as numerous Gamecocks in seeing South Carolina baseball win back-to-back national championships in 2010 and 2011. Hickman saw both national championship runs in person and has been to the College World Series in Omaha four times. Another one of her other fondest memories is South Carolina football winning the 1995 Carquest Bowl over West Virginia because that first bowl win meant so much to so many. In general, Hickman considers being a Gamecock part of a special family. In fact, she calls loyal Gamecocks “kindred spirits.” “You have to be there to support the team, win or lose,” Hickman said. “Our fans are so loyal and so supportive that you really feel good to belong to a group like that.”
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GAMECOCK CLUB • LEGENDARY FAN
November 2018
November 2018 November 2018
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A Gamecock’s gamecock Sir Big Spur has been entertaining and educating fans for 20 years
By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photos by Allen Sharpe
I
t’s about an hour before game time at WilliamsBrice Stadium and the Missouri cheerleading squad has gathered in the corner of the North end zone. Like many visitors to Williams-Brice, they want to meet and get a photo with one of the most popular attractions in college football. They gather excitedly around a small, motorized cart that carries the perch of Sir Big Spur, a real fighting gamecock and one of the top live mascots in the country. A week later, fans from Texas A&M repeat the
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ritual. Two weeks later, its Tennessee’s turn. It’s part of the game day experience at Williams-Brice as Gamecock fans and visitors from opposing teams stop by outside the stadium or on the field to snap a picture with South Carolina’s Old-English, black-breasted gamecock. Among South Carolina students, a photo with Sir Big Spur has become a bucket-list item and part of the Gamecock experience. “No matter where we go with Big Spur, we draw a crowd,” says Mary Snelling, who owns Sir Big Spur with her husband,
GAMECOCK CLUB • SIR BIG SPUR
Ron Albertelli. “Fans love him and they love to ask questions, they love to get a feather, they love any part of Big Spur.” Snelling’s first gamecock was a gift from her father, who got the fighting cock from a friend. “My Dad decided that I needed to own a gamecock since I was a big Gamecock fan,” Snelling said. “So my dad brought me one home from work. I had no idea what I was going to do with him. We named him Cocky Doodle Lou and let him run around in the yard because I had no idea.”
Years later, Snelling and Albertelli found the perfect opportunity to show off Cocky Doodle Lou — named after former head football coach Lou Holtz — and incorporate him into South Carolina Gamecock culture. Snelling, a 1976 graduate of the South Carolina College of Nursing, has been a Carolina fan her whole life and a loyal fan of Gamecock baseball, where she had season tickets behind the home dugout at Sarge Frye Field. In 1999, during Ray Tanner’s third season, Snelling won a dinner with the Gamecock
head coach. She used the opportunity to tell Tanner about Cocky Doodle Lou and ask if she could bring him to games. “I said, ‘I have this chicken, is it OK if I bring it to the game and put it on the dugout?’” He said as long it’s not between the white lines, I don’t care what you do,’” Snelling said. “And that’s how it started.” As Tanner’s teams became a SEC contender and a national powerhouse, Cocky Doodle Lou and later Sir Big Spur became a fixture at Sarge Frye Field and later at Founders Park, which opened in 2009. “The fans fell in love with him and the players loved seeing him,” Snelling said. “It just got to be a thing at baseball.” In 2006, as Steve Spurrier began to build the Carolina football program, the university and fans approached Snelling and Albertelli about bringing the gamecock to Williams-Brice. They now bring Sir Big Spur — which was renamed after the original Cocky mascot — to almost every South Carolina football game, home and away. Sir Big Spur has been to the College World Series in Omaha six times, helping Tanner celebrate back-to-back national championships in 2010-11, and has appeared at numerous other Carolina sporting events, from equestrian to soccer. He has appeared at birthday parties, charity events and even had his feathers used in boutonnières for weddings. With help from the University, fans can now purchase official Sir Big Spur merchandise to help support the program and the care and treatment of the birds. Merchandise is available at the university bookstores and at SirBigSpur.com. Aside from representing the Gamecocks, Sir Big Spur is also an educational tool Snelling and Albertelli use to teach fans about the bird and the origin of the team’s nickname. “From the very beginning, we used it as an educational tool because most Gamecock fans have no clue what a gamecock is, and that’s still true today,” Snelling said. “I don’t think I’ve ever been to a game without someone asking me, ‘is my chicken a boy or a girl,’ or ‘does my rooster lay eggs.’ “We see it as something we do for the University to educate people on why we are the fighting Gamecocks. … Our fans love it and they love the educational side of it. They love knowing that that’s where our colors came from, the colors of the gamecock. Things like that were not ever really talked about until we started November 2018
bringing Sir Big Spur.” While Snelling is in the stands cheering on her Gamecocks, Albertelli transports and displays Sir Big Spur on a motorized cart he built with help and support from the South Carolina College of Engineering and funding from the College of Nursing. While Snelling’s motivation is supporting her Gamecocks, Albertelli’s love is the bird and teaching fans about the unique animal. “My first love is sports. My husband’s first love is Big Spur,” said Snelling, who wrote a book about the program called “Cock Tales: From Anonymity to the State House.” “We are kinda backward. I am there because I love the baseball game, he’s there because he loves to talk to the fans about Big Spur.” Albertelli is from Worcester, Mass. near Boston and describes himself as a “damn yankee” who is just “supporting my wife’s habit.” In truth, Albertelli is the caretaker and trainer of the birds. He and Snelling live on a 28-acre farm in Aiken, S.C. and have nine gamecocks and 10 hens, or as Albertelli says, “just enough to continue to perpetuate this madness.” The current Sir Big Spur is the fifth generation of their Old-English, black-breasted red gamecocks, all from the same blood line as Cocky Doodle Lou. The birds chosen to become Sir Big Spur are selected for two reasons: their unique blend of colors and their personality. Snelling and Albertelli raise Old-English black-breasted red gamecocks and try to select ones that have the perfect blend of red and black coloring for Sir Big Spur. Gamecocks are naturally aggressive so training
November 2018
them to interact with fans and the public can be a challenge. “People constantly ask me how you train them to fight,” Albertelli said. “You don’t train them to fight, you train them not to fight because their natural tendency is to pick a fight with whoever gets too close to them, especially when they are boxed in.” A new gamecock is selected to be Sir Big Spur between the ages of 2 and 4 and usually serves in the role until they are about 9, when they are retired and replaced by the next generation. After extensive training and evaluation, Albertelli selects the most docile, least aggressive birds to interact with fans. “We have to do a fairly decent job of picking one that has the right personality,” he said. “Some gamecocks, there is no way you would ever get them to want to be around people. We have to pick one and work with them to find the one that seems
to be sedate so when you walk up to the cage they are not going to be bouncing off the walls. When we find one that is workable, you can hold them and they won’t start pecking at you and trying to bite you. “Once I find one that has a decent personality, the training is rather simple.” While Snelling’s motivation is supporting her Gamecocks, Albertelli enjoys interacting with kids and students and educating fans about the birds. In a way, he has the right demeanor and personality for it, just like his birds. “I enjoy the kids because they are always fun to be around,” he said. “I have an easy personality and am slow to anger so idiots who come up won’t light my fire as quick. … I am a loyal Gamecock fan but nowhere near as active as she is.” This is the 20th year of the Sir Big Spur program and Snelling and Albertelli have traveled all over the country, introducing fans to a real gamecock and educating them about the birds and the origin and history of South Carolina’s mascot. They have invested tremendous time, energy and money into the program. And Snelling has done it while working for 31 years as a nurse at the VA hospital in Columbia. But they do it out of love for both the University and the birds. “Sometimes we complain because it’s really hot on the field and a really long day for us. It starts early and ends late, but we’ve done things that the average fans have not done,” Snelling said. “There’s part of me that is very thankful for that. We’re thankful that we’ve been able to do it for so long.”
SIR BIG SPUR • GAMECOCK CLUB
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Texas A&M 26, South Carolina 23
Battling back Bentley keeps fighting after injury, slow start against Texas A&M By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor Photos by Photos by Allen Sharpe
J
ake Bentley is a fighter. He’s proven that over and over again during his three years as South Carolina’s starting quarterback, battling back from one adversity after another. Never was that more evident than against Texas A&M. After missing the Missouri game due to a knee injury, Bentley ramped up his rehab and returned to his starting role when the Gamecocks took the field against the Aggies at WilliamsBrice Stadium. After a slow start, Bentley faced adversity again as the Gamecocks fell behind 13-0 in the first half and trailed 16-0 in the third quarter. Despite boos from fans, many whom wanted to see backup and Missouri hero Michael Scarnecchia take over, Bentley kept fighting. Playing on a hobbled knee that still limited his mobility, he resurrected the Gamecock offense and led South Carolina on another dramatic comeback. After throwing for just 46 yards in the first half, Bentley capped an 82-yard drive by hitting Shi
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FOOTBALL • TEXAS A&M RECAP
Smith with a 22-yard touchdown pass. When he found Bryan Edwards for a 2-point conversion, the Gamecocks trailed just 16-8. When South Carolina got the ball back, Bentley led the offense on an 88-yard drive, capping it with a 33-yard touchdown pass to Chavis Dawkins on a nifty f lea-f licker play. Another 2-point pass to Edwards tied the game with 24 seconds remaining in the third quarter. After compiling just 102 yards of total offense and committing two turnovers (including an interception in the end zone) in the first half, Bentley and the offense kept battling. On both touchdown drives, he scrambled for big gains on his injured knee. “In the first half, it was just self-inf licted stuff, whether it was missing a throw or dropping something, just things here and there that can’t happen,” Bentley said. “… I think we just kinda said, ‘enough is enough’
and knew we had to go out there and play better.” When Texas A&M responded with 10 fourth-quarter points to put the game away, Bentley refused to give up. He led South Carolina on a 75-yard drive and hit Deebo Samuel with a 6-yard touchdown pass with 48 seconds remaining, his third TD toss of the game. After a miserable first half — and a disappointing three weeks — Bentley threw for 223 yards and three second-half touchdowns in his return from injury. More importantly, he shook off a torrent of criticism and focused on leading his team. “He’s a fighter, he’s a competitor,” head coach Will Muschamp said. “That position is going to get criticized, just like my position. That’s part of it. He understands that. … He battled his ass off to put us in a situation to win the football game.” Bentley kept battling through three of the toughest weeks of his career. After struggling in a 24-10 loss to
Kentucky, he injured his knee late in the game and could only watch as Scarnecchia led the Gamecocks to a thrilling come-frombehind victory over Missouri in a driving rain. With fans calling for Scarnecchia to start against Texas A&M, Bentley stayed focused on rehabbing his knee and blocking out the noise. “That’s life,” he said. “That’s really the way that I’ve always been brought up, you can’t worry about outside inf luences. Other people are going to try to come at you but you have to focus on what you believe in and surround yourself with great people.” When the Gamecocks fell behind against Texas A&M, that was just one more obstacle to overcome for South Carolina’s resilient quarterback. “He’s a fighter,” Dawkins said. “He’s not going to sit out because of a knee. … That’s the kind of guy he is.” November 2018
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Deebo Samuel led the Gamecocks with seven receptions for 88 yards, both season-highs. Samuel’s 6-yard touchdown grab marked the third straight game he caught a touchdown pass. He also passed Cory Boyd for 11th in career receptions and Ira Hillary for 14th in career receiving yards.
