Spencer Rattler prepares to play Clemson for first time: ‘Everybody wants this game’

Spencer Rattler walked into a new culture when he transferred to South Carolina from Oklahoma. A big part of that culture is the yearly Palmetto Bowl.

USC will face rival Clemson on Saturday for the teams’ 119th meeting — and Rattler will be part of the game for the first time.

“It’s gonna be a crazy environment down there at Clemson,” Rattler said. “We’re looking forward to the opportunity.”

Rattler’s been apprised of the rivalry’s tradition, but he said he and the Gamecocks are staying focused on themselves.

There are no “Beat Clemson” signs around the football facility for the Gamecocks, but Rattler understands that people in South Carolina take the rivalry seriously.

“Everybody wants this game,” Rattler said. “This is something we all want to win. We want to go in there and play at a high level.”

Rattler has been introduced to a few SEC rivalries since he arrived in Columbia.

His first conference game was against Arkansas, a team the Gamecocks used to play every year. From there he quarterbacked USC against such SEC East foes as Georgia, Kentucky and Florida.

Rattler had his best college game against Tennessee last week, throwing for 438 yards and six touchdowns — both career highs.

“I think we had a great plan last week,” Rattler said. “Everybody was on the same page. ... We need that same thing this week.”

USC senior cornerback Darius Rush has been with the program for a few of the Clemson games. He played in the 30-0 loss last season, and was around when the 2020 meeting was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I see it like a high school state championship game,” Rush said. “You got one team from Upstate, and in this case, we’re in the Midlands.”

At Oklahoma, Rattler played in his share of rivalry games in the Big 12.

The biggest of those was the Red River Showdown battles against Texas. Rattler played in a quadruple-overtime win against the Longhorns and was infamously benched in the teams’ 2021 meeting.

Rattler played in the 2020 win with Shane Beamer on Oklahoma’s staff as an assistant.

Rattler and Beamer discussed some of the differences in the rivalries, and USC’s coach gave the QB a “synopsis” on the storied feud.

“The thing that stands out is the passion 365 days a year,” Beamer said. “There’s been some great players, great coaches, great teams. And this is right up there at the top of all the ones I’ve been a part of.”

Rattler and USC come into Clemson week after an explosive 63-point outing against Tennessee. While there are aspects of the offense’s success that are replicable, the team is trying to shift its game planning toward the Tigers.

Beamer cautioned the Gamecocks players about their peers “patting them on the back” during the week. He even told USC’s chief digital content creator Justin King when to stop sharing videos on social media from the Tennessee game.

“Get it all out on Sunday and Monday, because once the players come in here on Tuesday, it’s full speed ahead on the next opponent,” Beamer said he told King.

Both teams enter this year’s Palmetto Bowl with postseason goals. South Carolina (7-4) is a bowl-eligible team looking for its eighth win of the season — which would be two wins better than last year’s regular-season mark.

Clemson (10-1) is trying to capitalize on its slim chances to make the College Football Playoff. The team’s only loss came on the road against Notre Dame.

As far as Rattler and his newness to the rivalry, he is looking to have good practices with the Gamecocks and for last week’s performance to translate on the road this Saturday (noon, ABC).

“It’s all about us, and that’s what we’re focused on right now,” Rattler said.