The South Carolina Gamecocks failed to put together a scoring drive without a substantial play of 40 yards in its 38-28 win over Jacksonville State.
South Carolina scored five touchdowns during the frustrating back-and-forth game. On each drive, the offense relied on a large gain, typically in the air and by fifth-year wide receiver Xavier Legette to propel them to the red zone.
“Legette made so many big plays, went for 217, that helped a lot,” redshirt senior quarterback Spencer Rattler said. “The O-line blocked their butts off today. I had all day to throw the ball. And we made big plays, had a lot of explosives, so that makes it easy.”
On its opening drive of the first quarter, redshirt senior running back Mario Anderson sprinted 40 yards downfield to set his team up on the five-yard line. Senior defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway grabbed the handoff and spun into the endzone to take a 7-0 lead.
Late in the first quarter, Rattler found Legette for 52 yards, bringing South Carolina to the JSU 18-yard line. Rattler moved the line to bring in the touchdown for a one-yard play.
“They were down one of their corners today. We knew that and felt like, because of how they play defense, they’re really disruptive,” head coach Shane Beamer said. “We felt like we’d have some opportunities in the passing game downfield to make plays. And they had a hard time defending Xavier, there’s no doubt about it."
The next time South Carolina scored, it was with 23 seconds left in the second quarter. Rattler found Legette on a short pass on the first play of the drive, and Legette managed to tiptoe down the sideline for 44 yards. Legette then got open in the endzone and scored a five-yard touchdown to snatch the lead back.
“I had to make up for the last two games. I felt like I didn’t play my best ball,” Legette said. “Today, I felt like I was 100%, so I had to go out there and ball.”
The team's reliance on Legette and the long ball punished South Carolina when it started with the ball to start the second half. Rattler lofted the ball, hoping to connect with Legette on the first play of the drive. He started on his own 25-yard line but was intercepted at the JSU 28-yard line.
Jacksonville State junior cornerback Kekoura Tarnue came up with the pick that gave his team possession. JSU took the opportunity and marched down the field to tie the game at 21 points.
South Carolina gave the play that was intercepted another try late in the third quarter. Rattler dropped back to open the drive and floated the ball 65 yards to Legette, who glided into the endzone and tied the game at 28 points apiece.
“He’s such a deep play threat,” Beamer said. “It g
ets down to your players got to make plays, and Xavier is a threat every time he touches the ball. And he’s a deep ball threat without a doubt."
Halfway through the fourth quarter, South Carolina made its way down the field and failed to put together a hefty play. The team was forced to settle for a 26-yard field goal.
Fans cheer as sophomore linebacker Stone Blanton (right) scores off of a pick-six in the fourth quarter of the matchup between the South Carolina and Jacksonville State Gamecocks on Nov. 4, 2023. The pick six, along with several other turnovers in the second half allowed South Carolina to finish the game with a 38-28 lead.
Arguably, the biggest score of the game came from the defense when sophomore linebacker Stone Blanton intercepted Jacksonville State redshirt senior quarterback Zion Webb on the South Carolina 17-yard line. He picked it off in open space and had a clear view to the endzone. Blanton said that his 88-yard interception, which gave South Carolina a 38-28 lead, was “special.”
“We kind of had studied that play a lot during the week. We’d seen it before,” Blanton said. “(Rattler) threw it, and (I) caught it and then just kind of just took off. I don't know, it was kind of a surreal moment.”
The offense finished with just 89 rushing yards. In comparison, Rattler threw for 399 yards, and Legette totaled 217 receiving yards for two touchdowns.
South Carolina’s record moves to 3-6 with the help of big plays from Legette, Anderson and Blanton. The team will go onto to play Vanderbilt next weekend at Williams-Brice Stadium. Kickoff will be at noon, and the game can be viewed on SEC Network.