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Edwards’ 34-yard punt return was the longest of his career and the longest since a 39-yard return by Chris Lammons in 2016.
P Joseph Charlton surpassed 75 career punts, qualifying him for career punting records. Through the Texas A&M game, Charlton had 77 career punts for 3,387 yards for a 43.9-yard average, surpassing Sean Kelly’s career average of 43.3.
November 2018
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TEXAS A&M RECAP • FOOTBALL
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South Carolina 27, Tennessee 24
Hit And Miss
down run. Bentley then showed his mettle, keeping the ball and running into the end zone for a 2-point conversion. He got pummeled on the play but held on to tie the game. He got hit so hard on the play he had to lay on the turf for a couple of minutes before hopping up and sprinting off the field. “It felt like a boulder went through my chest,” he said. “All I know is I got in the end zone.” With the game tied, South Carolina stuck with the running game and went to a fresh back in Denson, who ripped off runs of 9, 9 and 12 yards to set up the gamewinning field goal. With the Gamecocks leaning on the running game, Bentley threw for just 152 yards, his lowest output of the season. It didn’t matter, though, as Carolina compiled 376 yards of total offense to 351 for Tennessee. “They had a good plan coming in and I think we responded well to that, and our running backs knew they had the opportunity to have a big game,” Bentley said. “As far as I’m concerned, if we run the ball for this many yards every game, I will be very happy.”
Offensive line, running game shine as Gamecocks rush past Tennessee By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photos by Jenny Dilworth
A
s the Gamecocks stumbled to a 3-3 record during the first half of the season, Will Muschamp said repeatedly that South Carolina needed to run the ball more often and more effectively. Against Tennessee, they vowed to emphasize the run game and stick with it. It worked as the Gamecocks rushed for 224 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-24 win at Williams-Brice Stadium. It marked the third time this season that South Carolina rushed for more than 200 yards in a game — all three victories. “We came out with the attitude of running the ball and dominating the line of scrimmage,” center Donell Stanley said. “We know what we can do in the
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FOOTBALL • TENNESSEE RECAP
running game and we just need to keep on doing it.” The Gamecocks used three running backs, with Rico Dowdle leading the way with 14 carries for a game-high 140 yards, his third 100-yard game of the season. Ty’Son Williams added 38 yards on 13 carries and Mon Denson took over on the fourth-quarter, game-winning drive with 31 yards on six carries. While the offensive line played well, opening huge holes, Muschamp had high praise for his running backs. “For the first time in a league game, you saw our backs make guys miss … and in our league that’s what you have to do,” he said. Trailing 7-0, the Gamecocks
ran the ball nine straight times on their first drive, leading to a Parker White field goal. With the Volunteers ahead 21-9, South Carolina went back to the running game, starting with a 15-yard run by Dowdle. Even Bentley got in on the act, rumbling and stumbling for a 20-yard gain that moved the Gamecocks into Tennessee territory. Williams then took over, rushing for 17 yards and gaining 11 more on a screen pass. Dowdle scored the touchdown to cut the Tennessee lead to 21-16. With Tennessee looking for South Carolina to run the ball, Bentley struck for a big play in the third quarter, hitting Bryan Edwards for a 73-yard pass that set up Williams’ 1-yard touchNovember 2018
Photo by Allen Sharpe
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Rico Dowdle
Dowdle led the rushing attack with 140 yards on 14 carries. He also scored his fourth touchdown of the season.
NUMBERS THAT MATTER
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D.J. and Dylan Wonnum became the first set of brothers to start for South Carolina since 2014, when Gerald Dixon and Gerald Dixon Jr. started together on the defensive line. Dylan Wonnum made his first career start at RT, the first true freshman to start on the offensive line since Mike Matulis in 2011. He was named SEC Freshman of the Week for his play.
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D.J. Wonnum had two sacks, his first multisack game since he had two against Tennessee in 2017. He was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week. Will Muschamp is now 7-0 against Tennessee as the Gamecocks won their third straight game over the Volunteers.
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Deebo Samuel’s 3-yard touchdown marked the fourth straight game in which he has scored. He and Bryan Edwards led the Gamecocks with five touchdowns each in the first seven games.
Bryan Edwards had three catches for 96 yards, surpassing Pharoh Cooper for ninth in career receptions (139).
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T.J. Brunson led the Gamecocks with a season-high 14 tackles, just short of his career high.
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November 2018
TENNESSEE RECAP • FOOTBALL
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South Carolina 48, Ole Miss 44
Fight to the finish Gamecock offense comes alive in shootout win over Ole Miss Deebo Samuel
By Josh Hyber/Staff writer • Photos by SC Athletics
O
XFORD, Miss. — Entering South Carolina’s game against Ole Miss on Nov. 3, there was chatter about the Gamecocks’ lack of first-quarter execution. To that point in the season, the team had averaged just 6.2 points per game in the first quarter. There was also talk about how the Gamecocks’ offense could match the potency of the Rebels, a team that to that point in the season ranked third in the SEC in scoring and first in pass offense. That first concern was eased after the first play of the game, a Deebo Samuel kickoff return for a touchdown that gave the visitors an early lead. The second concern was eased by halftime, or certainly the third quarter, when the Gamecocks matched the highoctane Rebels point for point in the shootout. Despite trailing by 10 points
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FOOTBALL • OLE MISS RECAP
in the fourth quarter, the Gamecocks stuck with it, anchored down on defense and came away with a 48-44 victory over the Rebels. “The resiliency and the fight this football team has, they keep hanging in there regardless of the circumstance or situation,” Will Muschamp said. “It says a lot about the coaching staff and the culture of our program. When we’re in tight situations, we’re going to make the plays we need to make to win the game.” Jake Bentley — in what Muschamp called a “gutsy” and “outstanding” performance — completed 22 of 32 passes for 363 yards and two touchdowns while Bryan Edwards and Ty’Son Williams both eclipsed 100 yards receiving as the Gamecocks rolled up 510 yards of total offense. “Up and down the field, both defenses had a hard time stopping
anybody,” Muschamp said. The Rebels led 37-34 heading into the fourth quarter and added to that lead on a 1-yard rushing touchdown from Isaiah Woullard. But then the Gamecock defense, ignited by a switch from zone defense to man-to-man, got stingy. On Mississippi’s final four possessions (17 plays), the Rebels gained just 16 yards. They punted three times (twice after going for negative yards) and had one turnover on downs. Three straight Mon Denson carries, a 17-yard catch by Edwards and a 9-yard catch by Josh Vann set up an A.J. Turner 3-yard touchdown run. A Parker White extra-point cut the Gamecocks’ deficit to 44-41 with 11:01 to play. On South Carolina’s next offensive possession, Denson burst up the middle for 69 yards to give the Gamecocks firstand-goal. Three plays later
Bentley ran in from four yards to give the Gamecocks a 48-44 lead with 5:50 to go. “We had to respond. That was the message all day, really,” Bentley said. “… In that moment, nobody panicked. Nobody got rattled. Really just an awesome job by everyone to stay calm and know that we have the ability to go down the field and score. “And that’s what we did.”
Josh Vann
November 2018
NUMBERS THAT MATTER
1
Josh Vann scored his first career touchdown, a 5-yard pass from Jake Bentley. A.J. Turned scored his first touchdown of the season on a 3-yard run. D.J. Wonnum recovered his first career fumble.
6 PLAYER OF THE GAME
Mon Denson
4 15
Deebo Samuel opened the game with a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, the fourth of his career and the second to open a game. Samuel had 178 total yards on five kickoff returns. Jake Bentley threw for 363 yards to move into sixth all-time in passing yards (5,880), surpassing Phil Petty and Anthony Wright.
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LB T.J. Brunson had 15 tackles, one shy of his career-high. He was one of four players with double-digit tackles, joining R.J. Roderick (13), Keisean Nixon (13) and Steven Montac (12).
Bryan Edwards’ 75-yard touchdown reception was the longest career play for both Edwards and Bentley. Edwards moved into 10th all-time in receiving yards (1,939) and receiving touchdowns (15).
Denson rushed for 102 yards on 12 carries after Rico Dowdle and Ty’Son Williams both left the game with injuTy’Son Williams had 105 yards receiving, the first time a Carolina RB has ries. His 69-yard fourth-quarter run set gone over 100 yards receiving since Marcus Lattimore at Kentucky (133) in up the game-winning touchdown as 2011. Williams and Edwards (109) were the first two players to top 100 yards receiving South Carolina rushed for 147 yards. in the same game since Pharoh Cooper (191) and Jerell Adams (105) in 2015.
