APPALACHIAN STATE 20, SOUTH CAROLINA 15
MOST VALUABLE Bryan Edwards not enough to carry injury-depleted offense By Jeff Owens | Executive Editor • Photos by Travis Bell and Jenny Dilworth
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ryan Edwards had proven all year that he is one of South Carolina’s most valuable players during a record-setting senior season. Never was that more evident than when the Gamecocks had to play without their best offensive player. Edwards, South Carolina’s alltime leading receiver, missed part of the first half against Appalachian State with a strained knee. With starters Shi Smith and Josh Vann and tight end Nick Muse already out and Chavis Dawkins also going down with an injury, the loss of Edwards left South Carolina incredibly thin at wide receiver. So thin that freshman walk-on Trey Adkins had a catch for 29 yards and former quarterback Jay Urich had his first catch of the season. 20 APP STATE RECAP
But with Edwards out of the game, the Gamecocks struggled with just 148 yards in the first half. Though Edwards returned in the second half and finished the game with nine receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown, South Carolina struggled on offense in the 20-15 loss to the Mountaineers. “You become very predictable, obviously, when you don’t have a vertical threat that people have seen,” head coach Will Muschamp said. “It certainly limits you as far as some of the run boxes you’re going to face aren’t going to be very favorable and we’ve got to be able to get people off of us.” With only Edwards as a reliable receiving option, South Carolina could not run the ball, rushing for only 21 yards, and scored just one touchdown — a 23-yard TD reception by Edwards.
With the running game struggling and the receiving corps decimated by injuries, Ryan Hilinski threw the ball 57 times for 325 yards but was plagued by dropped passes. His lone interception deflected off the hands of freshman Xavier Legette and was intercepted by Nicholas Ross, who returned it 20 yards for a touchdown. The inability to run the ball doomed the Gamecocks against a hungry App State team. “When we don’t have the ability to run the football we are going to struggle,” Muschamp said. “We weren’t efficient enough on offense. … We had run the ball well except in three ball games, and we lost all three games.” With his running mates out, App State was able to focus on Edwards and limit his effectiveness while putting pressure on Hilinski. The freshman quarter-
back overthrew Edwards in the end zone on the final play of the game. “We just need more bodies, man,” Edwards said. “It’s the end of the year, so everybody’s dealing with something. The more bodies you have, the more fresh everybody can be and the faster we can play.” The senior receiver and fouryear starter continued to be the big story for South Carolina. With his fourth-quarter touchdown catch, he became the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards, surpassing Gamecock great Alshon Jeffery. Already the all-time leader in receptions, he also caught a pass in a record 48 straight games. But as usual, the records meant little to Edwards. Not after a loss. “We still lost,” he said. “I’ll appreciate it after the season.”
DECEMBER 2019
