COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina tailback Raheim Sanders has proven the past few weeks why he’s got the well-earned nickname, “Rocket.”

When he gets going, Sanders is nearly impossible to catch.

“When I see that green grass, I think, ‘Man, lovely,’” Sanders said after gaining 126 yards and scoring two touchdowns in a 28-7 win at then-No. 24 Vanderbilt.

The newly ranked No. 23 Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) hope Sanders’ jet-propelled showings continue down the stretch, starting against No. 24 Missouri (7-2, 5-2).

Sanders averaged 8.2 yards a rush against the improved Commodores. He had scoring runs of 33 and 1 yard, plus he added a 43-yard TD catch from LaNorris Sellers for a Gamecocks squad almost no one in the SEC wants to face right now.

It was the latest of several significant performances for the Arkansas transfer, who finished second in Southeastern Conference rushing with 1,443 yards and with 10 touchdowns for the Razorbacks two years ago.

Sanders has run for five of his 10 touchdowns this season in South Carolina’s past three victories at Oklahoma (35-9) and against ranked opponents in then-No. 10 Texas A&M (44-20) and the Commodores.

He had a season best 144 yards rushing against the Aggies.

“The key thing is trusting it, on the field, trusting it and being very coachable has helped me out a lot,” Sanders said.

The game, Sanders believes, is coming back to him after he struggled to reach the field in 2023. He was looking to build on his All-SEC season, but played just six games as injuries kept on the sidelines. When the season ended and Sanders sought a fresh start, he connected with South Carolina offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, who held a similar role for the Razorbacks when Sanders was there.

What Sanders found is a rising, young, dual-threat quarterback in Sellers who can keep defenses guessing and an offensive line that has been largely healthy and cohesive.

“I feel like the key thing is talking to them every day,” Sanders said. “I feel more comfortable talking to them every day outside of football as well. That’s what’s making us a better unit.

“When you work as a unit,” Sanders continued, “the sky’s the limit.”

Loggains said in the offseason that Sanders may have put on too much weight, getting to more than 240 pounds, and that may have led to some injury issues. These days, Sanders is at a speedy 230 pounds.

“If I hadn’t had the year away from him the two years we spent together at Arkansas, it feels and looks like that same player that has juice, that has size, that is a professional,” Loggains said.

The work significantly has improved South Carolina’s rushing profile. The Gamecocks are fifth overall in the SEC at more than 180 yards rushing a game — nearly 100 more than a year ago when they were last in the league at 85.1 yards a game.

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said that improvement comes from many areas of growth, including Sellers’ versatility, the maturing of the offensive line and the offensive staff coming up with niftier schemes to take advantage of Sanders’ strengths.

Sanders appeared to take off in September when he had 143 yards and two touchdowns in a heart-breaking 36-33 loss to then-No. 14 LSU after the Gamecocks led 17-0. But Sanders hurt an ankle in that game and had only nine carries in the next two contests, which included a 27-3 loss to Mississippi.

Steadily, Sanders called on his offseason work ethic to get himself back on the field and playing like he and his coaches knew he could.

“He’s just been very convicted and driven to do the things that he needed to do to be a great player,” Beamer said. “It’s good to see him having the success that he’s having right now.”

This week Bobbi Conner talks with Janet Carter about health, wellness and self-esteem for children with obesity. Janet is a clinical lipid specialist and the program manager and lead dietician at MUSC Health Wellness Works Program.

TRANSCRIPT:

Conner: I’m Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio with Health Focus here at the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Obesity in children has the potential to impact a child’s psychological health, including self-esteem and body image. Janet Carter is here to talk about these issues for children. Janet is a clinical lipid specialist, and she’s the Program Manager and Lead Dietitian at the MUSC Children’s Health Wellness Works program. Janet, first tell us about issues related to childhood obesity, body image, and self-esteem in children and adolescents.

Carter: Roughly 1 in 5 children and adolescents have obesity, and they tend to experience bullying and stigmatization not only by strangers, but often by peers and family members. Weight bias and stigmatization are damaging, and we know that children and adolescents with obesity can be at increased risk of disease, but they can also experience psychological complications such as decreased self-esteem and negative body image. Poor self-esteem and body image can potentially lead to other concerns like depression and eating disorders.

Conner: And I know you work with children who have obesity, what do you typically focus on in treating childhood obesity?

Carter: We encourage a wellness message, which means that we are focused on helping children and adolescents learn strategies for taking the best care of their bodies that they can. We encourage healthy food choices, physical activity, healthy sleep habits, while discouraging restriction or dieting, which can lead to cravings or disordered eating patterns. We emphasize that health and risk for disease takes a lot of factors into account, and not just weight.

