South Carolina players share what it would mean to beat Clemson again after last year's memorable win
As DJ Uiagalelei’s pass sailed through the air, Marcellas Dial had a beat on it. And once Clemson wide receiver Davis Allen fell face first into the ground, it was a done deal.
Dial, playing defensive back, caught the overthrown pass from Uiagalelei over his shoulder like he was the one playing receiver. But instead, he picked off the Clemson quarterback to give the Gamecocks the ball back at a critical point in the game.
“At first, I was like, dang, I should’ve stayed up because I could’ve returned it,” Dial said. “But then I was like, ‘Hey, I just sealed the game.’ That was a big play. That was a turning factor that we needed. I just did something, made a big play to help my team win.”
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Six minutes and 37 seconds of game clock later, South Carolina held on to beat the Tigers, 31-30, and clinched its first win in the Palmetto Bowl since 2013.
Once the game was over, Dial couldn’t believe his eyes. And that was a feeling for many who had been through the years of losing to the other team in the state. For once, the Gamecocks had actually done it.
“It was crazy. I was in shock for a long time. Just like amazed, like we actually did it,” Dial said. “We knew we could win the game and whenever we actually did and the clock hit zero, it was just like, dang, we did it. We made it.”
In the amount of time since that win, it’s still talked about to this day. Gamecock fans can’t get enough of how special it was to get over the hump that seemed impossible to conquer for a while.
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“Obviously after that game last year, there was a lot of love from the fans. I tell stories about months after in the summer with people saying, ‘My year was made because you guys won that game,'” Spencer Rattler said. “Obviously, we want to do that again. We want to bring that joy to the fan base, to our team, to our coaches. To do that, we’ve got to go out there and play our best ball on Saturday.”
To win once was special. On the road in Death Valley with Gamecock fans storming the field. Unmatched. To do it again? That’s a harder task. But if it can be done, it would even more sweet.
“It would be an unbelievable feeling,” Dial said. “This team isn’t going to be the same next year. So to do it again and go out with a bang at our home stadium and beat them again, two years in a row, would be crazy.”
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There’s arguably more on the line for South Carolina compared to the build up before last year’s game. It’s basically win or go home at this point. If the Gamecocks win, they will go to a bowl game. If not, Clemson gets to have bragging rights for the next 365 days and say it kept South Carolina from going bowling.
“You never know. You can’t expect anything to happen,” Rattler said. “We can’t expect to go out there and win because we’re at home. They can come out here and play their best game, and we’ve got to come out here and play better than them. That’s what it’s going to come down to. Play physical, play clean ball, just focus on ourselves.”
