Bulldogs brace for USC test

ORANGEBURG -- Winston-Salem State was a trap game. Now S.C. State is readying itself to enter a proverbial "hornet's nest" Saturday at South Carolina.

That is how Bulldogs coach Buddy Pough is approaching the second meeting between the schools. While S.C. State (3-0) has the national ranking (No. 14 by the FCS coaches poll) and is seeking its first 4-0 start since 1997, the Gamecocks (3-1) are riding high following their 16-10 win over previously fourth-ranked Mississippi. That goes without mentioning the adjustment the Bulldogs face in playing at raucous Williams-Brice Stadium.

Pough also looks at South Carolina's defense and wonders how a Bulldogs offensive line, which he has challenged this week, will block the likes of USC's Eric Norwood and defensive linemen Cliff Matthews and Ladi Ajiboye. He's also concerned about trying to pressure quarterback Stephen Garcia without sack leader Pat Washington (leg injury) and the many innovations the Steve Spurrier will try to employ.

"They can do it all," said Pough during Monday's press conference. "And against us, we'll see some deep balls. And then, of course, conceptually, he has the whole package as far as the way to stretch a team vertically and horizontally."

At the same time, Pough hopes the experience from 2007, a 38-3 USC win, and the offensive weapons the Bulldogs will bring into Columbia will make it a competitive game.

"You go into games with the best of intentions," Pough said. "We're going to do this and that kind of stuff, but you find out it just can't be. At that point, you go to whatever your plans are. We've got to have some contingency plans for different situations that possibly may happen because of things that arise during the game that we might not necessarily be able to foresee.

"But at the same time, we'd like to try to get in there and try to run it down their throat and control the ball for 40 minutes. Against Georgia, I think they may have had the football for 80-something snaps. It would be great if we could do something like that. Now, I don't think that's foreseeable in the situation we have right now. So we'll see."

Coming off a 27-10 win over Winston-Salem State, Pough said the Bulldogs are in the process of evaluating their team strengths and weaknesses. He's most concerned about getting his offensive line back to the level they competed at last season. The unit struggled against a Rams defensive front Pough compared favorably with past opponents like Clemson and USC.

Expect S.C. State to continue to insert backup quarterback Derrick Wiley into the game plan as a change of pace to starter Malcolm Long. Wiley guided the Bulldogs on the final scoring drive against Winston-Salem State, strictly running the ball off the option, while Long had a career game with 274 yards on 22-of-33 passing and one touchdown.