No Carolina curtain call
Posted on Sunday, November 9, 2008
COLUMBIA, S. C. — The last time Casey Dick came to Williams-Brice Stadium, he walked off the field as one of the stars of the game, having relieved Mitch Mustain and thrown for more than 200 yards and a touchdown while helping Arkansas beat South Carolina.
This time around — moments after the Gamecocks wrapped up a 34-21 victory over the Razorbacks late Saturday afternoon — Dick left the field in a daze. Dick suffered three interceptions and a blow to the head that knocked him out of the game in the fourth quarter.
Dick was replaced by his younger brother, Nathan Dick, and did not attend the postgame news conference.
But Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino and offensive coordinator Paul Petrino expressed frustration over Casey Dick’s uneven outing.
“Any time you throw three interceptions like that, you’re going to have a heck of a time winning the game,” Bobby Petrino said.
Dick’s third interception was particularly damaging, as it came after Arkansas had cut a 20-7 deficit to 20-14, made a defensive stand, and moved to the South Carolina 40-yard line on its ensuing possession. That’s when Dick dropped back and tried to hit tailback Dennis Johnson in the flat.
Instead, Gamecocks defensive end Jordin Lindsey reached up for the interception, and returned it 40 yards to set up a touchdown that pushed South Carolina’s lead to 27-14.
“It was just a play where they brought pressure and the back was hot in the flat,” Paul Petrino said, “and you’ve just got to make the throw over the top of that guy or wait a little bit longer and find a passing lane to get the ball to that back in the flat.
“ It just didn’t happen, and the guy made a nice play and picked it off. That was a big turning point in the game because we had a lot of momentum at that time.”
Dick apparently was injured on Arkansas’ next series, when he was sacked on a third-and-9 play. Bobby Petrino said Dick took what “looked like a helmet-to-helmet hit, and when he came over I didn’t like the way he looked, so the decision was to put Nathan in.”
Casey Dick threw for touchdowns of 70 and 4 yards while completing 16 of 26 passes for 217 yards, but was far from the quarterback who was named SEC offensive player of the week after throwing for 385 yards and one touchdown in last week’s upset of Tulsa. The Petrinos were particularly bothered by a couple of missed opportunities in the early going.
Bobby Petrino said his biggest concern about the offense’s performance as a whole in Saturday’s loss were “two early third downs, when we had the plays there and we didn’t pull the string and throw the ball out there.”
Paul Petrino echoed that sentiment.
“It’s a shame because early in the game there were a couple of third downs that were plays we worked against the exact looks that they brought, and we just didn’t execute them,” Paul Petrino said. “That really makes you mad.
“ When you work those looks all week and you know exactly what they’re going to do and they do it, you’ve got to know what to do and how to execute it. We didn’t get that done today a couple of times.”
Arkansas managed one first down on its first five drives. Dick was 2 of 6 for 14 yards with 1 interception and an intentionalgrounding penalty during that stretch.
Dick connected with Jarius Wright on the 70-yard touchdown on the Razorbacks’ sixth series, and completed 5 of 5 passes for 30 yards — including the 4-yard score to fullback Mitchell Bailey — on the touchdown drive that got Arkansas within 20-14.
Dick’s third interception proved to be his most pivotal throw of the game. Arkansas center Jonathan Luigs called the play “a dagger,” and tight end D. J. Williams said it was “a big momentum shifter.”
South Carolina Coach Steve Spurrier agreed on the play’s magnitude.
“Lindsey made the play that turned it all around,” Spurrier said. “Not many guys can jump up and make that catch. They can knock it down, but that thing stuck in there.
“ He jumped up and got it, and it turned the game around. Obviously, Jordin got a game ball.”
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