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OLE MISS RECAP • FOOTBALL
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BASKETBALL
‘You Gotta Believe’ Final Four veterans, talented freshmen give Martin hope for another tournament run By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photos by Jenny Dilworth Frank Martin doesn’t need to remind his team that the Gamecocks played in the NCAA Final Four just two years ago. His new, young players look around and see Chris Silva, Maik Kotsar and Hassani Gravett, three veterans who played key roles on that 2016-17 team, and they know. The newcomers were in Columbia during the summer when stars Sindarius Thornwell and P.J. Dozier, the leaders of that Final Four team, returned home to play pickup ball after the NBA season. They see Justin McKie, a key senior on that top-five team, around almost every day. They look up at Colonia Life Arena and see the Final Four banner flying high above the court and they
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BASKETBALL • MEN’S PREVIEW
don’t need reminders about where Martin’s program has been. “All that goes unsaid. They know that,” Martin said. “The guys who signed to come here, they know the locker room they are walking into, where it was 18 months ago. … They know. That’s that internal peer pressure that you create. You fight real hard to create that. That already exists here.” When Martin will draw on that Final Four experience is when his 2018-19 team — a mix of experienced veterans and raw newcomers — starts to struggle. He will remind them of the adversity the 2016-17 team overcame during its thrilling run through the NCAA Tournament. “Where I might use it as a point
of reference is from having the courage to tell the young guys, ‘just believe,’” Martin said. “‘Don’t fight it, just believe. You gotta believe. If you don’t believe, it will never happen.’” Martin’s team suffered a big letdown in 2017-18, finishing 17-16 and 7-11 in the SEC a year after reaching the Final Four. After the loss of such key players as Thornwell, Dozier, McKie and Duane Notice, the returning players could not develop the same chemistry or duplicate their leadership. And a trio of transfer guards could not replace the production of Martin’s star-studded backcourt. But Martin believes he has the talent and leadership to make another run at the NCAA Tournament this season. Despite a brutal
schedule and playing in one of the toughest conferences in the country, he believes he has the right mix of veterans and newcomers to possibly recreate that postseason magic. “When you have core guys like we have that played so many minutes last year, three of which got major minutes in a Final Four game against Gonzaga, you are talking about core guys who really, really understand how we do things and what is important,” he said. “We are all better because the returning players are in a better place. … We’re way ahead of where I thought we would be, not even close.” But for South Carolina to contend in the mighty SEC and make another tournament run, several things must fall into place. November 2018
“I don’t know how much more dominant someone can be than beA big part of South Carolina’s ing first-team all-conference in the struggles last season were due to inbest conference in college basketball consistency at point guard. Transfer and also being the top defensive Kory Holden struggled with injuries player,” he says. “If he had that all season before transferresume and he played at Kentucky ring. Wes Myers, another or Florida, what would transfer, also struggled to they be saying about handle the position, as did Chris now?” Gravett, who was forced He has a point. Silva to play out of position at averaged 14.3 points the point. and eight rebounds last “Offensively, when the season while shooting game gets hard at the end 47 percent and rankagainst those type of ing second in the NCAA-caliber teams, nation in free-throw you have to make the attempts. He had 10 right decision offendouble-doubles and sively and defensively, 27 double-figure scorand we had breaking games, including downs with that,” a career-high 27 against Martin said. “I feel a Kentucky. lot better about our ESPN college basketball situation this year.” analyst Jay Bilas calls Silva “a The Gamecocks really good leader and a guy will lean on another who cares.” grad transfer. Tre “He’s really an impresCampbell transferred sive player, one of those from Georgetown guys who probably doesn’t after three seasons as a get the credit he deserves,” backup point guard for Bilas said. “He’s the kind the Hoyas. He adapted of guy who is going to quickly, scoring 13 help you win.” first-half points in Silva, who’s on the South Carolina’s preNaismith Trophy Watch season exhibition beList for the nation’s best fore tweaking his injured player, worked hard ankle. Despite missing during the offseason on practice time with the expanding his game, injury, he has earned particularly offensively, Martin’s confidence. where he was a pure “He brings a differlow-post player that atent type of leadership tracted a lot of attention to the team that we last year. If he can knock need,” Gravett said. down open jump shots, “His ability to handle he will become the type the ball and get us of offensive threat the into the offense has Gamecocks need in been great.” close games down the Martin also has two A.J. Lawson stretch. freshmen he believes can “Chris has to be play the point in 6-6 A.J. better in those moments,” Martin Lawson and 6-2 T.J. Moss. He calls said. “Chris was at a place last Lawson a “freakishly athletic” guard year where he was still growing who can use his size to pass over into becoming the featured player defenders. Moss, he said, “is more dealing with attention and double cerebral” and excels in the halfteams. He got better at that as the court game. year went on.” And then there’s Gravett, who The key for Silva is staying on has moved to shooting guard this the court, which has been a chalseason but played major minutes lenge throughout his foul-plagued at the point last year. Martin says career. He made progress last season Gravett “drove me nuts [last year], but then reverted to his old ways in but he grew a lot. … He’s better the team’s preseason exhibition. It’s prepared for it this year.” a constant battle, but one Silva is determined to conquer. Silva must shine “Chris means a lot on the court, Martin scoffs when asked what on offense and defense,” Gravett his big man must do to take the next said. “We need Chris on the floor. step and become a more dominant He’s got to get better at that.” player.
Point guard play
November 2018
Who are the shooters? Martin raised a few eyebrows prior to last season when he predicted his 2017-18 group would be one of the best shooting teams he has ever had. Thanks to a variety of factors — injuries, inconsistent point guard play — that never materialized. The Gamecocks were last in the SEC in field goal percentage at 39.8 percent and ninth in three-point percentage at 33.9. And they lost two of their best perimeter shooters in graduates Frank Booker and Myers, who combined for 115 of the team’s 240 3s. Perimeter shooting is critical with a dominant post player like Silva. The Gamecocks upset three top-20 teams last year when Silva was affective in the post. But for him to dominate the paint, his teammates must knock down open shots, particularly from 3-point range. Without Booker, who made a school-record 85 3s last year, where will those baskets come from? Martin believes he has plenty of options, starting with Gravett. The senior guard made just 28 3s (32 percent) while playing both guard spots last year. He made four 3s to lead the Gamecocks with 18 points in the preseason exhibition and Martin believes he will thrive at off guard. “When he plays there, he plays freer, which allows him to play more aggressive and show off his athleticism rather than be consumed with what decisions he makes,” Martin said. “Mentally, he’s in a good place. He’s playing fast, he’s playing aggressive.” Martin also should have plenty of other options on the perimeter. Justin Minaya made 39 3s as a freshman while forward Felipe Haase knocked down 25. Lawson, the freshman guard, made the first two 3s he attempted during the exhibition, while Campbell, Moss and others can shoot from outside. Martin even expects Silva and Kotsar, both big men, to be able to knock down an occasional 3. “All the returning guys are in a better place right now,” he said. “They are just more comfortable so they are all going to shoot it better and they are all capable of making 3s in Hassani Gravett
a game. … There are a whole bunch of guys who can shoot the ball.”
Minaya and Haase One bright spot for the Gamecocks last season was the development of freshmen Minaya and Haase, who adapted quickly to Martin’s system and became key players right away. Minaya, who left high school a year early, started 30 of 32 games and averaged 7.9 points and 4.2 rebounds at small forward. He was South Carolina’s best perimeter defender. When he was out two games with an illness and injury, he was sorely missed. “When he wasn’t around those two games, not having him in the lineup was a major problem for our basketball team,” Martin said. Minaya gained about 10 pounds during the offseason, which is significant, he said, “because of how physical I realized it was in college.” “I really just tried to work on everything, trying to be more consistent, especially at the rim, my defense, my conditioning, all that. My goal right now is just to get better every day,” he said. Haase played valuable minutes off the bench behind Silva and Kotsar and proved to be a versatile all-around player. He averaged 5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds while showing a deft shooting touch from the perimeter. More importantly, he embraced the little things, setting screens, making the right passes and setting up his teammates. “Felipe is not a young man that is going to wow you with athleticism, but he has a great basketball mind and he’s got skill,” Martin said. His challenge during the offseason was getting bigger, stronger and tougher. Martin said Silva pushed Haase around “like a rag doll” during practice last season. He challenged him to “put up a fight, man. You can’t just get pushed around.” “His inability to do that never allowed him to play with confidence so he could showcase his skill level,” Martin said. “At practice right now, when that ball leaves his hand, it’s going in and he’s a lot more comfortable with battling around the basket and rebounding and getting shot attempts.” Martin believes he has two budding stars in MEN’S PREVIEW • BASKETBALL
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Minaya and Haase, who will play big roles again this season. “I am excited about those two. They have gotten to a place where they love it here,” he said. “… We spend too much time always wanting to speak about who doesn’t play and who doesn’t come back. We don’t spend enough time speaking about why guys do play and the ones who come back, how happy they are. Those two guys are in a real good place right now. I am excited for them.”
Fabulous Freshmen If there’s anything that gives Martin hope for another deep NCAA Tournament run in the next few years, it’s a freshman class he calls “the most talented group of freshmen I have had in my time at South Carolina.” It’s led by Lawson, a dynamic swing man and guard who, like Minaya, skipped his senior year of high school to enroll early. A top-40 prospect before reclassifying, Lawson brings great length and instincts to the backcourt. He started with Campbell in the preseason exhibition and knocked down his first two shots — both 3s — in a 12-point debut. Moss, a 6-2 point guard, was a
four-star recruit who led Findlay Prep in Nevada to a 32-5 record and the national semifinals in high school. Jermaine Couisnard, a bigtime scorer and all-state player from East Chicago, Ind., is expected to make an immediate impact once he resolves an academic issue. Alanzo Frink, a 6-6 power forward, is expected to contribute in the frontcourt once he recovers from a knee injury and Keyshawn Bryant, a 6-6 forward from Fort Myers, Fla., has impressed Martin with his explosive athleticism. Bryant had a spectacular 21-point debut in the season opener. “Keyshawn has a dunk every day in practice and I just sit there and say, ‘how did he do that,” Martin said. “I don’t think I have ever had a guy who is as explosive as far as attacking the rim and dunking the ball.” There is always a steep learning curve for freshmen, particularly in Martin’s defensive-minded system, but he says the group has embraced the challenge and is expected to contribute in a big way this season. “This freshman class is fun,” he said. “They are competitive, they are smart, the athleticism, accepting coaching. It’s the most phenomenal group we have had.”
2018-19 ROSTER NO. NAME POS 00 A.J. Lawson G 1 T.J. Moss G 2 Hassani Gravett G 4 Tre Campbell G 5 Jermaine Couisnard G 10 Justin Minaya F 13 Felipe Haase F 14 Nathan Nelson F 20 Alanzo Frink F 21 Maik Kotsar F 23 Evan Hinson G 24 Keyshawn Bryant F 30 Chris Silva F 33 Jason Cudd F 52 Jair Bolden* G
HT/WT 6-6, 172 6-2, 193 6-2, 188 6-0, 183 6-4, 202 6-5, 215 6-9, 253 6-5, 174 6-6, 265 6-11, 264 6-4, 240 6-6, 190 6-9, 234 7-1, 263 6-3, 210
CLASS FR FR R-SR GR FR SO SO FR FR JR JR FR SR SO JR
HOMETOWN Toronto Memphis,Tenn. Villa Rica, Ga. Washington, D.C. East Chicago, Ind. Harrington Park, N.J. Osorno, Chile Murfreesboro, Tenn. New Jersey City, N.J. Tallinn, Estonia Deltona, Fla. Winter Haven, Fla. Libreville, Gabon Myrtle Beach, S.C. Brooklyn, N.Y.
*Bolden must sit out the 2018-19 season after transferring from George Washington.
Frank Martin — Head Coach Perry Clark — Assistant Coach
Chuck Martin — Assistant Coach Bruce Shingler — Assistant Coach
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BASKETBALL • MEN’S PREVIEW
November 2018
Comfort Zone
Maik Kotsar ready for next step after offseason working on his game By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photo by Jenny Dilworth
M
aik Kotsar will never forget the feeling of playing on South Carolina’s first Final Four team as a freshman, helping the Gamecocks soar to heights they had never reached before. That’s why last season’s 17-16 season was so disappointing. “The Final Four run was spectacular, I have nothing but good memories from it,” Kotsar said prior to the season. “Last year didn’t go as we wanted it to and that only motivated us to work harder to come back this season and try to get to the Final Four again, maybe even further. I feel really motivated.” If South Carolina is going to bounce back from last season, contend in the SEC and return to the NCAA Tournament, the 6-11 forward from Estonia will have to play a big role. He will have to play much better than he did last season. Kotsar made a surprising im-
November 2018
pact as a freshman, starting 33 of 37 games and averaging 5.8 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 49 percent from the field. While not spectacular numbers, he added depth and strength to the frontcourt and gave the Gamecocks big minutes in key games. He scored in double figures in upsets over Michigan and Syracuse, both ranked teams, and added 12 points in the Elite Eight victory over Florida. Kotsar was expected to take a big step forward as a sophomore, but it didn’t happen. Though he increased his scoring average to 8 points per game, he shot just 42 percent and struggled from the free-throw line, shooting just 56 percent. Head coach Frank Martin was on him all season, pushing him to be more aggressive and make better decisions. He challenged him in the offseason to work harder on his game.
