Yahoo Sports Mike Shula takes over South Carolina’s play calling. Here’s what to expect
Imagine trying to scout during bowl season.
The positives: You’ve got 12 games of tape and data and tendencies.
The negatives: You’re basically playing an entirely different team. Between opt-outs, transfers and coaching changes, the squad that played the entire regular season can be a shell of the roster that arrives for the bowl game.
Which brings us to the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. South Carolina, preparing to face Illinois on Tuesday, doesn’t have many impact transfer departures and has a pair of opt-outs — edge Kyle Kennard and tailback Rocket Sanders.
But there’s quite the wrinkle with its coaching staff.
The Gamecocks’ new offensive coordinator Mike Shula — who earned the promotion when former boss Dowell Loggains became Appalachian State’s head coach — has not called plays since he was with the Carolina Panthers (2013-17). This season with South Carolina is Shula’s first in college football since he was the head coach at Alabama nearly two decades ago.
Following a Citrus Bowl practice on Friday, South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer almost jokingly dared the Illinois’ coaching staff to see if they could glean anything on Shula’s play-calling from his past.
“Illinois can look at mid-2000s Alabama offense. They can look at the Cam Newton Carolina Panthers offense,” Beamer said with a grin. “There’s about one thing a day where I have to go ask him, ‘What is this? I don’t know what this word means.’ ”
It seems that quote got around to the Illinois coaching staff. During a bowl game press conference Saturday morning, Illini defensive coordinator Aaron Henry was asked about how he’ll prepare for a South Carolina offense that’s led by a new face.
“It’s funny you asked that,” he said while winking. ”So I had a chance yesterday to watch some Alabama film, to watch some Carolina Panthers film.
“I’m sure they’ll have some wrinkles in the way Coach Shula calls it,” Henry continued. “My grandmother used to tell me, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t break it.’ They had a lot of success in what they’ve been doing in regards to how they’ve utilized” quarterback LaNorris Sellers.
In large part, Shula agreed with that assessment, noting that he’ll keep much of what Loggains.
“If there’s other things we can add from certain backgrounds, then we’ll do that,” Shula said.
Perhaps the most obvious change between Loggains and Shula will simply be where they’ll call plays from. Loggains was up high in the coaches box all season, relaying plays through headsets while he kept a bird’s eye view of the action.
On the field was Shula, who was often approaching Sellers and the quarterbacks with a tablet after every offensive series.
In his new role as offensive coordinator, Shula said he isn’t moving. He’s going to call plays from the sidelines.
“LaNorris can’t get rid of me,” he joked, before explaining his rationale for his placement:
“Down on the field there’s much better communication with the players, especially with the quarterbacks. That’s the advantage down there. As long as you have good people upstairs that you can rely on with accurate information, I think it bodes well for what we’re doing this week.”
How to watch Cheez-it Citrus Bowl
Who: South Carolina (9-3) vs. Illinois (9-3)
When: 3 p.m. Tuesday (New Year’s Eve)
Where: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida
TV: ABC
Line: South Carolina by 10
