The comments after South Carolina’s 35-31 loss to Florida often tied to a central theme: With a 17-point lead, the Gamecocks offense tightened up, tried to run things out and trended toward a word fans love to hate -- conservative.
USC coach Will Muschamp disagreed. His quarterback Jake Bentley said it was about execution. But the players who were actually asked to do the job had their own outlook.
They wanted the ball, and the responsibility.
“Most definitely,” tailback Rico Dowdle said. “When you get the chance to put the game away, I would love for the ball to be in our hands.