“My biggest thing with Maik was, ‘You are just never going to have success as a player unless you are willing to work at it,” Martin said. “He is talented and he could play in the NBA one day because of his size and ability to run. He has great footwork and agility and strength, but you have to work at it. “You can’t shoot [50] percent from the foul line, you can’t shoot 12 percent from the 3-point line, you can’t shoot 40 percent on two-point shots and expect to be a pro. Those are things you have to control. You have to learn to work at it, and he did.” Kotsar spent the summer playing for his home country of Estonia, first on a three-on-three team and then with the Estonia national team. He believes playing internationally, especially on the three-onthree team, helped him diversify his game and become a better shooter.
“I think it helped me pretty much every way,” he said. “In three-on-three, position-less basketball, you have to do everything from being a point guard and setting up plays to playing pick-n-roll with the ball to making the outside shots to just playing inside as I’m used to. I think it diversified my game a lot.” When he returned to Columbia, Kotsar hit the gym, working on his shot and all-around game. Outside of practice, he tries to shoot on his own two or three days a week. He entered the season with more confidence and trust from his head coach. “Last year, it was more like praying for it to go in,” he said. “This year it’s more like I can feel if the shot is right when it goes in. I feel like this is the most comfortable I have been.” Martin says Kotsar rarely worked on his game outside of practice last year and it showed in his performance on the floor. “I don’t care how many times I showed him his stats, he wouldn’t do it,” Martin said. “But they have learned to come in on their own and all of a sudden the ball is starting to go in. He made a commitment to come in and work on his game.” Martin believes Kotsar has the size and strength to be a force alongside Chris Silva in the low post, but also the athleticism and skills to handle the ball on the perimeter and score on drives to the basket and mid-range jumpers. For the Gamecocks to improve on last year’s disappointing season, he needs Kotsar to be an impact player on both ends of the floor. “Maik is one of those guys who can become a multi-talented player because he can pass, he plays off the dribble, he’s 260 pounds,” Martin said. “He’s a big man that can run and move so he can guard on the perimeter, he can guard on the interior. “The next step for him as a player is for that ball to go into the basket.” Martin believes that will happen more often this year. He sees a different player than the one who struggled with his shot and his confidence last season. “I’m seeing a different personality from him every day,” he said. “You can actually joke with him. In the past, he was wound up so tight because he was so worried about the ball not going in. He’s at peace with it now because he’s working at it and the ball is going in.” MAIK KOTSAR • BASKETBALL
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Big man with Big
Dreams
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BASKETBALL • CHRIS SILVA
November 2018
Chris Silva looks to take next step in long journey to South Carolina, NBA By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photos by Allen Sharpe & Jenny Dilworth “Things that are hard build character, and it’s good to struggle before you enjoy the fruits of your labor. Through struggles and happiness, good times and bad, he will be one person that you’ll trust the most. You don’t have your family here, but he is family. Frank [Martin] is family.” — Chris Silva in a letter to his 15-yearold self, gamecocksonline.com
C
hris Silva will never forget the first time he stepped onto the court at Colonial Life Arena. A tall, skinny forward from the African country of Gabon, he had not felt that lost since he arrived in New York City as a scared 15-yearold kid who could not speak English but dreamed of one day playing in the NBA. Three years later, his basketball skills were still as raw as his English. Silva was being yelled at by one of the most aggressive, intense college basketball coaches in the country. He chose South Carolina because he knew Frank Martin would push him to be the player he thought he could be, but even a kid with big dreams sometimes has trouble adjusting to Martin’s “tough love.” “All I was doing coming in as a freshman was just trying to grab the rebound and make a play some way possible,” said Silva, who had only played organized basketball for three years when he arrived in Columbia. “I didn’t know the offense, I didn’t know the techniques and I didn’t have a lot of experience. But Coach told me, ‘If you grab that rebound, I’m going to put you in the game.’” Martin was easily frustrated with the raw but immensely talented forward, who had shown such vast potential at Rosselle Catholic High School in New Jersey after that long plane ride from Gabon. “His freshman year, I used to tell him, ‘Chris, I’m watching you every day in practice and I’m tired of watching you have no idea what you are doing,’” Martin recalls. “I said, ‘Don’t worry about it. Chase the ball, run as fast as you can, go after the ball, I’ll play you every game.’” Silva played in 32 games that season, starting six and averaging about 13 minutes a night. He averaged 5.4 points and grabbed 4.5 rebounds a game while bringing size and energy on defense. He just tried to do what Martin told him to. “I was like, ‘OK.’ I grabbed November 2018
the rebound and he put me in the game,” Silva said. “Anytime I stepped onto the court, I was just trying to get my hands on the ball, no matter whether I was on defense or offense.” Martin liked what he saw. “As that year went on, he started to get better with understanding things,” he said.
Big step Silva grew up playing basketball in Libreville, Gabon, a French republic on the west coast of Central Africa. Playing against men twice his age, he was aggressive and scrappy and could leap above the rim as a 12-year-old. He wasn’t concerned about things like goal-tending or fouls playing pickup games under FIBA rules. Silva has loved the game since his friend got NBA games on TV and introduced him to “Kobe and the greats.” Silva told his friend then that he would play in the league one day. When his friend laughed at him and explained the incredible odds, he was “sad and near panic.” But he very quickly recovered and responded, “Nah, I’m gonna make it. I don’t know why, but I’m gonna make it to the league.” When Silva arrived in New Jersey — thanks to the aid of a coach from the Gabon National Team — he told his high school coach he was “here to go to the league,” even though he had never played organized ball. Three years later, when he first met Frank Martin, Silva was a fourstar recruit averaging 10 rebounds a game. He was interested in five college programs and visited three. The last one was South Carolina. The biggest attraction for a raw player with big dreams was Martin’s “tough love.” “When I sat with him and talked, he gave me the impression that that’s what I needed, not what I wanted,” Silva said. “I needed someone to push me and get me better every year and every time I step on the court.” “He was new to basketball. Not just new to the United States, not just new to South Carolina, he was new to basketball,” Martin said. “He just knew that he was going to work at this, as hard as he can, and he wanted to try to help his family through the use of the sport and
become a better person through the use of the sport. “And that’s his beauty, he has never removed himself from that frame of mind.” Silva’s progress has been remarkable. He started all 37 games as a sophomore, averaging 10 points, six rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game while helping South Carolina reach the Final Four. He had five double-doubles and got better as the season wore on, finishing the regular season strong and
then scoring in double figures in all five NCAA Tournament games, including 17 points and 10 rebounds in an upset over No. 2 Duke. He was just scratching the surface. With Martin driving and pushing him every day, Silva elevated his game even more last year, earning a spot on the SEC’s first-team allconference team and being named co-Defensive Player of the Year in one of the best leagues in the nation. He had his best games against the best teams, leading the Gamecocks to upset wins over Kentucky, Florida and Auburn, all top-20 teams. He scored a career-high 27 points against both Vanderbilt and Kentucky. “He killed us,” Kentucky forward P.J. Washington said. “… He pretty much won the game for them. He’s a great player and we couldn’t stop him.” “He’s just a relentless player and if you are not relentless, he will beat you,” Kentucky head coach John Calipari said. “Our guys will know better going against him, that if you are not ready for the dog fight you are about to get in, you are losing.”
Still Dreaming The thing that should worry SEC teams this season is that Silva is still working on his game, still chasing his dream. After initially entering last year’s NBA Draft, he decided to return to school to work on expanding his shooting range and diversifying his game, building a skill set that NBA coaches and GMs can’t pass up. College basketball analyst and NBA Draft expert Jay Bilas believes
Silva can play at the next level, fitting in as a valuable role player on a winning team. “He can guard multiple positions, he runs the floor, he can get a rebound,” Bilas said at SEC Media Day. “If he can improve his ability to space the floor a little bit to where he can knock down a permitter shot, that makes him even more valuable. … That’s how he is going to make his money in the pros; he’s going to be a contributing member to a winning organization.” Like he has done at South Carolina. Silva dreams of leading the Gamecocks back to the NCAA Tournament, maybe even to another Final Four. That’s why he keeps working every day, developing his game and trying to become a veteran leader. Part of his mission now is teaching another group of young freshmen what to expect and how to deal with the rantings and ravings of his “tough love” coach. CHRIS SILVA • BASKETBALL
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“If he’s not talking to me, I try to mess up something to see if he is going to yell at me,” Silva said. “If he doesn’t yell at me or pay attention to me, that is bad. If he doesn’t pay attention to you, you have no chance. Sometimes you have to see if he is paying attention to you.” Martin can’t help but smile when asked about his big, All-SEC forward. He is as proud of Silva as any player he has ever coached. He loves who he is and who he has become — on and off the court. Asked how Silva has changed since that rough freshman year, he jokes, “Outside of saying ‘yes’ and ‘no,’ his English has gotten a heck of a lot better.” What he likes most about Silva is that he has never wavered from his dream and the hard work he knows it takes to get there. “He has not allowed his success, whether it’s having an unbelievable NCAA Tournament or playing in a Final Four or becoming the defensive player of the year in a league that is real good defensively, becoming a first-team all-conference player … [that] hasn’t changed who he is. He has grown a lot as a player.”
