Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Offer oeue to of By John Swift Staff Writer The 1980 edition of the USC i 1 _ -l I iwiuiiu leam, leu Dy ar experienced and extremelj talented offensive squad should provide Gamecock fans with another exciting season. Coach Jim Carlen will return seven starters or offense from his 1979 team, along with two other players who enjoyed considerable playing time. Another bonus for the offensive attack will be the return of Johnnie Wright. Wright, who ran for over 900 yards in the 1978 season, missed all of the 1979 season with a knee injury. Carolina will again use the two tight end offense that sparked it to an eight win season in 1979. Implemented following an opening season loss to North Carolina, the Gamecocks used this formation to take advantage ot their superior running game and abundance of talent al right end. AT THE HELM of the Carolina offense will be senior quarterback Garrj Harper. A three year starter at the position, Harper leads his teammates with a fine mixture of maturity anc consistency. In the 1975 season, he threw for sever touchdowns and also scored seven times on rushing at a a. i-i? icnpus. wiiue completing fifty-one percent of his passes for 929 yards, the Hialeah, Fla. native threw Defei Veteran line lacl By Frank Verde Staff Writer The 1980 Gamecocks wil begin the football season or Saturday with a young am somewhat inexperiencec defensive squad led by si) returning starters. Carolina is returning 1 lettermen to its defensiv< crew while 12 lettermer were lost to graduation in eluding five starters. This year's starting squad dominated by sophomores will feature at least fivi , ? ?u- r:?* i au^tuiuuira uu uic ni si Ulll defense along with thre< seniors and two or thre< juniors. The strength of the defense will be in the secondary Assistant head coach am defensive coordinatoi Richard Bell says, "Colleg< of Senses are tending to us< mjre ana more motion ant shifting and you neet veterans who can make th< correct adjustments. Rober Perlotte, Pat Bowen, anc Marlf Uriclc/pc u r#? thi returnees and they'll pop you. They are capable ol making the big play." Bridges, an experienced senior, will hold down the tse n startei fertsive i only four intercept during the regular sea j Harper enters 1980 wil | streak of eight eonseci r regular season ga without an intercention r \ "Quarterback is a pi solid position on our offc Garry is stronger, r I mature, and more confic i He's able to read defe better, be relaxed [ execute what he want ? do," offensive coordin ; Jack Fligg said. I The Gamecocks will ' I H _1 A. A* 1 ue sona ai me running c positions. At tailb? George Rogers will trj live up to his prese* billing as a Heisman Trc candidate and All-Ameri pick. In 1979, the 6-2, pound back rushed for 1, yards, second in the nai to Southern Cal's Chai White. Rogers' outstand ' season was highlighted I still intact string of straight games in whicl ran for over 100 yards ; a [ yard performance aga N.C. State, and a sev< [ place finish in the Heisi voting. His best colleg | effort came in 1978 whei j ran over Wake Forest foi . yards. Heading into senior year, he has aire become the leading rush* Carolina football his ' with a three total of 3 ; yards. Joining Harper i ise secondt cs exper right cornerback s Perlotte, a junior, will be 1 top free safety for the tl 1 straight year. He has stai 1 twenty-three straight gai 1 and led the 1979 defense * c 105 tackles and numei pass deflections. Bowei I sophomore, started the i i eight games last year 1 led the team with four - terceptions from his sti 3 safety spot. ! THE LEFT C< 2 NERBACK position wil t shared by two sophomc 5 Harry Skipper, the fa$ 5 defensive player on squad, will battle it out 2 Chuck Finney. i,asi year s squaa deepest on the defer front. Three of the starters are gone and in I place is a lot of poter Chuck Allen is a pri veteran at right tackle. 6'3" 250-pounder is leader on the defer front. Phil Ellis, a sophomor ) the other returnee on f line. Ellis started five ga but saw action in al I contests last season. : finished second on the t rs return squad ions Rogers in the backfield will son. be fullback Johnnie Wright, -h a Teamed with Rogers in the itive 1978 season, the two were mes regarded as one of the best pair of backs in the nation. An early season knee injury etty required surgery and nse. prevented Wright from nore playing in 1979. But after lent, undergoing a strenuous nses rehabilitation program he and has completely recovered 5 and regained a starting ator berth. THE RETURN of Wright could add a great deal to an also already awesome offense if >ack he can contribute with his ick. hWlfina ac n;al 1 ac ho ' MAW1BIIA0 UU TV vm UO fl IV 1 to running ability. ison phy "The first thing can he(Wright) must do is block 220 well. We should be able to run a little different stuff :ion hjm ^e backfield to 'les take advantage of things teams try to do to stop Rogers," Fligg said. ing )y^ The Carolina offensive i he attack will also include more 217 passing to the running inst backs. Though Rogers and jnth Wright did not scrimmage rian during spring practice while iate nursin8 injuries, they