Presnap Troubles Plague South Carolina
National pundits are critiquing South Carolina's offense, casting most blame on offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield. While their frustrations are understandable, Satterfield doesn't shoulder all the responsibility.
Of course, Satterfield is the one who radios in the play, so fans will attribute all the blame to him. The truth is that everyone could be executing better, from Satterfield down to his personnel.
The main issue South Carolina has is that they work themselves into third and longs. It's tough to work yourself out of bad situations, no matter how much talent you have on offense.
South Carolina struggles presnap; they don't identify free rushers or check out of plays at the line of scrimmage. That falls on Satterfield, quarterback Spencer Rattler, and the offensive line, but the common thread is that there is a lack of communication.
Everyone must work together to ensure the call is appropriate and can be executed. For example, Rattler took several unnecessary sacks because the offensive line didn't key in on some man pass rushes.
Furthermore, he was repeatedly flushed from the pocket when all he had to do was check into a good call when the defense showed blitz. Missouri brought several defenders on stunts and simulated pressures, but none were challenging to diagnose.
Football is simple when you boil it down to the basics. Players and coaches must bring a consistent level of attentiveness, and quite frankly, South Carolina let that get away from them on Saturday afternoon.
It's a straightforward fix, as they need to spend the week emphasizing communication. They already have the answers to the question; the biggest issue is acknowledging there is a question.
Satterfield will take a lot of criticism this week, some justified and some not. However, it's his job to take control of the situation. The first thing discussed in those meetings should be how everyone must be on the same page moving forward to keep the offense ahead of the sticks.
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