Gamecocks 15 Bulldogs 0
South
Carolina opened the 2006 season with its first defensive shutout in six years
and its first-ever SEC road shutout with an tough 15-0 victory over
Mississippi State. With only one returning starter, five true freshmen and a
trio of junior-college transfers dotting the depth chart, the defense was an
unknown heading into the season opener and thought to be a major weakness.
That weakness proved to be the strength of the Gamecock football team on a
night when the offense could not get untracked.
Mississippi State's deepest penetration in USC territory was the 21-yard line,
after a Blake
Mitchell interception gave MSU the ball on the USC 28-yard line. Other
than that turnover, Mississippi State never really threatened, getting only as
deep as the USC 38-yard line.
Players of the Game
The leading tacklers were middle linebackers
Jasper Brinkley, a junior
college transfer had 11 tackles, 1-1/2 tackles for loss, one sack and a
deflected pass, and fellow inside linebacker
Marvin Sapp was the second
leading tackler with seven stops, including 1-1/2 tackles for loss, including
a sack of MSU quarterback
Tray Rutland. In the past, the leading
tacklers were usually the corners or safeties, which may not have necessarily
been a plus.
Ryan Succop knocked in three field goals and was the team's leading
rusher midway through the third quarter after converting a botched punt for a
first down with a 16-yard run. He also averaged 50 yards on five punts.
Plays of the Game
The turning point of the game came after USC held Mississippi State on
fourth-and-1 from the USC 45-yard line. Ironically, former starting defensive
tackle Stanley
Doughty came in for his only play of the game and got penetration,
which resulted in a one-yard loss. The pass on the next play from Syvelle
Newton to Corey Boyd, who slipped undetected out of the backfield
down the right side of the field with 13:43 left, was South Carolina's longest
play of the game and made up for an apparent touchdown that had been
overturned by the NCAA's new instant replay rule.
For the game, the USC defense limited Mississippi State to 161 yards of total
offense and held the Bulldogs to 4-of-14 on third-down conversions and 0-for-1
on fourth down.
USC's defense set the tone early. On Mississippi State's first play from
scrimmage, Jasper Brinkley made a bone-crushing hit on Henig. That play would
be a sign of things to come for Brinkley, as the junior from Thomson, Ga.,
would prove to be the best player on the field for most of the night.
USC's pass defense was impressive, as Henig and Rutland were a combined
8-of-23 for 82 yards, with two interceptions, one each by senior cornerback Fred
Bennett and junior free safety Chris
Hampton.
While Mississippi State had the more experienced and heralded defense coming
into the game, it was the Gamecock defense that stole the show. USC's
defensive players were faster and more aggressive than at any time last
season. Nix used a variety of blitzes and stunts, and did a good job of mixing
coverages in the secondary, which prevented the MSU offense from getting on
track.
Defensive ends Ryan
Brown, Casper
Brinkley and true freshman Eric
Norwood constantly wreaked havoc on the Bulldog offensive line and
were in Mississippi State's backfield all night long.
The USC defense was especially dominant in the first half, holding the
Bulldogs to 73 total yards.
