South Carolina Erases Early Deficit, Beats Missouri 31-13

Sept. 09, 2017

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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – At some point, opponents are going to stop kicking to South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel. Until then, the Gamecocks will gladly take all the game-changing returns they can get from the all-purpose star.

For the second straight week, Samuel returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, helping South Carolina erase an early deficit and beat Missouri 31-13 on Saturday night in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

”The kickoff return, again, was huge for us,” South Carolina coach Will Muschamp said. ”A huge momentum swing in the game.”

Missouri (1-1, 0-1) took a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter when Drew Lock connected with tight end Jason Reese on a 61-yard touchdown pass. Missouri coach Barry Odom thought Tucker McCann, who usually is capable of knocking kickoffs well into the end zone, would deliver his third touchback of the night. Instead, the ball landed in Samuel’s hands on the 3-yard line.

He needed to break only one tackle and dodge McCann on his way to a touchdown.

”I’ve been telling Coach, `Whenever you give me the ball, I’ll try to put it in the end zone,’ ” Samuel said.

He wasn’t done. South Carolina’s Jamyest Williams intercepted a pass on Missouri’s next play from scrimmage, giving the Gamecocks (2-0, 1-0) the ball on Missouri’s 25-yard line. On first down, Samuel, a junior wide receiver, took a handoff on a jet sweep and sprinted into the end zone for his second score in 15 seconds.

”No. 1 is a special guy when he gets the ball in his hands,” South Carolina wide receiver Bryan Edwards said.

Last week, Samuel returned the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown in a 35-28 victory over North Carolina State and also grabbed a 39-yard touchdown reception.

”He just picks us up,” South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley said of Samuel. ”When we’re struggling on offense, we have a slow start, need a spark for our team, he’s that guy.”

Against the Tigers, his scoring outburst changed the direction of the game for good. South Carolina expanded its 14-10 halftime lead with a dominant second half.

”Our margin of error is absolutely zero,” Missouri coach Barry Odom said. ”If we don’t win the turnover margin and we play horrific on special teams, we won’t have a chance.”

Bentley completed 18 of 28 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown. Samuel had five catches for 45 yards. Tight end Hayden Hurst also had a productive night, catching a 39-yard touchdown pass and rushing for a 2-yard touchdown. Ty’Son Williams led the way on the ground, rushing 14 times for 78 yards.

The Gamecocks held Missouri’s offense in check one week after the Tigers broke multiple school records in a 72-43 victory over FCS opponent Missouri State.

Lock completed 14 of 32 passes for 245 yards, with two interceptions. The Tigers rushed 37 times for 178 yards, but their drives stalled in the red zone. They settled for two McCann field goals, and a third attempt was blocked by Javon Kinlaw.

The Missouri wide receiver tandem of J’Mon Moore and Johnathon Johnson, who each surpassed 100 yards receiving last week, had minimal impact. Moore had three catches for 29 yards and dropped two passes. Johnson had no receptions – he dropped a pass in the end zone late in the fourth quarter – and muffed his only punt-return attempt.

The Gamecocks, who won only one road game last year in compiling a 6-7 record, have now won two games away from home this season. South Carolina’s next two games are at home.

”Really proud of our guys,” Muschamp said. ”We didn’t play particularly well on the road last year. That’s something we really emphasized going into this year and understanding that we’ve gotta win some games on the road to accomplish what you want to accomplish.”

GAME CHANGER

Missouri took a 10-0 lead with 13:07 remaining in the second quarter, but Deebo Samuel quickly changed that, returning a 97-yard kickoff for a touchdown for the second straight game. It was Samuel’s Gamecock best third career kickoff return for a touchdown. Samuel then took advantage of Jamyest Williams’ first career interception, scoring on a 25-yard run on the drive’s first play, giving the Gamecocks the lead for good.

KEY STAT

3 — For the second straight game, the Gamecocks won the turnover battle, turning a trio of Tiger miscues into 14 points. Jamyest Williams’ interception turned into a Deebo Samuel rushing touchdown. Then a fumble on a punt in the fourth quarter led to Hayden Hurst’s second touchdown of the contest.

NOTABLES

• South Carolina scored 31 of the last 34 points of the game as the Gamecocks defeated Missouri, 31-13, Saturday night (Sept. 9) in Columbia, Mo. South Carolina retains possession of the Mayor’s Cup, the trophy given to the game’s winner.
• South Carolina is 2-0 on the young season for the first time since the 2012 campaign. That team went on to win its first six games and finish with an 11-2 mark.
• Deebo Samuel recorded his seventh career rushing touchdown on a 25-yard run with 12:37 left in the second quarter. It was Samuel’s lone rush of the night.
• Hayden Hurst had a touchdown reception of 39 yards and a two-yard rushing touchdown on the night. It was his second and third career touchdowns (two receiving, one rushing) after putting his first one on the board in the 2016 Birmingham Bowl against USF. Hurst ended the game with three receptions for 69 yards.
• Ty’Son Williams led the Gamecocks in rushing yards for the first time in his career, as he had 14 carries for 78 yards. He tied Rico Dowdle for the team best in carries with 14.
• Bryson Allen-Williams recorded his third interception in the past four games with his pick in the fourth quarter. Allen-Williams had interceptions at Clemson (Nov. 26, 2016) and against USF in the Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 29, 2016).
• Skai Moore led the Gamecocks with seven tackles on the night, five of which were solos. He needs just three unassisted tackles to match Ben Washington (161, 1994-97) for 10th in Carolina history.
• For the second straight game, Deebo Samuel returned a 97-yard kickoff for a touchdown. This time, it was with 12:52 left in the second quarter and came after Missouri took a 10-0 lead.
• Samuel now has a school record three kickoff returns for touchdowns, all coming in the last five games.
• Samuel becomes the second player in South Carolina history to record a kickoff return for a touchdown in back-to-back games. King Dixon did the trick in games against Texas (Oct. 5, 1957) and Furman (Oct. 12, 1957).

UP NEXT

The Gamecocks look forward to their 2017 home opener, which is set for next Saturday, Sept. 16, when Carolina hosts Kentucky. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. and the contest will be televised on SEC Network. The Wildcats have won three-straight in the series, but the Gamecocks still hold a 17-10-1 overall advantage, including an 8-4-1 mark at home.