South Carolina football’s situation on the outside of the defensive line is pretty good. Both the end and Buck spots return a pair of rotation players, two who started down the stretch.
Inside, it’s one proven commodity, one top candidate to step up and a whole lot of questions.
The Gamecocks came into 2017 with a slightly similar spot. They knew they had seniors Taylor Stallworth and Ulric Jones, but no one proven for depth. They head into the offseason with Javon Kinlaw as a starter whose impact seemed to rise each week.
And the next candidate to start was the No. 4 player in this year’s tackle rotation.
“Kobe Smith continues to come on, do some nice things for us,” USC coach Will Muschamp said. “I’ve been very pleased with his progress.”
The 297-pound Atlanta-area product was a late get in Muschamp’s first class. He was at the back end of a rotation as a true freshman, and last season had 13 tackles, 1 1/5 for loss working behind the top trio.
Smith would seem to be the default candidate to start alongside Kinlaw (20 tackles, three pass breakups, one blocked kick), as he is the only other returning defensive tackle to register a stat last season.
Another name that could get into the mix is M.J. Webb, a four-star early enrollee who redshirted last season. Muschamp said he’d done a nice job in practice.
Third-year player Aaron Thompson hasn’t had a snap the past two years. That means the team could look to junior college transfer Jabari Ellis (6-foot-2, 280) and maybe top-150 recruit Rick Sandidge, should he choose USC.
But Muschamp expects inside help from an outside starter, in a similar vein to what the team did this season.
“Guys that move inside in situational football, 3rd down and 1 to help us out,” Muschamp said. “Keir (Thomas) is certainly a guy that continues to grow, can be in that role next year.”
Thomas and Dante Sawyer both played USC’s bigger end but also bounced inside. Sawyer is gone, but Thomas went from an undersized tackle playing as a true freshman to a starting end who had 38 tackles and a couple sacks last season.
The Gamecocks made a big step forward in terms of run defense and interior strength from 2016 to 2017. Opponents yards per carry jumped from 93rd nationally to 38th.
To continue that, they’ll need a few new players and maybe Webb to step up, and likely will need Smith to advance from solid reserve to reliable starter.
Stallworth, who became an underrated part of the center of that defense, said Smith grew in terms of understanding the plays and scheme, and brings something else to the table.
“Does his job,” Stallworth said. “I feel like he continued working, continues putting in the work that he is now, he’s going to continue to be successful.”