Torrian Gray lays out preseason priorities for South Carolina’s secondary

Cam Smith and RJ Roderick are slated to anchor a South Carolina secondary unit that’s seeking to bolster its depth headed into the 2022 campaign.

Roderick is returning for his fifth year with the Gamecocks after starting in 11 of the 12 games he played last season and finishing fourth on the team with 64 tackles.

Smith was on fire last season, bolstering his rapidly rising NFL Draft stock one game at a time. His 41 tackles and three interceptions last season landed him on The Associated Press and Pro Football Focus All-SEC second-team lists.

This offseason, Smith has received the most buzz of anyone on the defensive side of the ball — and arguably of any Gamecock not named Spencer Rattler. The redshirt junior has been named to a plethora of preseason watch lists, including Walter Camp All-American.

Defensive backs coach Torrian Gray said he hasn’t really had to help Smith navigate the heightened pressure from the outside that comes with increased expectations.

“I’ve kind of let him navigate it, but there’s a time in there when I have to send a message like, ‘Don’t let that stuff be poison where you read into it and you rest on your laurels,’ ” Gray told The State. “So it’s something that’s, ‘OK, this is cool, I’m getting this recognition, but now I need to go out and show why that was garnered.’ ”

The depth at safety position is of some concern going into fall camp. Shane Beamer acknowledged as much, saying the battle at that position will be “critical” once practice starts this week.

South Carolina began to address the depth at the position in January with the addition of Central Michigan transfer Devonni Reed. Reed has already drawn comparisons to USC All-American Jaylan Foster from Gray and defensive coordinator Clayton White.

Gray agreed with Beamer’s opinion on safety depth, saying the defensive back room is full of talent but fall camp will help determine who the team can rely on.

“The good thing is, we’ve got talented guys; we’ve just got a lot of guys without experience,” Gray said. “So the positive is the talent. The fun part is to see how it shakes out.”

When it comes to talent, Gray said safeties like Tyrese Ross, Peyton Williams, Nick Emmanwori, BJ Gibson, DQ Smith, King Ford and Joseph Byrnes all have “SEC body types” and “SEC measurables.” When it comes to experience though, most of those guys are lacking.

Emmanwori, Williams and DQ Smith are all freshmen who have yet to suit up in a regular-season game for the Gamecocks. Ross, Gibson, Ford and Byrnes combined have only played in nine games at USC.

Being in the second year of White’s defense has helped Gray bring those freshmen and other inexperienced players up to speed faster.

“Well, for me, it helps because now I understand coach White’s system better, I can teach it better. ... Me understanding it better helps me try to get them to understand it better at this point,” Gray said.

Outside of the safety position, Gray is looking for a few corners to step up, especially with the prospect of Smith getting more playing time at the nickel spot.

Gray highlighted O’Donnell Fortune specifically as one of the defensive backs he hopes will make a big jump this season. The redshirt sophomore played in eight games and recorded three tackles last season.

“Right now we feel we’ve got three pretty good corners that’s played with experienced with (Darius) Rush, Cam Smith (and) Marcellas Dial,” Gray said. “If you’re going to play Cam at nickel, then all of a sudden you’re thinner at corner, so we need some guys at that spot to step up. So I’m hoping (Fortune) will take a step forward.”