Impressive Company Martin has coached some incredibly talented players, like NBA veteran Michael Beasely, who jumped to “the league” after one year with Martin at Kansas State. But he’s a master of molding and developing underrated players with vast potential. Two of the best played for him at South Carolina. Michael Carrera was raw like Silva his freshman year. By the time he was a senior, he was firstteam All-SEC. Sindarius Thornwell was a good but not great player as a freshman. As a senior, he was the SEC Player of the Year and led the Gamecocks to the Final Four before becoming a second-round NBA draft pick. Martin sees a lot of those two players in Silva, who had 27 double-figure scoring games and 10 double-doubles as a junior. “I saw the growth those guys had but I knew who they were as people in private,” Martin said. “Chris is like that. He has the same effort, the same desire, the same thing that drives those guys.” “He operates out of his energy level and he never takes a play off,” Bilas said. “He rebounds, he defends, he runs the floor. If there is a loose ball he is going after it and there’s no give.” “He’s a reflection of Frank Martin,” Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy said. “That kid plays extremely hard, as hard as anybody plays in this league.” Silva worked out for several NBA teams last summer before deciding to pull out of the draft and return for his senior year. An Integrated Information Technology major, he hopes to return to Gabon some day and help the advancement of the developing nation. Getting a college degree is important to him and his family. And then there are his other dreams — for both this season and the future. He came back to play one more season in the tough SEC and hopefully return South Carolina to the heights they enjoyed his sophomore season. “It was just like, ‘I am going to come back and we are going to have fun,’” he said. “I love the University and I didn’t want to leave the way I left [last season]. I wanted to make an impact.” Silva’s challenge this year is to expand his
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BASKETBALL • CHRIS SILVA
game, becoming not just a low-post scorer but a more versatile threat who can knock down an opener jumper or even a three-point shot. Martin has preached the same message throughout the preseason, that “every basket cannot be a fist fight.” Silva, who averaged 14.3 points and eight rebounds last year, got to the foul line a leaguehigh 283 times. He was second in the nation in free-throw attempts and sixth in free-throws made (213). But Martin knows teams will play him smarter this season. “He is too good a shooter not to create separation so he can jump up and shoot the ball without it being a fist fight,” Martin said. “That’s going to be his challenge … to not have to make it a fist fight every single time.” Silva has worked hard on his shooting during the offseason, taking extra shots at practice and often shooting at night on his own. He can make three-points shots from the corner, he says, and is working on developing a pull-up shot in the lane. “I like to go to the post and be physical and make my presence felt because if my presence is felt in the post, that is going to make the defense collapse and open up the outside shooting for the guards,” he said. “But sometimes when I come down the court as a trailer, my guy is guarding me, I am going to shoot it.” The other big challenge for Silva is staying out of foul trouble. He improved in that area last year, but still committed 115 personal fouls, 24 more than fellow forward Maik Kotsar and nearly twice as many as other starters on the team. Martin believes his big man will take that step. He watched Carrera and Thornwell do it, making big leaps as seniors. “When they became seniors, they both stayed on the floor for major minutes,” he said. “They didn’t foul, yet they were among the league leaders in rebounding because they were so aggressive going after the ball. They were among the better defenders in the conference and first-team all-league players because they stayed on the floor while defending with a certain aggression. That’s his next progression as a player.” That’s the reason Silva came to South Carolina. He knew Martin would push him to be the best player he can be. He believed Martin was the coach who could help him realize his dream. Asked who drives him and motivates him, Silva says simply and succinctly, “Coach.” “[He pushes me] every day in practice with the same energy, always ready to go,” said. “It doesn’t matter what type of day you are having, he tries to give me the energy to get better … to get a little bit better today than I was yesterday. That’s a lesson Silva reminds himself of every day. He even included it in the letter he wrote to that scared 15-year-old kid who flew from Gabon to New York City with big dreams.
What They’re Saying About Chris Silva Analysis from rival coaches, players and college basketball experts: “Chris is a really dynamic big guy. He’s not one of those guys who is going to be, give him the ball and clear out and let him make a move. He operates out of his energy level and he never takes a play off. He rebounds, he defends, he runs the floor. If there is a loose ball he is going after it and there’s no give. He’s consistently improved his offensive game so I think he will take another step forward in that.” — Jay Bilas, ESPN anaylst “He’s just a relentless player and if you are not relentless, he will beat you. Our guys will know better going against him, that if you are not ready for the dog fight you are about to get in, you are losing. But even if you are ready, he is still going to beat you to the ball, create baskets and create opportunities for his team. … Frank has done a great job with him.” — Kentucky head coach John Calipari “He’s a reflection of Frank Martin. That kid plays extremely hard, as hard as anybody plays in this league. He knows his role and he doesn’t try to do things he can’t do. That’s what makes him special.” — Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy “He’s a great player and we couldn’t stop him. I’m pretty sure he’s going to be like that this year. … He has all the energy in the world. He works for every rebound and tries to block every shot and is just a hustle player. It’s great fun going against a guy like that.” — Kentucky forward P.J. Washington “He’s one of a kind. He does whatever it takes for his team and it shows in his game how successful he is. He’s hard-nosed. He’s improved little things in his game every year. He’s just hard-nosed and grimy and he’s going to box out hard, he’s going to dive on the floor. He does all the little things most people don’t want to do.” — Mississippi State forward Aric Holman
“Life is a bumpy road, every day matters. You must give the best you can every day, because each is important. Always work hard for tomorrow and when tomorrow comes be ready for it.”
November 2018
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2018-19 MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE DATE OPP Oct. 26 Augusta (Exhibition) L 72–77 Nov. 6 USC Upstate W 65–52 Nov. 9 Stony Brook Nov. 13 Norfolk State Nov. 17 Providence (Uncasville, Conn.) Nov. 18 G. Washington/Michigan (Uncasville, Conn.) Nov. 26 Wofford Nov. 30 Coastal Carolina Dec. 5 at Wyoming Dec. 8 at Michigan Dec. 19 Virginia Dec. 22 Clemson Dec. 31 North Greenville Jan. 5 at Florida Jan. 8 Miss State Jan. 12 Missouri Jan. 16 at Vanderbilt Jan. 19 at LSU Jan. 22 Auburn Jan. 26 at Okla. State (SEC/Big 12 Challenge) Jan. 29 Tennessee Feb. 2 at Georgia Feb. 5 at Kentucky Feb. 9 Arkansas Feb. 13 at Tennessee Feb. 16 Texas A&M Feb. 19 Ole Miss Feb. 23 at Miss State Feb. 26 Alabama March 2 at Missouri March 5 at Texas A&M March 9 Georgia March 13 SEC Tournament (Nashville)
Felipe Haase
Justin Minaya
TIME
7 p.m. 7 p.m. 2:30 p.m. TBD 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 9 p.m. 12 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 2 p.m. 7 p.m./ 9 p.m. 1 p.m. 7 p.m. 6 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 2 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 1 p.m. 7 p.m. 3:30 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 1 p.m. 7 p.m. 6 p.m. 7 p.m. 3:30 p.m. 7 p.m. 1 p.m.
TV
SECN+ SEC+ ESPN3 ESPN2 SECN+ SECN Stadium FS1 SECN ESPN2 SECN+ ESPN2 ESPNU SECN SECN SECN SECN ESPN2/U SECN SECN SECN SECN SECN SECN SECN SECN ESPN2/U SECN SECN SECN
TICKET INFO Season, single-game: For season or single-game tickets, visit gamecocksonline.com or call 800-472-3267 or email gamecocktickets@sc.edu. Mobile Pass: The men’s basketball Mobile Pass guarantees admission to every game for $69. Seat location is delivered to your mobile phone prior to each game. For more information, visit ItsGreatToBeAGamecock.com. Frank Martin
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BASKETBALL • MEN’S SCHEDULE
November 2018
2018-19 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE DATE OPP Nov. 2 Nov. 11 Nov. 15 Nov. 18 Nov. 22 Nov. 23 Nov. 24 Nov. 28 Dec. 2 Dec. 5 Dec. 9 Dec. 16 Dec. 21 Dec. 30 Jan. 3 Jan. 6 Jan. 10 Jan. 13 Jan. 17 Jan. 21 Jan. 28 Jan. 31 Feb. 3 Feb. 7 Feb. 11 Feb. 14 Feb. 17 Feb. 21 Feb. 24 Feb. 28 March 3 March 6
Lander (Exhibition) W 100–62 at Alabama State Clemson Maryland East Tenn State (Vancouver Showcase) Vancouver Showcase Vancouver Showcase Dayton Baylor (SEC/Big 12 Challenge) App State at Duke at Purdue Temple Furman at Texas A&M Alabama Florida at LSU at Miss State Missouri Vanderbilt at Kentucky at Arkansas Ole Miss at UConn Georgia at Florida Kentucky at Tennessee at Auburn Miss State SEC Tournament (Greenville)
TIME
4 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 5:30 p.m. 9 p.m. TBD TBD 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 2 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 9 p.m. 12 p.m. 7 p.m. 5 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 5 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 7 p.m. 4 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 p.m. TBD
TV
SECN ESPN TBD Ty Harris
SECN+ ESPN2 SECN+ ESPN2 SECN SECN+ SECN ESPNU SECN+ SECN ESPN or SECN ESPN2 SECN SECN SECN SECN+ ESPN2 SECN SECN+ SECN+ ESPN2 SECN+ ESPN2
Dawn Staley
TICKET INFO Season Tickets: For season or single-game tickets, visit gamecocksonline.com or call 800-4723267 or email gamecocktickets@sc.edu. For more information, visit ItsGreatToBeAGamecock.com. Chalk Talk: Carolina’s pre-game event for season-ticket holders features guest speakers and assistant coaches breaking down the games. The event begins one hour and 15 minutes prior to tip-off in the Frank McGuire Club. This year’s events are on: Nov. 18 vs. Maryland, tipoff at 5:30; Nov. 28 vs. Dayton, tipoff at 7; Dec. 5 vs. Appalachian State, tipoff at 7; Jan. 10 vs. Florida, tipoff at 7; Feb. 7 vs. Ole Miss, tipoff at 7; Feb. 21 vs. Kentucky, tipoff at 7.
November 2018
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan
WOMEN’S SCHEDULE • BASKETBALL
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Full speed ahead Staley’s Gamecocks developing new identity in post-A’ja era
By Josh Hyber/Staff writer • Photos by Jenny Dilworth & Artie Walker
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top. If you have not already read the bolded questions listed below, say out loud the number one question you have about the Gamecock women’s basketball team heading into this season. Just by reading the sentence above, you likely thought quickly of the team’s one obvious uncertainty. Yes, so much of this season — at least the beginning — will be about the departure of program legend A’ja Wilson. No. 22 was not just a program-changing player. She was a program-changing person and presence. But as Gamecock players noted throughout this summer, the team has moved on. This season is about much more than a player not even on the current roster. Even without Wilson, Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks have been projected as a top-10 team in the
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nation and one of the top two teams in the SEC. (Mississippi State still has its version of Wilson, Teaira McCowan.) Four starters and nearly 65 percent of the Gamecocks’ scoring returns from a team that reached the Elite Eight and would have been Final Four bound if not for Connecticut. “Obviously Dawn is going to have her players ready to go,” Georgia head coach Joni Taylor said at SEC Media Day. “She does a great job every year making sure whoever comes in, whether it’s freshmen or players back from last year, they know their role and do a good job of executing them.”
Who replaces A’ja Wilson? The honest answer: no one. And that’s no slight to anyone on the roster. No one can replace the production, personality and charisma
BASKETBALL • WOMEN’S PREVIEW
Wilson brought. As far as on-court presence and production, Alexis Jennings will do her part. The 6-3 forward averaged 11.4 points, 6.6 rebounds in 25.3 minutes per game last season and was one of only two players to start every game. Three of her six doubledoubles came against nationallyranked opponents, including 19 points and 12 rebounds in the SEC tournament opener against Tennessee (a game the team played without Wilson). “I just decided and made the conscious decision to be that aggressor and be what my team needs me to be. That’s what I was in those games and hopefully I will continue to do the same,” Jennings said at SEC Media Day. Point guard Ty Harris has proven herself as a dependable scorer, able passer and clutch
performer. She averaged 10.4 points and 6.1 assists per game last season (the most in the conference) and had 20-plus point games against ranked Maryland, Tennessee and Georgia teams. She also held her own this summer while practicing with the U.S. national team as it prepped for the World Cup. Harris will likely up her point totals, as will Jennings and wing Mikiah Herbert Harrigan. “Even without A’ja Wilson, we know they are going to be one of the top teams in this league,” Taylor said.
