Mario Anderson's hurdling touchdown sends South Carolina crowd, social media into frenzy
Midway through the second quarter, South Carolina’s offense was driving down the field. It was one big play away from capping off what was becoming an impressive series.
Inside the 20-yard line, Spencer Rattler dropped back. He looked to his left and then to his right. He saw Mario Anderson, who for some reason, was left wide-open. Not a soul in sight of him.
By the time Anderson caught the ball, Florida was left with one option: chase him down. But there was one minor problem. Gators safety Miguel Mitchell awaited him in front of the end zone.
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Without many options left, Anderson went for it. He leaped high in the air over the lunging Mitchell and fell into the end zone for a game-tying touchdown.
“I was just ecstatic,” Juju McDowell said. “I was just calling him ‘Super Mario’ before the play and told him to go get the blocks, and he did that. So I’m proud of him for that.”
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In the moments after, the play went viral on social media, even catching SportsCenter’s attention.
While South Carolina would ultimately fall to Florida, it was another impressive game for Anderson. He finished with 121 total yards, 98 of which came on the ground.
“Proud of Mario. He had an ankle injury in the first half that he really fought through to play with in the second half. Not many guys would’ve been able to do that. He fought through it. Proud of him from that standpoint,” head coach Shane Beamer said.
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Over his last three games, Anderson has rushed for 287 yards and two touchdowns. A big part of that has come down to his workload. In the first three games, he only had eight carries. Since then, he’s ran the ball 56 times, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
And right now, there’s no signs of his slowing down.
“He’s just playing his game. So as long as he does what he does, then we’re going to be alright,” McDowell said. “And when we protect (Spencer Rattler), everything’s going to be fine.”