did n h* work on their receiving skills. his lady "We must 8et the ball to Jrjn them some...they are good tory receivers and runners. In the 310 two "gnt end offense you must mix it up and utilize your backs as receivers," Fligg added. and At flanker, the Gamecocks iry returns ic^ricc? lot. in quarterback sacks his the freshman year. lird New to the front line this rted year is middle guard Emmes manuel Weaver. He is a vith junior college transfer who -ous impressed the coaching staff 1, a with his nntstnnriino nthlMin inal ability at 6'4" 250 pounds, and Sophomores Karey m- Johnson and Paul Williams ong win see plenty of action at right end. Johnson spent most of 1979 with Carolina's 5R- undefeated junior varsity i dc team while Williams sat out res. the year after transferring >test from Clemson in 1978. the Andrew Provence, also a with sophomore, will be at left defensive tackle. At 6'3" 255 was pounds, Provence is the sive strongest player on the five team. Junior Donnie Mcheir Daniel who was ehirfpH itial. last season will also see wen plenty of playing time at The tackle. the isive AN IMPORTANT part of the Gamecock defense will e, is be Ed Baxley at left the linebacker. The senior broke mes into the lineup at midseason 1 12 last year and finished third He on the squad in total tackles earn with 100, including 15 in the Running back Johnn after missing the ent will start Horace Smith, w Tim Gillespie also schedu for considerable action. I tho noci fr?lir- pnni-nnp t v?>x/ |yv*.u v tvui iJVUU\/lliJ t position was occupied by i dependable Zion McKinn who provided excelh blocking for the Caroli running game. "Zion will be the tough player to replace on offen He was such a well-roun< player who did all the lit things from his experiei ns 9 fmir vnnp cf arfro Fliggsaid. Seniors Willie Scott i Ben Cornett will anchor two tight end offense t was so successful Carolina in 1979. The 6-5, nnund Srntt PAiitfht 14 nas rww""- ? o?- - - r ? this past season and she provide the team u another offensive thr< Cornett is best known for superior blocking ability, has the size and talent tc an excellent target 'HB^:-;.-: 9^K ph9V ^.-. JR^IE" UT *>I^^Kb JBbf^ *^V] Returning defensive Bridges bring down victory. Hall of Fame Bowl aga Missouri. At right linebac will be J.D. Fuller, sophomore, who enjoye great spring season to c his starting position. Se Walter Kater will pro' backup at both linebac slots. According to coach 1 "A key to how succes we'll be this year is leadership we gel. V 1 <:: itf iW" ^ iSl Hi S B31 ie Wright will return to the Gen ire 1979 seeson due to a knee ith Harper's aerials. led ror THE OFFENSIVE line his will face the task of the replacing Quay Farr, Fred ey, David, and Bill Lane. At int tackle, the Gamecocks are ina set with senior George Schecterly and junior Chuck Slaughter. At 6-3, 225 pounds est and 6-5, 250 pounds, ,se. respectively, they provide Jed the size and strength to ttle trigger the Carolina ground nee game. At guard, Steve Gettel r>" will return on the right side while Carlen lacks an experienced performer to play the opposite side. Joe Doyle, *nd a former linebacker, and the Fred Chalmers are leading hat candidates for the oosition. for 235 ,ses At center, Carolina will >uld have depth with Mark Austin /ith and Randy Teston expected sat. to alternate at the position, his Though not a starter in 1979, but Austin played extensively in Ibe all 12 games. Teston has for played very little during his jj^ Jll^ F&& v.JI l^^r' ^R? ^ ?*? * starters Ed Baxley (50), Rober ? an Oklahoma State player in inst have to see how they respond :ker when the challenge is a there." r\ a V4 U ?arn THE TEST FOK the young nior Gamecock defense will come vide early this season when ?ker Carolina travels to Southern California and Michigan in Jell, the third and fourth weeks of sful the season. ho - ? i,,t coach Bell said, "We've ye 11 g0t potential. We have to ? 9 "*- -- , K?| necock back field this fail injury. two years at Carolina, but established himself with an outstanding spring practice. Overall, the Carolina offense is characterized by experience and talent at almost every position. Of seven returning starters three players - Scott, Rogers, and Schecterly - are certain to obtain postseason honors. Furthermore, The ^ 1 !11 1 A! uamecocits win oe operating with a heady, experienced quarterback and an offensive formation that is perfectly suited for their personnel. While Carolina had a powerful offense in 1979, this squad promises to be even more exciting and explosive. "We really have the opportunity to be a better offensive team. The key is how wen tne seven guys returning play. If those seven play better, we will have a better team," Fliggsaid. gMBUfl?PIIBH : i jdWfM j MP1tBL : <: ?IBj i BKS^^ M Xsife s,s mm t Per/otte (24), and Mark ' last year's 23-16 USC play as a team, as a group. If wc can do that, get some experience and stay healthy, I'll be happy to take chances with what we have.'' After last season's performance everyone knows what the Gamecock offense is capable of. In a few weeks Gamecock football fans will have a fair idea on how far tlio Pa^ v.v. v/cu kiiiia ucic-iiftf cum 140 in 1980.