April 11, 2009

Final Stats

Watch the Game | Post-Game Press Conference | Post-Game Report

The Garnet team topped the Black squad 30-14 in the University of South Carolina’s annual Garnet & Black Spring Game in front of 25,157 fans Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium. Playing for the Garnet team in the first half and the Black team in the second, Stephen Garcia finished the afternoon 13-of-20 for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Jarvis Giles of the Garnet team led the running game with 114 yards on 12 carries and two touchdowns, while his teammate Joe Hills was the game’s top receiver with five catches for 75 yards, including a touchdown grab.

Points were difficult to come by early in the outing with the Garnet squad missing a pair of field goal attempts on its first two drives. The group finally broke through with 3:50 left in the first half as Garcia and Hills hooked up on a 28-yard TD pass. The eight-play drive featured three rushes by Brian Maddox, including an 8-yard scamper that set up the scoring play.

Both offenses moved the ball better in the second half, despite regular personnel changes. Kenny Miles put the Black team on the board with a 1-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter. The running game set up the short score as Eric Baker broke free for a 35-yard rush, and Miles followed with a 22-yard run just before he crossed the goal line.

After leading the Black team in the first half, Reid McCollum guided the Garnet team on an eight-play drive resulting in a 27-yard Spencer Lanning field goal. Giles’ 39-yard rush on 3rd-and-6 was the key play in the drive as it propelled the Garnet team to the 11-yard line.

With Garcia under center, the Black team took a 14-10 lead in the fourth quarter. Miles did a bulk of the work with three runs for a combined 31 yards to set up Garcia’s 9-yard strike to Moe Brown with 10:05 left to play.

McCollum’s Garnet squad answered with a methodical 11-play drive, featuring a 70-yard pass to Stephen Flint that was called back because Flint had run onto the field from the sideline instead of the line of scrimmage – a play that appears to seems to have become a Garnet & Black Spring Game ritual for head coach Steve Spurrier. McCollum connected with Jason Barnes with a 15-yard pass, and Patrick DiMarco added a pair of rushes for a combined 16 yards in the drive. McCollum hooked up with Weslye Saunders on consecutive plays, including the scoring pass of 16 yards to put Garnet back on top 17-14 with 6:30 left to play.

In a steady rotation of quarterbacks on both sides of the ball, the Garnet team tacked on two more touchdowns, courtesy of Giles. The freshman broke through for a 17-yard scoring run and a 14-yard burst to cap off the game.

Defensively, Reggie Bowens was the top tackler with eight for the Black team, including six solo and one sack for a three-yard loss. Josh Dickerson paced the Garnet squad with six tackles, including a sack.

Spurrier handed out the following awards at halftime of the game:

Steve Sisk Outstanding Blocker Award: Patrick DiMarco

Ernest A. Brooks Memorial Award: Patrick DiMarco

Weight Room Effort Award: Moe Brown (Offense), Cliff Matthews (Defense)

Everyday Effort Award: Brian Maddox (Offense), Rodney Paulk (Defense)

Most Improved Offensive Lineman: T.J. Johnson

Most Improved Defensive Back: Stephon Gilmore

Most Improved Defensive Lineman: Travian Robertson

Most Improved Wide Receiver: Tori Gurley

Special Team Award: Spencer Lanning

Outstanding Walk-On: Cedrick Snead (Offense), Dalton Wilson (Defense)

The Harold White GPA Award: Kenny Miles (Offense), Addison Williams (Defense), Scotty Spurrier (Special Teams)

The Harris Pastides Scholar Athlete Award for Football: Eric Norwood

Joe Morrison Award: Moe Brown (Offense), Cliff Matthews (Defense)