Smelley comes of age against Mississippi St.
COLUMBIA — He had the kind of day that befitted a celebration. And, appropriately, Saturday was Chris Smelley's 21st birthday.
But after success — and a win against Mississippi State — in his first legitimate start at South Carolina, understatement was the redshirt freshman quarterback's attitude of choice. He says it typically is.
'I don't know if you'll be seeing me down at Five Points too much,' Smelley said, referencing the Columbia bar district that can be a college kid's Bermuda
Smelley comes of age against Mississippi State
Triangle. 'I'm not too big of a party-type guy.'
Perhaps a veiled — or not-so-veiled — shot at fellow quarterbacks Blake Mitchell and Stephen Garcia, who've been arrested in the past year in Five Points? Draw your own conclusions.
Here's one coach Steve Spurrier will draw for you: Smelley played well enough to get another start.
No. 11 South Carolina hosts No. 8 Kentucky on Thursday night in a matchup that will greatly shape the SEC East race. Smelley will be under center.
'He probably actually played a little bit better than he's practiced all week,' Spurrier said. 'That was encouraging to see him rise to the occasion when the game started. Overall, he threw the ball very well, stayed in the pocket and let it go on time.'
Spurrier had been critical of Mitchell, benched at halftime of the LSU game, for being hesitant and indecisive. He applauded Smelley on Sunday for making timely choices and, subsequently, completions.
'Chris Smelley took his steps and let it go,' Spurrier said. 'There's very little hesitation in his throws. That was very helpful there. ... That's why the balls got there when the guys were open.'
Also helping, Spurrier said, is that the quarterback had a little more time than in past weeks.
The protection could've been better, he said, but it was sufficient. Enough that redshirt freshman Seaver Brown and senior James Thompson will likely hold on to their starting spots at guard.
The offense seemed to like playing with Smelley in his second career start, the first when he was given the chance to play the entire game.
'Coach, he's probably always going to find something wrong, but in a player's eyes, I think he did a good job of stepping in and making completions,' senior running back Cory Boyd said. 'I know coach is happy to know he did some good things for the offense.'
Junior Kenny McKinley, who had most of his 104 receiving yards after the catch, appreciated Smelley's presence in the huddle.
'He comes in there and brings a little umph to it. He's a real confident guy,' said McKinley, who had a day himself that Spurrier called 'sensational.' 'This game, it was my first to really play with him in a whole game. Man, he's a really good quarterback.'
Still, there were humbling moments for Smelley. He had a couple of egregious underthrows early in the game. On third down in the red zone, instead of tossing the ball out of bounds, he lobbed into coverage to no one in particular and it was intercepted in the end zone.
Spurrier also said Smelley got receiver Larry Freeman 'splattered' late in the game with an ill-advised throw.
But it was a good first step. One that earned another.
'I felt pretty relaxed, pretty comfortable,' Smelley said. 'I've been in game situations now. I think it's time I can start being real confident and getting over the nerves a little bit.'
This and that
Smelley was held back a year in middle school. That's why he's a 21-year-old redshirt freshman. ... Spurrier said Florida's loss to Auburn opens up the SEC East all the more. 'Even though I'm still a Gator, I've got to root against them if we're going to win the East.' ... Spurrier vented on his TV show and teleconference about there being too many empty seats in Williams-Brice. He said he felt like it caused him to mislead recruits on-hand when he told them it'd be 'a packed house.' He encouraged fans to give away or sell tickets they're not going to use.
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