Why one really bad night sent the Gamecocks’ high expectations down the drain

Just a week ago it looked like South Carolina might just be back on the map.

There was talk that the Gamecocks were quite possibly the best team in the SEC East, and I, for one, was a believer.

I am no more.

Oh, what a loss at home to Kentucky can do to curb expectations.

But Saturday’s 23-13 defeat to the Wildcats wasn’t even the biggest loss USC suffered on that fateful day.

Coach Will Muschamp revealed after the game that the Gamecocks’ best playmaker and biggest threat, Deebo Samuel, is done for the season after breaking his leg during the game.

Samuel had been a lightning rod for USC. He went into Saturday’s game leading the SEC with five touchdowns and mere seconds into the game added his sixth on a 68-yard touchdown reception.

I remember glancing up and seeing on ESPN’s Bottom Line that South Carolina had scored a mere 13 seconds into the game. I wasn’t watching the game as I was at work, where we don’t get the SEC Network. However, the quick strike furthered my belief that this Gamecocks squad was different than ones in recent years.

But that thought came crashing down later in the night when I saw that USC had indeed lost to a Kentucky team that most years is average at best. Then came the news of Samuel.

So much for the high hopes for the Gamecocks and the thought that the Palmetto State rivalry game later this year would mean something for both squads. At the same time South Carolina’s hopes for a season to remember came crashing down, No. 3 Clemson was in the process of dismantling Lamar Jackson and No. 14 Louisville en route to a 47-21 victory that helped them leap up to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday.

But back to the Gamecocks.

With a running game that has sputtered – aside from a 172-yard total against Missouri – gaining only 31 yards against N.C. State and 54 against Kentucky, a lot has already been asked of quarterback Jake Bentley. Now, the sophomore – who’s played pretty well with a 63 percent completion percentage, over 700 yards passing and a 6-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio – is without his top target for the rest of the season.

That being said, Samuel also had scored on two kickoff returns. He’d been a scoring machine for the Gamecocks and has largely covered up the team’s shortcomings.

If South Carolina could only muster 13 points against Kentucky, think of how it will struggle without its top playmaker as the likes of Texas A&M, Arkansas, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Georgia, Florida and yes, Clemson, await it on the schedule.

Last week, I could have looked at the Gamecocks’ schedule and told you I thought they’d finish 8-4. Now, I see something more like 5-7.

Perhaps it was false hope all along. But now we’ll never know.

If Samuel hadn’t gone down, it could have been argued that it was simply a bad week and that USC would surely bounce back.

Instead, what looked early on as a program taking a major step forward, it likely will take a step back.

The Gamecocks finished 6-7 last year after going 3-9 the year before.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the hopes of getting back to the glory days – USC is just three-plus seasons removed from back-to-back-to-back 11-2 seasons – are quickly fading.

But look at the bright side: There’s always next year.

On tap

The Coastal Carolina football team returns home to Western Illinois at 6:30 p.m. Saturday. … The CCU women’s golf team plays in the Mercedes-Benz Championship on Monday and Tuesday. … The Coastal men’s golf team plays in the Janney Invitational hosted by VCU on Monday and Tuesday. … The Coastal Carolina men’s soccer team hosts College of Charleston at 7 p.m. Wednesday and Virginia Commonwealth at 6 p.m. Sunday. … The CCU cross country teams compete in the Fleet Feet CCU Invitational on Thursday. … The Coastal women’s soccer team hosts Troy at 6 p.m. Friday and plays at Louisiana-Monroe at 1 p.m. Sunday. … The Coastal Carolina volleyball team hosts Arkansas State at 6:30 p.m. Friday and plays at Little Rock at 6:30 p.m. Saturday. … The NASCAR Chase for the Cup continues at 2 p.m. Sunday (NBCSN) with the ISM Connect 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. … The PGA Tour will crown a FedEx Cup champion at the Tour Championship, which is scheduled for Thursday through Sunday in Atlanta. … The Clemson football team will host Boston College at 3:30 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2). … The South Carolina football team will host Louisiana Tech at 3:30 p.m. Saturday (SEC Network). … The Carolina Panthers host the New Orleans Saints at 1 p.m. Sunday (Fox). … The high school football season continues with the following matchups: Word of God (N.C.) at Aynor; Carolina Forest at Loris; Kingstree at Carvers Bay; Conway at Myrtle Beach (Thursday); Camden Military Academy at Green Sea Floyds; Camden at North Myrtle Beach; St. James at Socastee; and Hannah-Pamplico at Waccamaw. … In tennis, the men begin play in the ATP Moselle Open and ATP St. Petersburg Open, and the women begin play in the WTA Guangzhou International Women’s Open, WTA Tour Toray Pan Pacific Open and WTA Korea Open.

This story was originally published September 17, 2017 at 5:09 PM with the headline "Why one really bad night sent the Gamecocks’ high expectations down the drain."