Wednesday injury report: Two questionable, four doubtful for South Carolina

South Carolina starting cornerback Judge Collier was back on the practice fields Tuesday and is hoping to return to action soon after missing most of the first four weeks of the season.

On Wednesday night’s first SEC availability report of the week, Collier and DQ Smith were both listed as questionable for this weekend’s matchup with Kentucky.

Defensive tackle Gabe Brownlow-Dindy, defensive back Buddy Mack III, and offensive linemen Nolan Hay and Cason Henry are all listed as doubtful.

Head coach Shane Beamer spoke briefly on the injuries on Tuesday.

“Injury-wise, we’ll have a report for you tomorrow night, nobody that we’d say right now is out,” Beamer said Tuesday. “It was good to see Judge Collier back at practice today, hopefully he will continue to trend in the right direction, and see where guys are tomorrow night when we release that availability report.”

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Collier, tight end Mike Smith, and safety DQ Smith all missed the Gamecocks’ 29-20 loss to Missouri.

Mike Smith was not on Wednesday’s report, meaning he is expected back.

Collier has been trending towards a return.

“He’s still grinding back from the injury, trying to get back in shape,” defensive coordinator Clayton White said Wednesday. “It’s been a while since he’s played, so we’re definitely trying to make sure he’s in position before we just throw him back out there.”

Henry, who was banged up against Vanderbilt but was back in the starting lineup against the Tigers, exited after the first play of the game with what the broadcast said was a shoulder injury.

The next availability update will come on Thursday at around 8 p.m., followed by another on Friday and a final report 90 minutes before kickoff on Saturday.

Beamer also typically provides an injury update on his Thursday night call-in show.

Last season, the SEC approved a player availability injury report system for football, men’s and women’s basketball and baseball.

SEC school personnel must submit availability reports three days before each football game, with daily updates leading to a final report 90 minutes before game time. For basketball and baseball, reports are filed the night before, with an update on game day.

According to the SEC, penalties for inaccurate or late reports will range from $25,000 to $100,000 for football and anywhere from $15,000 to $25,000 for basketball and baseball.

When schools submit injury reports, players will be designated as available, probable, doubtful, and questionable before game day. On game day, designations will be available, game-time decision or out. The model follows injury reports similar to the NFL.

South Carolina will be back at home on Saturday, Sept. 27, before heading into its first bye week. The Gamecocks will face Kentucky at 7:45 p.m. on SEC Network.

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