South Carolina not in ‘crisis mode,’ but there’s concern about tailback depth

Shane Beamer isn’t signaling for DEFCON 1.

Put differently, he insists he’s not panicking. But a quick glance at South Carolina’s running back depth chart, and there’s reason to believe the Gamecocks are in need of bodies.

“I don’t think we’re in crisis mode there,” Beamer said Tuesday. “If we can add another running back or find another running back just from a depth standpoint, that would be ideal.”

South Carolina’s running backs room took a hit over the offseason when incumbent starer MarShawn Lloyd transferred to Southern California. Backup tailback Rashad Amos, too, left via the transfer portal, landing at Miami (Ohio).

That leaves the Gamecocks with just two scholarship running backs — Juju McDowell and Newberry College transfer Mario Anderson Jr. — on the roster this spring. It’s also part of why receiver Dakereon Joyner has spent significant time this spring repping in the backfield.

And while South Carolina will add four-star signee Dontavious Braswell to the mix over the summer, the backfield remains one of the bigger holes on an offense that feels like it can take a step forward.

“We’ve got a group of guys in there that are not as experienced as what was here last year, which is part of the college football world we live in now,” new offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains said. “We need to develop the guys we have on our roster and our expectations for those guys so they come in and play well and fill the role.”

Beamer acknowledged the lacking numbers for scholarship players in the running back room while maintaining his generally upbeat personality. He noted the walk-ons on the roster have an opportunity to boost their stock in the interim. (The Gamecocks have four such tailbacks in D.J. Twitty, Chase McCracken, Nathan Harris-Waynick and Bradley Dunn.)

Still, how the running back room sorts itself out will linger.

McDowell is by far the most experienced of the bunch. His 62 carries for 219 yards are the most among any returning player this fall. The Georgia product has been steady when called upon. He’s averaging 4.1 yards per carry on 114 touches over his first two seasons in the program. He also has 32 receptions (23 of which came in 2022) for 247 yards and one score in that span.

McDowell, though, is listed at 5-foot-9, 180 pounds — and that feels generous. The thought of McDowell lasting an entire season as a 15- to 20-carry-per-game tailback is unlikely given the physicality of SEC defenses.

Said former Gamecocks defensive end Kingsley Enagbare of McDowell in 2021: “Deep down he’s got that dog in him. He’s probably the smallest person on our team, but he plays like the biggest, (talks) like the biggest.”

Anderson is a unique piece in his own right. He torched Division II defenses during his time at Newberry en route to 3,301 yards rushing and 35 touchdowns over his 29 career appearances. He was also named a finalist for the Harlon Hill Trophy (the Division II Heisman Trophy) in 2022, rushing for a school record 1,560 yards and 19 touchdowns while averaging 7.4 yards per touch.

Unlike McDowell, Anderson has some size that could help him maintain form over the course of the campaign at 5-foot-9, 208 pounds. Lloyd, for context, was last listed at 5-foot-9, 212 pounds when he carried the ball 111 times for 573 yards and nine touchdowns during the 2022 season (though he battled injury issues down the stretch).

Joyne also makes for a unique piece in the backfield at the very least. Beamer and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains have lauded his natural ability in the backfield with his athleticism and vision. It helps, at least on some level, that the converted quarterback has been involved in the run game in wildcat packages over the last two seasons. (Joyner has 64 carries for 325 yards and four touchdowns in his career.)

“I know everyone is looking on the outside as controversial moving him to running back after being moved to receiver and after quarterback,” McDowell said. “He is embracing his role to the fullest potential and taking advantage of every opportunity.”

South Carolina has been at its best under Beamer when it runs the football effectively. In its eight wins during the 2022 season, USC averaged 159 yards rushing per contest. That number dipped to 54.6 rush yards per game in the Gamecocks’ five losses last year — including a dismal 2.14 yards per carry in those contests.

Beamer’s made clear that South Carolina will look to the transfer portal for help at tailback when the second window in this year’s cycle opens on May 1. That, too, is a wait-and-see game.

“When we go play North Carolina in Game 1 up in Charlotte, I’m not getting on the bus with only three running backs,” Beamer said. “We’re gonna take five, maybe more, running backs up there. Who on this team is No. 4 and 5? If it’s not somebody on this team, then we’ve got to figure that out.”