South Carolina beats Texas A&M for first time in program history

South Carolina was able to finally break its eight-game losing streak to Texas A&M, beating the Aggies 30-24 on Saturday night. With the win, the Gamecocks improve to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in the SEC.

Much like two weeks ago against Kentucky, the Gamecocks got off to a lightning quick start. 

Xavier Legette started the game off with a bang, returning the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.

Less than two minutes later South Carolina got on the board again. Darius Rush picked off Haynes King for his first interception of the year and returned it 59 yards to the five yard line. 

The Gamecock offense couldn’t capitalize on the pristine field position though and had to settle for a field goal.

Clayton White’s defense helped put even more points on the board on the ensuing drive when it capitalized on miscommunication in the Aggies offense. 

King stepped up to the line and the Texas A&M center snapped the ball early, the ball then bounced off King and into the hands of Tonka Hemingway who returned it 17 yards.

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Hemingway’s return set up a five yard touchdown from Christian Beal-Smith. The score was Beal-Smith’s first since he made his last appearance against S.C State. 

Beal-Smith finished the night with eight carries and 12 yards.

South Carolina was able to put 17 points up on the board in the first five minutes in the game. Despite the positive momentum, the Gamecock offense sputtered for the rest of the first quarter.

South Carolina’s final two drives of the first quarter ended in a fumble by Juju McDowell and a punt. 

The lack of momentum at the end of the first quarter led to South Carolina’s offensive woes continuing into the second quarter. The Gamecocks only had two drives in the second quarter and punted both times.

Both drives were six plays a piece and the South Carolina offense only averaged just over four yards per play.

Texas A&M was limited to only field goals to start off the first half. Randy Bond hit a 51-yard field goal midway through the first quarter and hit a 26-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Though the South Carolina defense kept the Aggie offense in check for a majority of the first half, King was able to lead Texas A&M on a 13-play, eight minute drive scoring drive in the second quarter.

The touchdown cut South Carolina’s lead to 17-14 going into halftime.

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The Gamecock defense was able to bounce back in the second half after allowing the score. They forced the Aggies to punt on their first three drives of the third quarter, and once again held Jimbo Fisher’s offense to just over four yards per play.

After a scoreless second quarter, South Carolina was finally able to capitalize on offense late in the third quarter. A big 20-yard pass from Spencer Rattler to Austin Stogner help set up an 18-yard rushing touchdown for MarShawn Lloyd.

Lloyd finished the game with 18 carries and 92 yards, averaging 5.1 yards per carry.

Texas A&M was able to match the score after they hit Rattler with a strip-sack. The Aggies picked up the ball and scored three plays later after starting off the drive on the USC 24 yard line.

Devon Achane was able to scamper through a hole untouched for a 15-yard touchdown to once again cut South Carolina’s lead, this time to 24-21. Achane finished the game with 20 carries for 99 yards.

The fourth quarter started with poor offensive play by both teams. Texas A&M lost their quarterback halfway through the fourth when King exited with an injury.

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King finished the game 17-for-32 with 178 passing yards, one touchdown and an interception.

South Carolina’s best drive of the night came when it needed it most. With 8:21 left in the game, the Gamecocks drained over five minutes off the clock with an eight play scoring dive.

Explosive plays from Josh Vann, Jalen Brooks and Lloyd helped drive South Carolina 80 yards down the field. Rattler finished the game 12-for-25 through the air for 168 passing yards.

A four-yard touchdown rush from Lloyd capped the drive off and gave the Gamecocks a 30-21 lead with just over two minutes to go.

The South Carolina defense appeared to ice the game on the ensuing drive, forcing Texas A&M and its back up quarterback Conner Weigman to turn the ball over on downs.

The Aggies were able to make the game interesting with less than a minute left. Bond was able hit a 28-yard field goal with 13 seconds left in the game to bring the final score to 30-24. Soon after Texas A&M successfully converted an onside kick, but its two Hail Mary attempts were unsuccessful.

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