What Spencer Rattler had to say following his MVP performance at Senior Bowl

Spencer Rattler entered the 2024 Senior Bowl looking to move up the NFL Draft boards.

The South Carolina quarterback ended the week accomplishing that feat and earned MVP honors in the process.

Rattler, who played for the American squad, played just two series but still earned MVP honors 16-7 Saturday in the loss to the National team.

“We put in a lot of hard work this week, this is not just for me, it is for the American squad,” Rattler said in a postgame interview with NFL Network’s Tom Pelissaro. “We fought our butts off and had a great week with the guys.”

Rattler was one of two Gamecocks picked for the game. Receiver Xavier Legette was selected but didn’t play because of injury.

In his two series, Rattler was 4 of 4 for 65 yards and engineered the best drive of the day that ended with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Georgia’s Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint.

“It felt good,” Rattler said of the pass. “We got the look we wanted. Great receiver out wide, they played one-on-one, I put it up and he made a great play.”

Rattler had already made a big impression in the practices leading up to the game. On Friday, he was named the top quarterback on the American team, an honor voted on by his defensive teammates.

The Draft Network’s Damian Parson called Rattler one of his biggest winners of the Senior Bowl practices. ESPN’s Louis Riddick said the former Gamecock looked “Very poised (and) very business-like.”

Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy even said while talking with folks around the NFL, “the league now is higher on Spencer Rattler than it seems like the media is.”

NFL.com’s Eric Edholm said Rattler was “arguably as the most consistent QB throughout the week.”

In the news conference after the game, Rattler said this Senior Bowl experience exceeded his expectations and that he couldn’t have asked for a better week. He talked about relationships he was able to build with his teammates and meetings with NFL teams during the week.

Rattler also was asked about his experience he had at South Carolina. The Arizona native transferred to USC after starting his career at Oklahoma. He threw for more than 3,000 yards in each of his two seasons with the Gamecocks and 37 touchdowns.

“They were amazing for the two years I was there,” Rattler said of USC. “That is my home away from home. I graduated from there. That’s home base. Love ‘em.”

Rattler will return to Arizona and continue to train with this QB coach at Exos facility in Arizona. Then he will head to the NFL Combine, Feb. 29-March 3 in Indianapolis.

“We will be back to work next week. Got to keep rolling and can’t keep complacent,” Rattler said.