Strong Second Half Powers 19-10 Win Over Vanderbilt

Game #1

COLUMBIA, S.C. — In its first game under interim head coach Shawn Elliott, South Carolina delivered a 19-10 victory over Vanderbilt Saturday afternoon at Williams-Brice Stadium as the Gamecock defense delivered five turnovers. Four came in the second half to help South Carolina score 13 unanswered points to overcome a halftime deficit and an early Vanderbilt field goal. Senior running back Brandon Wilds delivered his sixth career 100-yard game with 120 yards on 24 carries. Junior wide receiver Pharoh Cooper’s eighth career 100-yard receiving game came with 160 yards on seven catches, including a 78-yard touchdown grab in the second half.

The Gamecocks moved the ball well in the first quarter with 107 yards of offense compared to just 50 for Vanderbilt. South Carolina struck early when Jonathan Walton forced a fumble recovered by T.J. Holloman on the third play of the game. Starting on the Commodores’ 24, the offense struggled early, but Elliott Fry delivered a 47-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead with 13:21 to play in the period.

Vanderbilt looked to strike back quickly, but the Gamecock defense held up on third and short just across midfield, forcing a pair of incomplete passes and a punt. Orth found his rhythm passing on the ensuing possession, finding D.J. Neal for a 28-yard strike and Cooper for a 24-yard delivery that put the Gamecocks into Vanderbilt territory. Fry again delivered with a 31-yard field goal for a 6-0 Gamecock lead with 6:49 left in the quarter.

Midway through the second quarter, Vanderbilt put together its most extensive drive as McCrary connected on a series of passes. With a first down on the 10-yard line, McCrary was thrown for a two-yard loss. After a five-yard rush by Vandy’s Ralph Webb, the Gamecock defense forced another incomplete pass, but Holloman was charged with targeting that gave the Commodores new life at first and goal from the 3-yard line. South Carolina sent Vanderbilt back a yard over the next two plays, but McCrary found Caleb Scott alone in the end zone to make it a 7-6 Commodore lead with 2:21 to play in the half.

South Carolina mounted one more attack in the waning minutes of the period, marching to the Vanderbilt 37. Fry narrowly missed a 55-yard field goal attempt as time expired to send the Gamecocks to the locker room trailing 7-6.

The second half opened with a short South Carolina drive as Vanderbilt carried momentum into the third quarter. Darrius Sims broke through for a 41-yard rush to quickly put the Commodores into Gamecock territory. South Carolina forced a tough third-and-long situation, but McCrary stepped up to find Steven Scheu for a 17-yard strike that moved his team into the red zone at the 13-yard line. Again the Gamecock defense held up when it mattered most, holding the Commodores to a 23-yard field goal and a 10-6 lead with 5:43 on the clock.

The Gamecock offense wasted little time rewarding its defense’s effort as Orth found Cooper on a short slant that the junior receiver broke open for a 78-yard touchdown that put South Carolina back in front 13-10 with 6:34 left in the quarter.

Two plays into the Vanderbilt drive, Bryson Allen-Williams reeled in his first career interception to keep the Williams-Brice Stadium crowd on its feet. McCrary tried to go over the middle where Allen-Williams tipped it straight up. Keeping his focus, the sophomore linebacker tracked it down to seal the Commodores’ second turnover of the game and give the Gamecocks the ball on the Vanderbilt 45.

The running game carried the Gamecocks to the 2-yard line, where the Commodores forced a field goal after Ryan White broke up a pass intended for Neal deep in the right corner of the end zone. Fry’s strike from 19 yards made it a 16-10 South Carolina advantage with 2:52 to play in the third quarter.

Vanderbilt looked to rally early in the fourth quarter when Jahmel McIntosh pulled down an errant Orth pass meant for Cooper, but sophomore Chris Lammons returned the favor on the next play, out-leaping the receiver to make the interception. The Gamecocks were forced to punt, and the Commodores were sharp early in the possession. A series of penalties set up 1st-and-28 on their own 8-yard line, though, and Skai Moore finished off the drive with a perfectly read interception on McCrary’s pass over the middle. Four plays later, Fry drilled his fourth field goal of the game to put the Gamecocks up 19-10 with 5:27 to play.

The Commodores were up for the fight, though, driving efficiently down the field to the Gamecocks’ 17 on five plays. After an incomplete pass set up 2nd-and-10, McCrary dropped back for another pass only to be tracked down by Moore who stripped the ball and picked up the fumble to put South Carolina back in the driver’s seat.

GAME CHANGER

Junior linebacker Skai Moore collected his fourth interception of the season, first since Sept. 12, with 6:37 left in the fourth quarter. After a Gamecock field goal to make it a 19-10 game, Vanderbilt was driving down the field, and Moore again delivered, forcing and recovering a fumble that allowed South Carolina to seal the victory.

KEY STAT

The Gamecock defense forced five turnovers, including four in the second half, and scored on three of them. South Carolina committed two turnovers, neither of which led to Vanderbilt points.

NOTABLES

Quarterback Perry Orth posted a career-high 272 passing yards, tying a career best with 28 passing attempts.

Wide receiver Pharoh Cooper’s 78-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter was his longest reception of the season, helping him post his eighth career 100-yard receiving game.

The Gamecocks’ five forced turnover were the most the team recorded since also picking up five against South Alabama on Nov. 22, 2014.

Sophomore linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams and sophomore cornerback Chris Lammons each recorded their first career interceptions.

Quoting Interim Head Coach Shawn Elliott

“I just want to start out by saying this was one heck of a team win. Monday night we had no clue what was happening to tell you the truth. It kind of had us blindsided just like it did the rest of the country, the University and the state. I told our guys in there that, ‘you had your back against, you had your backs against the wall all week,’ they never batted an eye, they kept fighting, they kept playing and they did everything we asked of them. I said it’s just like this great state. You have the tragedies here, the floods and you see people rebuild, helping one another, fighting to get back what they had and that’s exactly what we did today. I thought our defense stepped up to the plate, played an exceptional ballgame, other than a personal foul. Offensively we were a little inconsistent. I haven’t really looked at the stats, it was like we’d take two steps forward and one step back on each series throughout the game and we never could put back-to-back-to-back plays together. I thought we moved the football well, I thought we were pretty confident in what we were doing and it was just one mishap after another. We had 424 total yards and 19 points and that doesn’t correlate, it really doesn’t. We struggled in the red zone and we’ve got to get better. We’ve got to get better as coaches and we’ve got to get better as players, we’ve got to be able to push the ball in and we’ve got to be able to line up and get the ball over. That’s what we’ve got to do. We understand the work that we have to do. I think our team is up for it and I think they’re really excited. It was a heck of a win.”

UP NEXT

The Gamecocks are off next week then travel to Texas A&M on Sat., Oct. 31. Time and broadcast information will be announced soon.