How many guards will play? The Gamecocks’ head coach is a former guard, so it’s only right the team utilizes a full stable of backcourt options. “The guard rotation, it’s a lot of them,” Staley said. “I think we have November 2018
about seven guards and then one post who can slide over and be a little more versatile and play the guard position. It’s fun. It’s a lot of fun to be able to see someone make a mistake and know there is somebody right behind them that is champing at the bit to get more playing time.” All deserve to play, so there’s a chance we may see four guards on the floor at one time surrounding Jennings. First, there’s Harris, a star in the making if she’s not already one. She should play close to the 33.6 minutes per game she averaged last season. Then there are two unknowns: Bianca Cuevas-Moore and Te’a Cooper. Cuevas-Moore returns after sitting out last season with injuries and a brief transfer from the program. She’s a defensive force. Remember, she started on the program’s 2017 national championship team. Cooper — who performance coach Molly Binetti, in a video posted to social media, called a force — should play extended minutes as well. She led all scorers with 20 points in the preseason exhibition. “For [Te’a], she can play anywhere on the court,” Staley said. “She can bring the ball up the floor, she can slide over to the 2. She is athletic enough to play the 3 and get some rebounds for us. She’s just really an athletic piece to what we already have, and it’s a valuable piece for us.”
Which guards will play? The three named above are definite options to play major minutes if they’re healthy. But what do the Gamecocks do with Bianca Jackson, a reliable 3-point option, and Doniyah Cliney, a key glue player? The team also has freshman point guard Destanni Henderson, one of the top point guard recruits in the nation. Odds are they will find roles as well. “It’s competitive at that position,” Staley said. “Obviously [Bianca] has a lot more experience than a lot of them, especially current experience in that she played a whole lot. She played almost 40 minutes a game for us. She’s one of the smarter ones. She is going to find a way to get on the floor. It’s just competing for who is going to be the starters. It will probably come down to which unit works well together versus who is the best player.”
Who becomes a star? All signs point to Harris, who last season earned a spot on the All-SEC second team from both the league’s coaches and the Associated November 2018
Press. At times she took over games last season. Harris posted six double-doubles, the most points-assists doubledoubles in a season in Gamecock history. Who will replace Wilson’s leadership? That likely will be Harris. “Ty has been leading since her freshman year. Sometimes her leadership kind of goes under the radar because of who we had on those first two teams in her career,” Staley said. “… This year it is wide open for her to just step in and utilize some of the leadership skills that A’ja and Alaina [Coates] had. It’s prime time for her.” Leadership comes with the position, and Harris is one of the country’s best.
“She looks much different than she has over last year. I think she got motivated and she put in a lot of work this summer,” Staley said. “Skill-wise she is incredibly skillful, great footwork. She’s great around the basket. She just needs to continue to grow and get some experience under her belt. She will play much more minutes than she played last season.” Other options include 6-foot-1 freshmen Victaria Saxton and Elysa Wesolek.
Who are the team’s third and fourth forwards? After Jennings and Herbert Harrigan, the Gamecocks have unknown commodities in the front court. Sophomore Lele Grissett has shown ability and started three games last season. The six-footer was the team’s top rebounder in its January game against Ten- Mikiah Herbert nessee and scored 22 points on Harrigan & Lele Grissett the road against Vanderbilt. She also scored five points and grabbed two rebounds in a decisive 16-6 run in the second quarter of the NCAA Sweet 16 game against Buffalo. But Grissett averaged just 13.3 NO. NAME POS minutes per game last season and is more of a wing player than a 0 Nelly Perry G forward. 1 Bianca Cuevas-Moore G “We are going to try to play positionless basketball,” Staley said of 2 Te’a Cooper G Grissett and Herbert Harrigan. “Our 3 Destanni Henderson G post players are not going to be that traditional triangle with two blocks 4 Doniyah Cliney G and a high post. We are going to 5 Victaria Saxton F move them around. They are going to be on the baseline, they are going 10 Bianca Jackson G to be on the wing, they are going to be coming off ball screens.” 21 Mikiah Herbert Harrigan F Then there’s LaDazhia Williams, 23 LaDazhia Williams F a sophomore who averaged just 5.8 minutes per game last season and 24 Lele Grissett F only twice played double-digit min32 Elysa Wesolek F utes against an SEC opponent. She was ranked the 12th best forward in 35 Alexis Jennings F the 2017 class by ESPN and a top-50 52 Tyasha Harris G player overall. She will likely be the first opDawn Staley — Head Coach tion if Jennings is forced to miss Lisa Boyer — Associate Head Coach extended time.
Doniyah Cliney
2018-19 ROSTER HT/WT CLASS HOMETOWN 5-10
RS SR
Camden, N.J.
5-6
RS-SR
Bronx, N.Y.
5-8
JR
Powder Springs, Ga.
5-8
FR
Fort Myers, Fla.
6-0
SR
Newark, N.J.
6-1
FR
Rome, Ga.
5-10
SO
Montgomery, Ala.
6-2
JR
Pembroke Pines, Fla.
6-2
SO
Bradenton, Fla.
6-0
SO
Durham, N.C.
6-1
FR
Charleston, S.C.
6-3
SR
Madison, Ala.
5-10
JR
Noblesville, Ind.
Fred Chmiel — Assisant Coach Jolette Law — Assistant Coach WOMEN’S PREVIEW • BASKETBALL
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Message from the post
Strong, resilient Jennings ready to deliver for Gamecocks By Josh Hyber/Staff Writer Photos by Artie Walker & Jenny Dilworth “I am Alexis Jennings and I am strong and I am resilient.”
T
hat’s the message Alexis Jennings stated at the end of the three short video features about her posted to the South Carolina Gamecocks YouTube account this summer. Resilient because she set her mind on earning a college scholarship and did. Resilient because she overcame a chaotic situation at Kentucky and turned it into an opportunity in Columbia. Resilient because she never pouted and thrived playing alongside A’ja Wilson. Confident and careful, too, because she chose to return to South Carolina this season after one site projected her as a second-round WNBA draft pick. But when told by a fan in an autograph line at the team’s preseason kickoff event that she was glad Jennings returned, Jennings smiled and responded, “Me too.” So are head coach Dawn Staley, Jennings’ teammates and the rest of South Carolina women’s basketball fans. Jennings, who started every game last season and averaged 11.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, earned a spot on the preseason AllSEC second team this season. She had six double-doubles last season, three of which came against ranked opponents. She posted five 20-point games — all Gamecock victories — including 27 points at Vanderbilt. Her .583 field goal percentage ranked sixth in the SEC and included a perfect 9-for-9 night against Arkansas to mark the best perfect shooting performance in Colonial Life Arena history. “I just decided and made the conscious decision to be that aggressor and be what my team needs me to be,” Jennings said at SEC Media Day in her home state of Alabama. “That’s what I was in those games and hopefully I will
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BASKETBALL • ALEXIS JENNINGS
November 2018
continue to do the same.” Staley called Jennings a potential “ball magnet” for the Gamecocks. In other words, she will get opportunities. The 6-foot-3 forward has shown an ability to score from all over the floor, whether in the low post, mid-range or from the free-throw line. “The touches will be there,” Staley said. “She’s just got to do what Alexis has done for the three years she has played college basketball.” Jennings stayed on campus most of this summer and spent much of her time watching film and practicing against the team’s male practice players. “I’ve been in the gym working with my post coach and working on some moves and expanding my range,” she said. “I have been pretty consistent in practice with mid-range and 3s. I’m just excited to bring that element to my game back. I felt like I had that my freshman year and kind of shied away from it. But this year I think it’s going to be in full effect.” “I’m enjoying growing and evolving and becoming a new leader for this team,” she said in one of the YouTube videos. Whether Jennings can replace the production of Wilson is another thing. Wilson was a once-in-ageneration player — or probably 10 generations — so it’s not a knock on Jennings if she can’t. Jennings can be an All-American and SEC firstteamer and still not be the presence Wilson was. “I don’t think those are shoes I can fill,” Jennings said. “A’ja is a great player. I definitely learned a lot playing alongside her, just her being my friend, my sister. … My game is kind of different from hers, but I feel I can impact it in different ways. “I don’t feel like it is any pressure to fill her shoes per se because we are two different players. But I know what I need to do. I’ve been working hard all summer and have been watching film with coach. I feel pretty confident going into this season.” As far as pressure goes, the softspoken Jennings said she doesn’t feel any of it. Fifth-year senior Doniyah Cliney, as well as junior point guard Ty Harris, will handle the team’s vocal leadership responsibilities. Jennings said in one of the YouTube videos that she has felt like an underdog ever since middle school, when many of her teammates received college interest letters November 2018
and offers before she did. “It was like a trigger that clicked in my head that maybe I’m not working hard enough,” she said. “In my mind, my teenage mind, I thought that I was doing everything I could do to be my very best. I just had to grind for it. Nothing was ever really given to me.” In another installment, Jennings talked about setbacks. “My mentality is to just keep going, don’t let anybody stop you, don’t let anybody tell you you can’t do anything, because you can do anything you put your mind to,” she said, adding that at times last season she let missed layups turn into defensive lapses. But now the slate is clean. She may not be the team’s Batman, but she’s no longer Robin. Jennings, at times this season, may be the only post player on the floor for the Gamecocks. She will be called upon not to be Wilson, but to be herself. That, of course, is strong and resilient. Jeff Owens contributed to this article.
Alexis Jennings
Class: Senior Height: 6-3 Hometown: Madison, Ala. 2017-18: 11.4 ppg, 6.6 reb Honors: SEC All-Freshman; SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll Record: Best FG % in game at CLA (9-9 vs Arkansas) Career highlights: Led team in scoring four times and rebounding five times as junior; had six double-doubles; played two seasons at Kentucky, starting 21 of 67 games; averaged 8.9 points and 5.4 rebounds for Wildcats. Spurs & Feathers-October '18.pdf
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Mr. Gamecock Die-hard Carolina fan TJ Hopkins returns to lead SC for one more year
By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor Photos by Allen Sharpe & Jenny Dilworth
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J Hopkins has always been a die-hard Gamecock fan. Growing up in Summerville, S.C., Hopkins spent much of every spring at Sarge Frye Field, watching the Gamecocks play baseball. On fall Saturday afternoons, he was at Williams-Brice Stadium. “I wasn’t watching pro games when I was 10 years old, I was coming to Sarge Frye and Williams-Brice,” he said. “I have probably been to more games than anyone on this team. I’ve always been a Carolina fan.” So it wasn’t hard for Hopkins to turn down an offer from the San Diego Padres prior to last year’s
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BASEBALL • TJ HOPKINS
MLB Draft. A three-year starter for the Gamecocks, Hopkins wanted one more season playing before family and friends and patrolling center field for his beloved Gamecocks. “I felt like I had a good career, but I just feel like I still have some more stuff to do,” Hopkins said at the end of the fall season. “When I was little, this was top-notch. I just figured why not play a full year healthy and reach everything I know I can and what everybody thinks I can do. I just want to go out at the top of my career.”
