For many, Clemson vs. South Carolina is the biggest game of the Tigers season, and this season feels even more important after last season’s loss.
With a loss last season, the Gamecocks snapped Clemson’s seven-game winning streak over the Gamecocks while also ending the Tigers’ 40-game home winning streak. The loss was a massive one, and it is one fans and players have not forgotten. Saturday is about revenge, and if Clemson is going to get it, Jeremiah Trotter Jr. will need to continue to play like one of the best linebackers in the country.
For this matchup, Trotter is our Defensive X-Factor for one simple reason. In your biggest games, your best players must show up and play. If he’s not the best player on Clemson’s defense, Trotter is one of the two best. After a slow start to the season, Trotter has been on an incredible run.
As a do-it-all linebacker, expect Trotter to cause nightmares for Gamecocks’ starting quarterback Spencer Rattler in the pass rush, shut down the opposition’s run game, and do some great work in pass coverage. It is a huge game for the Tigers, and it’s one where Trotter needs to play like the superstar he is.