Oct. 31, 2015

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – South Carolina (3-5, 1-5 SEC) totaled a season-high 445 total yards of offense with Brandon Wilds rushing 17 times for 128 yards and two touchdowns, but Texas A&M (6-2, 3-2 SEC) freshman quarterback Kyler Murray threw for 223 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 156 yards and a score as well as the Aggies defeated the Gamecocks 35-28 on Saturday afternoon.

Wilds’ 128 yards were a season-high for the senior tailback as well as his first two rushing touchdowns of the season. Junior quarterback Perry Orth was 15-for-24 for 192 yards in the air with 64 yards rushing on 11 carries.

After a missed field goal on the opening drive, A&M went nine plays and 74 yards on their next possession capped by a 10-yard touchdown pass from Kyler Murray to Josh Reynolds.

South Carolina answered with an 11-play 75-yard drive to tie it up 7-7 with Lorenzo Nunez scoring on a 7-yard reverse. Orth was solid on the drive as he went 5-for-5 for 57 yards in the air including a key 19-yard pass to David Williams that moved the Gamecocks into A&M territory. Pharoh Cooper had a pair of receptions on the drive with Shamier Jeffery and D.J. Neal also coming up with catches. Nunez, seeing his first action since the Missouri game on Oct. 3, took the reverse handoff and initially looked to throw before keeping it himself and beating the A&M defenders to the goal line for the score.

After forcing a Texas A&M punt, the Gamecocks scored on the ensuing possession to take a 14-7 lead. The drive featured a 66-yard run from scrimmage by Perry Orth on a 3rd and 8 down to the A&M 20. It was the longest run by a Gamecocks player this season. Three plays later, Orth kept the ball on the option and scored from 6 yards out to put the Gamecocks ahead.

The Aggies tied it at 14-14 with 6:17 to go in the second quarter as senior tailback Tra Carson scored on 3rd & Goal with a 1-yard touchdown run.

The Gamecocks responded again to regain the lead on the next possession with Wilds scoring on a 3-yard touchdown run. The score was set up by the Gamecocks earlier in the drive as Orth completed a 47-yard pass to Hayden Hurst on 3rd & 10 to move the Gamecocks down to Texas A&M’s 14-yardline. Wilds would take the pitch from Orth into the corner of the end zone to give the Gamecocks a 7-point lead. Texas A&M would score right before the end of the first half with one minute to go as James White carried for a 2-yard score.

The Aggies would go ahead 28-21 on their first possession of the second half. The 11-play 81-yard drive was capped by a 1-yard score by Murray on 4th and Goal. A&M then built a 14-point lead as Donovan Wilson stepped in front of a pass from Orth and went 60 yards for an interception return for a touchdown.

South Carolina fought back and crept to within seven just before the end of the third quarter as Wilds went 33 yards for his second touchdown of the game.

Both teams were limited in the fourth quarter with A&M holding the Gamecocks to just 31 yards of total offense in the fourth quarter and the Aggies with just 66 yards of offense also.

GAME CHANGER

Donovan Wilson’s 60-yard interception return for a touchdown with 4:08 to go in the 3rd Quarter was the first turnover of the game and gave the Aggies a 14-point lead.

KEY STAT

Texas A&M freshman quarterback Kyler Murray finished with 379 total yards of offense in his first career start.

NOTABLES

South Carolina finished with a season-high 445 total yards this afternoon, besting the previous high of 424 set vs. Vanderbilt on Oct. 17. The Gamecocks gained 253 yards on the ground, just 1 yard short of the season-high 254 set vs. North Carolina on Sept. 3.

Senior offensive tackle Brandon Shell made his 44th career start in a Gamecock uniform, surpassing Todd Ellis (1986-89) for seventh-highest by a Gamecock player in school history.

Orth’s 66-yard run in the second quarter was the longest run from scrimmage this year by a Gamecock player besting the previous long run of 48 yards by Shon Carson vs. North Carolina on Sept. 3.

Junior quarterback Perry Orth’s 66-yard run in the second quarter was the longest run from scrimmage this year by a Gamecock player besting the previous long run of 48 yards by Shon Carson vs. North Carolina on Sept. 3. Orth would score on a 6-yard run in the second quarter for his second rushing touchdown of the season. It also marked the longest run by a Gamecock quarterback since Steve Satterfield went for 73 yards vs. Virginia on Nov. 7, 1959.

Senior tailback Brandon Wilds rushed 17 times for a season-high 128 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Wilds 43-yard run in the third quarter was his longest run from scrimmage this season. It was the most yards rushing by a Gamecock player in a game this season.

Junior linebacker Skai Moore finished with a career-high 14 tackles besting the previous high of 12 that he has tallied three times in his career.

Junior placekicker Elliott Fry is now the school record holder for the Gamecocks in PATs made and attempted. He is currently 121-for-122 in his career. Fry surpassed Scott Hagler in both marks. Hagler was 117-for-118 in his career from 1983-86.

UP NEXT

South Carolina heads to Knoxville to face Tennessee on Saturday, Nov. 7. Kickoff is 4 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.