Why Jamyest Williams sat for most of 2nd half vs. Vandy
OCTOBER 29, 2017
To the naked eye, it was clear something had gone wrong for South Carolina freshman defensive back Jamyest Williams.
On third-and-7 from USC’s 8-yard line in the second quarter Saturday against Vanderbilt, the Gamecocks defensive staff got aggressive. USC sent a six-man pressure at Commodores quarterback Kyle Shurmur, even pulling the rare feat of outnumbering blockers.
The top thing USC couldn’t do was give up something quick and easy, and maybe over the middle. Williams gave up all three on a slant for a score, and heard it from Will Muschamp and defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson on the sideline.
“You’ve got to cut the guy off inside,” Muschamp said after the game, still seeming a little fired up about the subject. “You’ve got to cut him on the 1-yard line. You don’t back up into the end zone. That’s a base rule of what we do. And that’s why we play pretty decent red zone defense when we play smart and you play the way you’re coached to play. And when you don’t, that happens.”
It wasn’t clear if Muschamp’s “that” referred to the touchdown or Williams losing playing time thereafter, but the latter certainly happened.
Williams played USC’s next snap after the touchdown and didn’t see the field again until the end of the third quarter when the team appeared to play six defensive backs. He got one snap there and then three during Vanderbilt’s touchdown drive to cut it to a one-score game in the final quarter.
In his place, Chris Lammons moved down to nickel, and steady Steven Montac subbed in at safety. Antoine Wilder also played a fair amount of strongside linebacker, where USC was without injured starter Sherrod Greene (who in turn took the spot of Bryson Allen-Williams, who is out for the season).
Williams is eighth on the team with 29 tackles. He’s played in all eight games, starting five, including Saturday against the Commodores.
THE STATE
OCTOBER 29, 2017
To the naked eye, it was clear something had gone wrong for South Carolina freshman defensive back Jamyest Williams.
On third-and-7 from USC’s 8-yard line in the second quarter Saturday against Vanderbilt, the Gamecocks defensive staff got aggressive. USC sent a six-man pressure at Commodores quarterback Kyle Shurmur, even pulling the rare feat of outnumbering blockers.
The top thing USC couldn’t do was give up something quick and easy, and maybe over the middle. Williams gave up all three on a slant for a score, and heard it from Will Muschamp and defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson on the sideline.
“You’ve got to cut the guy off inside,” Muschamp said after the game, still seeming a little fired up about the subject. “You’ve got to cut him on the 1-yard line. You don’t back up into the end zone. That’s a base rule of what we do. And that’s why we play pretty decent red zone defense when we play smart and you play the way you’re coached to play. And when you don’t, that happens.”
It wasn’t clear if Muschamp’s “that” referred to the touchdown or Williams losing playing time thereafter, but the latter certainly happened.
Williams played USC’s next snap after the touchdown and didn’t see the field again until the end of the third quarter when the team appeared to play six defensive backs. He got one snap there and then three during Vanderbilt’s touchdown drive to cut it to a one-score game in the final quarter.
In his place, Chris Lammons moved down to nickel, and steady Steven Montac subbed in at safety. Antoine Wilder also played a fair amount of strongside linebacker, where USC was without injured starter Sherrod Greene (who in turn took the spot of Bryson Allen-Williams, who is out for the season).
Williams is eighth on the team with 29 tackles. He’s played in all eight games, starting five, including Saturday against the Commodores.
THE STATE
