Observations From South Carolina's First Bowl Practice

The media attended South Carolina's first bowl practice, and multiple interesting takeaways came out of it.

On Thursday afternoon, head coach Shane Beamer and the South Carolina Gamecocks began their first official bowl practice in the Jerri and Steve Spurrier Indoor Facility. 

Coaches talked with the players during warmups while the music echoed throughout the building as they geared up for a highly anticipated bowl matchup.

I, along with other media members, saw their warmups and first five periods of individual drills and drills with multiple position groups and came away with multiple observations.

Multiple Offensive Absences

With everything that's gone on recently with opt-outs and transfer portal entries, bowl season has become a game of who's here more so than who's not. South Carolina missed four offensive players on Thursday afternoon: Antwane Wells Jr., Jalen Brooks, Dylan Wonnum, and Lovasea Carroll. 

That group includes three starters and a player in Carroll who was expected to factor into the running back rotation at the Gator Bowl.

I also did not see Josh Vann in the building on Thursday, but Vann could still be recovering from his sprained knee injury sustained in the Palmetto Bowl against Clemson.

The Running Back and Tight End Rotations

With Carolina down multiple players for varying reasons at these two positions, I specifically paid attention to these groups during individual work. At the running back position, Juju McDowell was the first running back taking reps in these position-specific drills, with Dante Miller right behind him.

Running back Christian Beal-Smith was a full participant in the first five practice periods. He had bandages on his right ankle, but he looked quick and uninhibited when making cuts, a good sign for the Gamecocks, who will desperately need Beal-Smith to log some snaps against the Fighting Irish.

The tight end position will look vastly different from the regular season, as Austin Stogner and Jaheim Bell both transferred to new schools. At the same time, Traevon Kenion retired from the sport altogether. Nate Atkins will be the starter at this spot, and based on individual drills, Wyatt Campbell and DJ Twitty will serve as tight ends for the Gator Bowl.

The rest of the Gamecocks bowl practices in Columbia are all closed to the public.

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