Conner: What tips can you offer parents to help their child with obesity, who might be struggling with a negative body image or self-esteem?

Carter: One thing that parents can do is validate their child’s feelings and have realistic conversations about how difficult change can be. They can encourage them to have realistic expectations for themselves. It’s also more important to focus on what we’re doing to take care of our bodies versus the scale. And parents can share their own personal experiences, including the struggles that they’ve had. They can also consider enrolling them in a weight management program. The research shows that programs like this improve self-esteem and body image irrespective of weight change.

Conner: And Janet, how can parents best talk to their child when some issue crops up with negative feelings about body image, or maybe teasing or peer comments?

Carter: One thing that parents can do is ask their children how they’re feeling. Ask open ended questions and allow them to share their feelings. Listen to their feedback. Help them feel like they’re part of the process. Also, creating an environment where the child is comfortable to share his or her feelings.

Conner: And what additional suggestions can you mention for parents of children with obesity to really help keep the focus on health and wellness?

Carter: A very important thing for parents to do is avoid making comments, whether positive or negative, about anyone’s appearance, whether it’s celebrities, strangers, or their own children. Those types of comments turn the focus onto appearance. Comments about appearance can be taken in a lot of different ways, and they could accidentally send the wrong message. And so, it’s very important to continually remind children and adolescents that the focus should be on their health and wellness. And the good news is that working on healthy eating habits and exercise is a tried and true way to build confidence and a healthy body image.

Conner: Janet, thanks for this information about obesity and body image in childhood.

Carter: Thank you.

Conner: From the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, I’m Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio.

Health Focus transcripts are intended to accurately represent the original audio version of the program; however, some discrepancies or inaccuracies may exist. The audio format serves as the official record of Health Focus programming.

It was around this time two years ago when South Carolina traveled to Nashville in search of its sixth win and got it to become bowl eligible for a second straight season.

Fast forward to now, the Gamecocks entered this past Saturday in a familiar position. After only winning five games in 2023, they won their sixth game of the year on the road at Vanderbilt to earn a bowl bid for the first time since 2022.

South Carolina stormed into Nashville and picked up a 28-7 win over the Commodores. Now with six wins, the team is 6-3 (4-3 SEC) on the year with three games to play in the regular season.

Let’s grade each position group and the coaching staff and break down how they performed this weekend.

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Quarterback: A

As the season moves along, LaNorris Sellers continues to only show signs of improvement and growth. It’s remarkable how far he’s come since his first start of the season.

Sellers put together another solid performance on Saturday, completing 14-of-20 (70%) of his passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns. His downfield vision was on full display in the win as he completed six passes for at least 14 yards per play.

Specifically, the one play that has everyone talking was his insane 51-yard pass that nearly didn’t happen coming out of halftime. At his own 15-yard line, he broke away from a potential sack and rolled out to his left with some room to run. Rather than scramble for a few yards, he saw Jared Brown downfield and hit him up for the big gain.

For the second straight game, Sellers wasn’t sacked at all. He only ran for 38 yards and did have one turnover on a first quarter fumble. But he was more than productive enough to help guide the Gamecocks to a big win.

Running back: A

Saturday proved to be another fantastic game for Rocket Sanders, who finished with 178 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns. His first touchdown came two plays after Sellers’ 51-yard pass, where Sanders ran home free to the end zone for a 33-yard score.

He’d score again in the third quarter on a one-yard touchdown run to extend the lead. Then in the fourth quarter, he caught a dump off pass from Sellers and took it 43 yards for the game-icing touchdown. Whether it was the way he cut, how physical he was, how hard he ran, Sanders was nearly impossible to bring to the ground. He’s now up to 11 touchdowns on the season.

Let’s not forget about Oscar Adaway III, who quietly had a nice game as the team’s backup running back. He only ran for 34 yards on eight carries, but he had a lot of short yardage runs on early downs that made things easier for the Gamecocks to convert on third down. Adaway averaged 4.3 yards per carry.

Wide receiver: B

There weren’t any huge performances from the receivers in this game. It was much more of a collective effort and a few guys making some plays. Nyck Harbor led all receivers/tight ends with 43 yards on three catches. His big play came when he hauled in a 23-yard pass in the second quarter to put the Gamecocks in the red zone and score on the next play.

Gage Larvadain also had three catches and finished with 34 receiving yards. He caught one pass for 10 yards and another for 20. As aforementioned, Brown’s 51-yard catch from Sellers in the third quarter would be his only of the game. Vandrevius Jacobs was the only other receiver to be targeted and make a catch (one catch for six yards).

