South Carolina-Tennessee 3-2-1: Three key plays, two game balls, one burning question

Three Key Plays

1. Hemingway is held

Stops were at a premium in the first half. When Tonka Hemingway blew through a blocker and drew a holding penalty it made it second and 18 for Tennessee. It was the rare time when Tennessee was behind the down and distance and South Carolina could dictate the play defensively. Hemingway added a sack on the next play and Tenessee had to punt. The punt broke serve, and when South Carolina scored a touchdown on the next possession Tennessee was forced to play catch-up the rest of the night. 

2. Deflected touchdown

South Carolina was trying to protect a 35-17 lead going into halftime, but Tennessee had the ball inside the ten but was out of timeouts with 18 seconds left. Facing third and two from the seven-yard line, Sherrod Green and Zacch Pickens lined up along the line of scrimmage and then dropped into coverage. Hendon Hooker didn’t see them drop and fired a pass right to Greene. Greene couldn’t hold on, Pickens couldn’t knock it down, and the deflection popped in the air and right to Bru McCoy in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. It was the type of hard-luck play that doomed South Carolina countless times throughout the program’s history. But this time South Carolina was able to regroup at halftime and didn’t let it spiral into a blown lead.

3. Rattler to Wells

The teams traded punts to start the third quarter, and then on Tennessee’s second possession, a coverage bust allowed the Volunteers to score on a 41-yard touchdown pass. It felt like a turning point: Tennessee had finally gotten a big play against South Carolina’s banged-up secondary and the familiar sputtering South Carolina offense had made an appearance. South Carolina still led 35-31, but the Gamecocks really needed to score a touchdown to keep up the pressure. Facing third and six from the Tennessee 25, Jaheim Bell motioned left. Every time he had done that, it was to set up a swing pass. The Tennessee defense followed, Spencer Rattler looked his way, and then came back to the right where Antwane Wells was set up at the first down marker. Rattler hit him, Wells leaned forward for a couple more yards, and two plays later the Gamecocks were in the end zone. South Carolina score the next 28 points to turn the game into a blowout.

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Two Game Balls

Spencer Rattler

Rattler was nearly perfect, easily outdueling Heisman hopeful Hendon Hooker to the tune of 30-37 passing, 438 yards, six touchdowns, and no interceptions. He also had a 15-yard catch just for fun. Rattler picked apart the Volunteer defense with ease, and probably didn’t have a bad pass all game.

Peyton Williams

Forced into action after Nick Emmanwori was ejected for targeting, freshman Williams had played in just one game all season (SC State) and had one assisted tackle. He doesn’t even have a bio in the game notes. Against one of the best passing teams in the country, Williams held his own. He appeared to be the guilty party on the busted coverage that allowed Tennessee’s 41-yard touchdown pass, but he otherwise held his own. Williams finished with two tackles and a pass break-up that forced a punt. There’s something fitting in a player named “Peyton” helping to beat Tennessee.

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One Burning Question

Can South Carolina repeat this performance?

Maybe not this exact performance. The Tennessee defense is pretty spectacularly bad, and Clemson’s defense is better. But you don’t have to score 63 again next week. Shoot, as bad as the offense looked the past few weeks, most people would have settled for 30 points. Next week, 30 might be enough. At this point, if anyone claims they know what to expect from the Gamecocks, they are lying.

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