Doty’s solid work, other takeaways from Beamer’s first scrimmage as Gamecocks coach

South Carolina’s football scrimmage Saturday was a bit different than the usual affair.

Normally it would take place in Williams-Brice Stadium, with a full gameday-like operation. But this weekend there is a TopGolf event at the stadium, so Shane Beamer’s first scrimmage as Gamecocks head coach had to happen on the practice fields.

“You don’t have communication from the field to the press box and things like that with your coaching staff,” he said of scrimmage at the practice facility, “and the mechanics are different because I’m standing out there on the field a little bit.”

Still, he got to take an early look at his team in more realistic situations than practice.

Sophomore passer Luke Doty took almost all of the first-team snaps at quarterback. The defensive secondary is so depleted that a walk-on, not far removed from tryouts, was working at second-team corner.

USC great Stephon Gilmore also dropped by, but true to his personality, the NFL All-Pro didn’t do too much to draw attention.

“You guys know Stephon. He’s very low-key,” Beamer said. “I don’t think anybody even realized he was there when he walked in, and I’m not sure how many people even realized he was there when he was there. ... To have a guy like that out there supporting us speaks volumes.”

A few other key notes:

▪ As is normal with a first scrimmage, playing clean football, avoiding penalties and general operation were a focus. Beamer said he was generally pleased with those aspects.

▪ In addition to some lingering injuries, the following players didn’t participate because of various maladies: corner Cam Smith (hamstring), Eric Douglas (unnamed minor issue that shouldn’t linger), Jaylin Dickerson. Wide receiver Xavier Legette started the scrimmage but did not finish. Defensive tackle Alex Huntley played through a shoulder issue.

▪ Beamer liked what he saw from the first-team offense.

▪ After Doty, quarterbacks Jason Brown, Connor Jordan and Colten Gauthier all got work with the second-team offense. Beamer made a note to praise Jordan, a walk-on. He also said that some footwork improvements have been coming together for Doty. The Myrtle Beach product showed poise, Beamer said, but is still honing his downfield passing.

▪ Beamer also said he told his backup QBs that it’s up to them to make it a competition for the starting spot after the way Doty has performed early on this spring.

▪ Without Douglas, the Gamecocks’ offense staff rolled in different bodies at center. Finding as many players as possible who can handle snapping duties has been a goal for offensive line coach Greg Adkins.

▪ Beamer mentioned that a few receivers had been standing out for effort in special teams drills. They’re also aware of the questions around them as a unit, as the Gamecocks return little in the way of proven options on the outside.

▪ Running back Rashad Amos scored a touchdown on a catch and run. Running back ZaQuandre White and tight end Jaheim Bell both scored in red zone work. Beamer noted that White’s energy has been a boost to the USC offense and said the backs had a generally solid day.

▪ The walk-on corner Beamer mentioned was James Bartholomew, a 5-foot-9 corner from Hilton Head. Bartholomew, who joined the roster Feb. 1 after a tryout and started his career at Illinois, came up and delivered a big run stop in a short yardage period, according to Beamer. Defensive back O’Donnell Fortune also had a solid run stop in a goal line situation, per Beamer.

▪ The scrimmage also provided a chance to figure out more about where tight end/receiver E.J. Jenkins is comfortable. The FCS transfer is a massive 6-foot-7, 242 pounds. But how the team uses him remains to be seen, as he could play multiple spots in new coordinator Marcus Satterfield’s offense.