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Tight end: B+

As the offense continues to look better each game, so does Josh Simon. The sixth-year tight end caught three passes for 40 yards and hauled in a 17-yard touchdown to open the scoring.

Simon has been a great option for Sellers in the passing game as of late. This is what many expected out of him this year. He’s now up to 27 catches for 357 yards and five touchdowns this season. When he’s targeted, he makes plays. He’s averaged 13.2 yards per catch through nine games.

While Brady Hunt and Michael Smith weren’t targeted, they were both pretty good as blockers when they were on the field. As pass blockers, Hunt earned a 66.8 grade and Smith finished with a 67.4 grade, according to PFF. Their run blocking wasn’t anything great, but again, they still made enough of an impact to help in the win.

Offensive line: B+

It feels like the entire perception of the offensive line has changed within the span of two weeks. For the second straight game, South Carolina didn’t surrender a single sack. Three starting lineman finished with pass blocking grades of 72.6 or higher, which is pretty good.

While he only played 28 snaps, Tree Babalade was a major force up front, finishing with a game-high 80.1 pass blocking grade. With Josiah Thompson a little banged up, it’ll be interesting to see who starts at left tackle against Missouri this weekend. But it’s certain that Babalade should a solid chance to start after his performance.

Torricelli Simpkins III had a great game and earned SEC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week honors. He graded out a team-high 93 percent with 11 knockdown blocks and eight pancakes. He’s been one of the best additions the team made from the transfer portal.

South Carolina finished with 452 total yards of offense, 214 rushing and 238 passing. With how well the offense is operating, the offensive line has undoubtedly played a big part in this recent string of success.

Defensive line: A

It may not have been a giant statistical performance for the defensive line, but the group was about as disruptive as it could be. Vanderbilt’s offensive line allowed 11 quarterback hurries, which made things tough on quarterback Diego Pavia.

Pavia showed some flashes with a few nice plays here and there, but he didn’t have a great game, mainly due to how often the defensive line was in the backfield. He was sacked twice, once by Kyle Kennard on a strip sack fumble and another from Bryan Thomas Jr.

Even with how banged up the unit was with guys going in and out, it was still an overall great showing. This game really showed just how strong South Carolina’s depth is and that nearly anyone can come in and make an impact.

Linebacker: A

The streak of A+ grades for the linebackers will end at two games after Saturday. But between Demetrius Knight Jr., Debo Williams, and Bam Martin-Scott, they all good performances.

Knight had seven tackles and one pass breakup. Williams had four tackles and one tackle for loss. Martin-Scott also had seven tackles and 0.5 TFL, but he made a great play in the fourth quarter to deflect a pass from Pavia in the air to turn the ball over on downs.

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Secondary: A

Outside of giving up one pass for a 33-yard gain, South Carolina’s secondary did a fantastic job of keeping Vanderbilt’s offense from finding the big play in the passing game. Of Pavia’s 16 completions, only five of them went for between 10-20 yards. Otherwise, it was a lot of short yardage passes and incompletions.

Stepping up for an injured DQ Smith, backup defensive back Peyton Williams slid into his starting role and didn’t miss a beat. He finished with seven tackles and broke up two passes, one of which came on a fourth down stop in the third quarter.

Judge Collier, Jalon Kilgore, and O’Donnell Fortune each had a pass breakup, as well, further reinforcing the point that the secondary shut down Vandy’s passing attack.

Special teams: B+

Alex Herrera missed his only field goal attempt of the day from 42 yards out in the first quarter. It’s not ideal to see him miss from that distance.

Kai Kroeger only punted twice and averaged 48 yards per punt. His game-long went for 57 yards, which went out of bounds at the one-yard line after the Commodores nearly gave the ball back to the Gamecocks on a fumble.

Coaching: A

In this recent run of success over a three-game win streak, the coaching has been very good. As always, it starts with head coach Shane Beamer, who continues to prove why he’s a great leader for this program. He’s now 10-4 as the program’s head coach during the month of November.

While offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains’ play calling might get a little too cute or fancy at times, there’s no question his offense has been way better since the bye week. Over the last two games, the Gamecocks have finished with 530 yards against Texas A&M and 452 yards against Vanderbilt. With three games to go, it’ll be interesting to see what’s next for the unit and what other tricks Loggains will have up his sleeve.

And as usual, defensive coordinator Clayton White and the defensive staff continue to put the defense in the best positions possible to be successful. South Carolina still hasn’t pitched a complete game shutout this season, but it’s getting awfully close to doing so after giving up seven points on Saturday.