After a strong but injuryplagued junior season, Hopkins will be a focal point of Mark Kingston’s second South Carolina team. Kingston led a veteran team to the NCAA Super Regionals last year, coming within one game of reaching the College World Series in his first season. Most of those players November 2018
November 2018
He believes he hurt his back, in part, because he was unable to work out while his hand was healing. “I feel like all the muscles in my back got weak,” he said. “I’m going to do a better job of pre-habbing so I can be on the field for 60-plus games this year.” You can count on Hopkins doing whatever it takes to stay on the field and have a big senior season. He has emerged as the leader of the team, setting the tone for Kingston’s team and helping out a roster filled with newcomers. “He had a very strong fall on the field but he also got rave reviews from his teammates, both returning players and the new guys, with how he is in the locker room and how he is trying to be a leader, especially by example,” Kingston said. “But he has also at times taken guys to the side one on one and said, ‘here’s what we need to do, here’s what coach is talking about.’ “He’s gotten rave reviews from our players as far as what they are doing for the culture of the locker room and our team. That is something that has been very pleasing to me, and TJ has been one of the big guys in that.” “It’s just being a good teammate,” Hopkins said. “I have been here for a while so I know how everything works, I know how Coach Kingston works, I just know how you need to go about business. I’m not really a vocal guy who is going to yell a lot. But I take pride in doing the little things with the young guys, all the new freshman. … I feel like they listen to me and I feel like we have good conversations.” Hopkins remembers how players like Clarke Schmidt and Hunter Taylor showed him the way during his first two seasons on campus. “It was a lot different when I came in here. You talked to the seniors and upperclassman, but we are all closer now,” he said. With the return of seniors Jacob Olson and Chris Cullen, sophomore Noah Campbell and a deep pitching staff, plus the injection of some new energy from 18 newcomers, Kingston believes he can build another strong postseason team. He’s counting on Hopkins to lead the way. The long-time Gamecock is ready. “I feel good, I’m healthy, I’m ready to roll,” Hopkins said.
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are gone now, with 10 selected in the MLB Draft. Only three starters return in the field. None are more crucial than Hopkins, who carried the Gamecocks when healthy last season. He hit .345 in 37 games and, despite missing 26 games with hand and back injuries, was Carolina’s most productive player, scoring 31 runs, driving in 24 and compiling a .448 on-base percentage. He even stole 14 bases in 16 attempts in limited playing time. When Hopkins was in the lineup, the Gamecocks were at their best, rolling past teams like LSU, Ole Miss and Vanderbilt to reach the NCAA Tournament. “He’s an elite player, there is no doubt,” Kingston said. “He has got elite speed, he’s got elite power, we just need to keep him on the field.” That was the focus throughout the offseason. Hopkins didn’t play summer ball as he recovered from a fracture in his back that cost him the end of the season. Prior to that, a broken hand cost him several games during the middle of the SEC season. Kingston was careful with his star player this fall, holding him out of several practices and scrimmages to keep him fresh and healthy. “What we did was get him just enough work to stay sharp and continue his progress but not so much that you had to worry about him tweaking something or worrying about a setback,” Kingston said. Hopkins hit the first pitch he saw in a fall scrimmage to the warning track at the deepest part of the ballpark. After a slow start, he finished strong and showed why he has to be in the lineup for the Gamecocks to succeed. “I feel like it went good,” Hopkins said. “At first I was just trying to get dialed in and getting back into the swing of things. I was like 0-for-8 or something, but toward the middle I started hitting the ball really good and seeing the ball better. I’m just glad I’m healthy and I feel good.” Hopkins spent much of the fall working on a program that requires plenty of pregame and pre-workout stretching to help prevent injuries. He also took fewer swings during batting practice and in the cages and stayed away from the pitching machine that became a key part of South Carolina’s practice regiment last year.
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Jackie Bradley Jr.
Steve Pearce
Big-moment players
Bradley, Pearce make Gamecock Nation proud with World Series title, MVPs By Jeff Owens/Executive Editor • Photos by Allen Sharpe & Boston Red Sox
R
ay Tanner has been out of the dugout for more than six years now, but during the 2018 World Series, he felt like he was coaching and managing again. Tanner, who led South Carolina to back-to-back College World Series championships in 201011, hung onto every pitch as he watched two of his former players, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Steve Pearce, lead the Boston Red Sox to a World Series victory. Bradley, who helped lead Tanner’s Gamecocks to two national championships, was named MVP of the American League Championship Series. A week later, Pearce, who starred on South Carolina’s 2004 and 2005 teams, was named MVP of the World Series. No one was prouder or pulling harder for them than their former head coach.
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BASEBALL • BRADLEY & PEARCE
“I have been out of the dugout now for quite a few years and I felt like I was back in there again,” Tanner said. “I was hanging onto everything those two guys did. It was really special.” Bradley hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and had nine RBI in the ALCS. His threerun double won Game 2 against the Astros and his grand slam in Game 3 sparked the Red Sox again. His two-run homer in Game 4 put the Red Sox ahead as they closed out Houston four games to one. “I’m speechless,” Bradley said after being presented the MVP award. “Amazing. Everything is such a blessing. It’s definitely a special moment.” Pearce, who joined the Red Sox in a trade at midseason, hit three home runs and had eight RBI against the Dodgers in the World
Series. He hit a game-tying home run and a three-run double in a 9-6 win in Game 4 and hit two home runs in the series-clinching Game 5. After playing for seven different major league teams, the 12-year veteran finally won his first World Series. “Baseball’s a funny game,” Pearce said after being presented the MVP trophy. “You never know where the game will take you. I’ve gone through a lot in my life and during my career to be here. I couldn’t be more thankful.” As the former Gamecocks led the Red Sox to their ninth World Series championship, Tanner was in frequent contact with his two former players. He had planned to be in Boston for Games 6 and 7 but was thrilled to see them win the title in L.A. “We were texting back and
forth and just kinda relishing the moment of what they were going through and then to have an ALCS MVP and a World Series MVP, you have to pinch yourself and say, ‘wow,’” Tanner, now South Carolina’s Athletic Director, said. “It couldn’t have been a better World Series for me, that’s for sure.” Bradley and Pearce were two of the most accomplished stars to play for Tanner at South Carolina. Bradley hit .331 in his three-year career with 30 home runs and 133 RBI. He was the MVP of the 2010 College World Series. Pearce was an All-American in 2005, when he hit .358 with 21 home runs and 63 RBI. In his twoyear career, he hit 42 home runs and had 133 RBI. He was the first South Carolina player to hit more than 40 home runs in a two-year career. November 2018
More importantly, both were big-game, big-moment players. “When you look back over my career and the teams that I had and the really good teams, you could find a guy or two on each team that might have not led your team in hitting or might not have led your team in a particular category, but in special moments when the game is on the line, they find a way to make something positive happen. That was Jackie and Steve,” Tanner said. “They are big-moment guys. You have to have guys who can perform in the moment and those guys have done that for a long time.” Pearce led South Carolina to the 2004 College World Series and was drafted in the 10th round of the 2004 MLB Draft by the Red Sox. He decided to return to school, however, and led the Gamecocks in all three triplecrown categories for the second straight year. “He could really square up a baseball,” Tanner said. “He hit balls hard consistently as much as any player I have ever coached.” The knock on Pearce entering the 2005 draft was where he would play. Was he a first baseman or an outfielder? He was drafted by the Pirates in 2005, made it to the big leagues in 2007 and played five seasons in Pittsburgh before moving to the American League, where he has played for every team in the AL East. With every club, he played both outfield and first base, while also serving as a DH for several American League teams. In Boston, where Bradley patrols center field and the Red Sox have the best outfield in
November 2018
baseball, Pearce platooned with Mitch Moreland at first base, facing mostly left-handed pitchers. He proved in the playoffs he could get it done with his bat and glove. “I think there are a lot of organizations over time who said, ‘we can use Pearce’s bat but he is not an everyday player,’” Tanner said. “I never thought he was a defensive liability at first base. I thought he was a plus defender. I think he displayed his ability to play first base during the playoffs. “But the reason he stayed in the league is, big-moment guy with a big bat.” The success of Bradley and Pearce on a such a big stage also brought national attention to the university. Both players went out of their way to mention South Carolina and the baseball program. That could reap benefits for Mark Kingston’s baseball team and the athletic department as a whole. “You talk about positive representation and how they handled themselves with their humbleness and their team-first approach, it was very special,” Tanner said. “You can’t put a price on that.” “That just speaks to our program,” said Kingston, who led South Carolina to the NCAA Super Regionals in his first season last year. “Guys are very proud to be a part of this program, past guys, future guys, current guys. Once you become a Gamecock, you are just proud of that fact and seeing those guys do their post-game interviews and talk about being Gamecocks, that’s special. “It is up to us now to make sure we continue to promote that to the next generation of recruits to show them what can be done when you come through our program.” Bradley, a 2016 American All-Star and a gold-glove winner this season, returns to Columbia during the offseason and spoke to the team prior to last season. He tweeted out a special message to the team on Opening Day and always goes
out of his way to publicly support the university. So does Pearce. “That’s who they are. It’s like they are still here,” Tanner said. “They are still the same guys and we have a lot of fun with that. I think that is unique because sometimes guys move on and maybe enjoy success at that level, they are professional athletes and they have done very well financially and sometimes you see a change. “Those guys haven’t changed. They are very fond of their roots at this university and they stood for that and gave us plenty of shoutouts back our way. That was heartwarming to me.” That kind of support from two major league stars has a big influence on current and future players. “I think it’s cool how they go about their business,” said Gamecock center fielder TJ Hopkins, who grew up watching both Bradley and Pearce play. “It’s kinda cool to watch Jackie come out here and talk to us. He’s just like another teammate. He’s easy going and easy to talk to. He’s just a really, really good dude.” Tanner and Kingston have both been in touch with Bradley and Pearce and hope to have them
return to the university soon. And Kingston is already using them as a valuable recruiting tool. “We will do as much as we can to use the recent success of those guys to help get guys excited about our program,” he said. “Every recruiting call we have had recently, that’s one of the first things that is talked about. It’s an exciting time for those guys and an exciting time for our program.” Tanner keeps in touch with both players. He’s seen Bradley play for the Red Sox several times and went to the Outback Bowl in Tampa with Pearce in January. As exciting as it was watching two former players win a World Series, he is most proud of the kind of men he helped mold. To know that they maintain a close relationship with their former coach and school means the world. “I was touched and somewhat emotional,” Tanner says. “The accomplishments and the winning and the MVP, that’s great, but I was very touched and emotional about seeing them translate that to our past and say, ‘This is a great moment but we remember where we came from.’” BRADLEY & PEARCE • BASEBALL
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SOCCER
No Fear
