Injuries Posing Challenges For Gamecocks Secondary

Defensive coordinator Clayton White shuffled the lineup at various points in the season due to injuries and spoke at his press conference about the obstacles that can create.

If there's an argument about which position group endures the most difficulties overcoming the potential mistakes of just one player, the unequivocal answer has to be the secondary.

Now, imagine how much more magnified those roadblocks become when the vast majority of the original starting group has dealt with injuries leading to an inconsistent rotation for most of a football season.

It's the exact scenario played out for defensive coordinator Clayton White, to the point where he's been forced to be methodical in getting guys to play certain positions that might be unfamiliar to them.

"We've been trying our best not to move a lot of guys around in regards to playing two positions," White explained at his Wednesday presser. "That hurt us early in the season when we moved a couple of guys to a new position the week of the game, and it was hard on the coaches and the players. So now we're just trying to put them in the best spot for the week and just learn that position for the week. It takes a lot of meetings, a lot of talking, a lot of communicating."

One of the bigger tests for South Carolina's defensive coaching staff has been getting the players to juggle their responsibilities and understand what they need to look for regarding their opponent. This is a task that, as White put it, can, at times, be extraordinarily tough.

"We're just trying to make sure we have guys on the field at all times that practice and understand the defense and, more importantly, the offense that you're going to face. Those are two different worlds that you have to learn. You have to learn our stuff, and you have to learn what you're going to get, and you have to really expect something that you haven't seen."

In the middle of this, White expressed satisfaction with how the secondary finished the game against Vanderbilt. Freshman corner DQ Smith and safety O'Donnell Fortune forced multiple key turnovers despite the unit losing veterans in safety BJ Gibson and defensive back David Spaulding to injuries.

"This is high-level football [with] high-level coaches, [so] that's going to happen every Saturday, and I think that I'm more proud of just how we finish the game… I love seeing those guys come in there and make plays whenever we need it."

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