Gamecocks have few worries with Grace Fisk on pitch By Josh Hyber/Staff writer • Photos by Allen Sharpe
G
race Fisk seldom gets fazed when SEC attackers sprint at her full speed with a ball at their feet and eyes set on the South Carolina goal. She rarely gets rattled when there are loose balls in the box or when she finds herself alone as the
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WOMEN’S SOCCER • GRACE FISK
last defender back. Not even when she is falling from two-and-a-half miles up in the air at 120 mph. You read that right. “I wouldn’t say I’m a dare-devil, but I like to do stuff, and skydiving is something I always wanted to
do,” Fisk said in early November. “I wanted to do something different. I want to do it next time over the sea or over mountains, but it was really fun and really enjoyable.” Fisk — who did the skydive two years ago to celebrate her and her twin Dominic’s 18th birthday —
landed on two feet, of course, just as she did around that time when she arrived in Columbia. In both of her seasons with the Gamecocks, the junior has taken home SEC Defender of the Year honors. This season Fisk led a defense that allowed less than a goal a November 2018
game and registered nine shutouts in games she played in and 12 overall. The group, backed by goalkeeper Mikayla Krzeczowski, led the Gamecocks to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. “I’d say I just stay calm and try not to panic too much,” Fisk said, alluding to a characteristic she apparently has off the field as well. “I like to be on the ball a lot and help try to start the attack as much as possible. “Defending-wise, you won’t really see me do crazy slide tackles or anything like that. I like to think the game through. I like to read plays. It’s a mental game, soccer, and I think reading [the game] is most important.” “She’s probably one of the most consistent performers I’ve seen and that’s because of her composure,” South Carolina head coach Shelley Smith said. “She believes in herself and in her game. She knows where to be. You know what you’re going to get from her. “She’s a leader back there for sure. … You’re never going to see her get too high or too low. It’s consistently a strong performance from her.” Competing at a high level, like she did with the Gamecocks last season when the team reached the Final Four, is nothing new for Fisk. The England native has been a captain of her country’s amateur national teams since she was 15. This past summer she competed with England at
November 2018
the U-20 World Cup. Her team won the bronze medal, beating the host nation, France, in penalty kicks. Though she missed the first four games of South Carolina’s season, she brought back invaluable experience playing with and against the best young players in the world. In her time overseas, she honed more than anything on the “pitch” (she uses the more formal word for field) how to be a leader off the field. She learned how to have difficult conversations with her teammates. “For me, when I was growing up, the most effective captains were the ones that led by example,” she said. “I like to think that if I’m doing the right things off the pitch and I’m trying to do the right things on the pitch then that will resonate with my teammates more. “I also try to be fair and get other people’s opinions so it’s not just what I say. Which I think is important, because we are a team and it’s not just one person calling all the shots.” She came back and was voted team captain of the Gamecocks. “Deservedly so, with not just her playing ability but what she does off the field as a leader and as a person,” Smith said. “There’s probably a lot of pressure on Grace, who is a star returner for us, an All-American candidate,” Smith said before the season. “We expect
such a great player to watch. If there’s a ball screaming at her, I don’t worry about her at all.” The stout defensive foursome includes Sarah Eskew. “Grace is so level-headed,” Eskew said. “You’ll never see her stressed out or worrying. She really calms the entire team and keeps the back line in check so we limit mistakes and chances. “I also think her vision of the game just adds another dimension to the way she plays. She sees the field very well.” It also includes Tatumn Milazzo, who played Fisk’s center back position when she was away at the World Cup. “She’s our leader, so when Grace is calm, it gives the whole team more confidence,” Milazzo said. “It’s, ‘OK, if Grace is relaxed, we can relax.’” When asked at South Carolina’s NCAA Tournament Watch Party about times Fisk has covered for them or been the sole reason for the Gamecocks not allowing a goal, both smiled and pointed to the team’s 0-0 draw against national powerhouse Vanderbilt. In double overtime, after a cross was delivered into the box by
the Commodores, a shot was fired just below Krzeczowski’s arm. “Somehow the ball got through and a girl shot it from the PK spot,” Milazzo said. “Mikayla, I don’t think she saw it, and Grace just happened to be standing there. We were all like, ‘Wow. Thank God she was there.’” Said Eskew, “She literally saved our life.” Just a few weeks later Fisk won the SEC Defender of the Year honor. “It’s a team effort at the end of the day,” she said. “I may have gotten an individual award, but it’s a defensive award, so it’s a defensive effort. I’m just very grateful to have all the support around me.” Fisk played a season at Penn State but chose to transfer after starting 18 games for the Nittany Lions. Her decision came down to South Carolina and Clemson, and though her best friend Sandy Maciver plays for the Tigers, Fisk chose the Gamecocks. So what’s next for Fisk? “It’s my 21st coming up,” she said. “Me, my mom and my brother are going to Dubai.” No word yet, though, on if the Fisks have scheduled a skydive over the desert.
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great things out of her as our lone captain. But we know she’s capable.” Fisk had only one goal and one assist entering the NCAA Tournament but was arguably the team’s most valuable player. Krzeczowski, now the SEC’s leader in career shutouts as a junior, gets credit with the glamorous stat, but Krzeczowski, as well as Smith, routinely credit the defensive group led by Fisk. “She just reads the game so well,” Krzeczowski said. “She’s so calm under pressure. She’s so calm, cool and collected. … She does a great job at commanding. She’s GRACE FISK • WOMEN’S SOCCER
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Why November is my favorite sports month By Bill Gunter | Contributing writer
S
ports debates in which either answer is likely correct are the best sports debates to have. In the case of which month is the best month for sports depends on which sport you prefer. For me, the two months I always narrow it down to are November and March. With March, I point to the single greatest sporting event in the country — March Madness, which encompasses both conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament. Four weeks of incredible basketball, great upsets and fantastic stories played out as the weather is changing and I am attempting to burn off my winter weight to prepare for summer. November, however, stands without comparison as my love for college football and college basketball collide, mixed in with the greatest holiday of the year, Thanksgiving. South Carolina football is in full swing and usually produces great games and great
moments while the excitement of another basketball season has me interested to see what Dawn Staley and Frank Martin will produce. This year was another example of that with the Gamecocks looking like they could close the football season strong after the thrilling win over Ole Miss. The men’s basketball team cranked up a few days later with a win over USC Upstate and both results had me intrigued with the direction of both programs and how the rest of the month would play out. The month of November looked to be a big springboard into bowl season for the football team and the future of the program under Will Muschamp. After the 48-44 win over the Rebels, the Gamecocks had a chance for a second straight winning season in conference play and to win eight regular-season games for the second consecutive season. Both would be great accomplishments in year three under
Muschamp given the program he inherited. With the completion of the new Football Operations Center on schedule for early 2019 and the ability to sell another eightor nine-win season to recruits, what the Gamecocks do down the stretch could help propel the program to bigger and better things. Muschamp and his staff have shown the ability to recruit at a high level and with tangible evidence of solid on-field results, coupled with a brand-new facility, the program should continue to attract top-level talent. It was just as important that Frank Martin’s basketball team open the season with success to build confidence and pick up some big early-season victories during the month of November. After watching the Gamecocks defeat USC Upstate Nov. 6, I am intrigued by the roster Martin has put together and how quickly this team could develop. Freshmen A.J. Lawson and Keyshawn Bryant have added another dimension of athleticism to go along with Justin Minaya and veterans Chris Silva and Maik Kotsar. The length and athletic ability that Martin now has should help
showcase the defensive intensity that is a staple of his teams. While the Gamecocks did not shoot the ball well in their opener, I was impressed with how difficult it was to get open looks for the Spartans and how well the Gamecocks rebounded, even though they were the superior team. The month of December is going to be difficult for this young team with games against Michigan, Clemson and Virginia. The Gamecocks needed to take advantage of the November slate to build confidence and develop chemistry on the court. Being a sports guy, November is always one of my favorite months, and this one should be even more fun as the football and basketball teams give us plenty to discuss. Add in a little turkey and pecan pie and it is hard to beat.
Bill Gunter is the co-host of the Early Game on 107.5 The Game in Columbia. Follow him on Twitter @WillGunter.
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History says Muschamp having a good third year By Ed Girardeau | Contributing writer 1992); Joe Morrison 5-6 in 1985; Jim Carlen 5-7 in 1977; Paul Dietzel 4-6, 4-3 in the ACC in 1968; and Marvin Bass 1-8-1, 1-5-1 (ACC) in 1963. You have to go back 60 years to 1958 to find the secondbest third-year coach when Carolina was 7-3, 5-2 in the ACC under Warren Giese. For the record, Rex Enright, who had two different third seasons, went 3-6, 1-3 in the old Southern Conference in 1940 and 3-5, 1-3 in 1948 (Carolina joined the ACC in 1953). You get the point. Based on the history of South Carolina football, the Gamecocks are having a really good year. SC lost a couple of games it could have won and won a couple it could have easily lost, very much like last year. With a month left to play, Carolina was poised to finish strong and play in another good bowl game. The future looks good, too. The recruiting class for next year looks to be very good, if not great, which bodes well for the years to come. For the record, it wasn’t until 2010, year six for Spurrier, that the Gamecocks won nine games and the SEC East. Muschamp won nine games in his second season. Will the Gamecocks win the East again soon? Time will tell, but for right now, based on our history, Carolina is headed in the right direction and there are great days ahead. With loyal devotion, remembering the days …
Photos by SC Athletics
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November 2018
D a In
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s this football season rolls along, the year has taken on an eerily similar path to 2017. Depending on who you talk to, the glass is either half full or half empty. Early on, it did not take long to find a fan who thought it was completely empty. After eight games, South Carolina was 5-3, 4-3 in the SEC. The three losses were to Georgia, Kentucky and Texas A&M. At the same time last year, the Gamecocks had lost to the same three teams and would lose one more before winning the Outback Bowl over Michigan to finish 9-4. Obviously, we hoped they would improve on that this year. On the surface, things still look pretty good. When you look at the history of South Carolina football, for the third year of a coach’s tenure, it is outstanding. Will Muschamp’s team ranks up there with the best if the season ends as predicted. Looking back, the best third year, by far, was Lou Holtz’s team in 2001. That team went 9-3, 5-3 in the SEC, and won the Outback Bowl over Ohio State, which went on to win the national championship in 2002. Holtz inherited a 1-10 team from 1998 and went 0-11 in his first year, so it was quite a turnaround. Holtz’s last team, which Steve Spurrier inherited, was 6-5, 4-4 in the SEC. Spurrier’s third team was 6-6, 3-5. It was the only year in the Spurrier era that Carolina didn’t go to a bowl game, though it qualified (except for the last year, which we won’t go into). The most successful coach in Gamecock football history had a tough third year. Other coaches have not fared well, either. In their third seasons: Brad Scott went 6-5, 4-4 in 1996; Sparky Woods 3-6-2 in 1991 (SC joined the SEC in
ED GIRARDEAU • COLUMN
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