The South Carolina football team lost a thrilling game to No. 16 LSU Saturday afternoon at Williams-Brice Stadium.
The Gamecocks led for most of the contest but committed several costly turnovers and penalties, which helped lead the Tigers to victory.
"What a football game," head coach Shane Beamer said. "We told our players before the game that it was gonna be an SEC heavyweight fight, and it was gonna come down to the fourth quarter, and it absolutely did."
On the game's first possession, the Gamecocks put together a seven play, 75-yard drive that included a 27-yard run from senior running back Raheim "Rocket" Sanders. The drive ended with a four-yard touchdown run by redshirt freshman quarterback LaNorris Sellers, giving South Carolina an early 7-0 lead.
After a three-and-out by LSU's offense, the Gamecocks got the ball back in good field position. However, Sellers was intercepted in the end zone by LSU senior cornerback Zy Alexander. The Tigers failed to get points off the turnover after junior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was sacked by fifth-year edge rusher Kyle Kennard and sixth-year linebacker Bam Martin-Scott.
The Gamecocks put together a 13-play drive and took a 10-0 lead after sixth-year kicker Alex Herrera made a 28-yard field goal.
Early in the second quarter, South Carolina's defense stopped the Tigers on third down after Kennard sacked Nussmeier. On the next play, sophomore tight end Maurice Brown II blocked LSU's punt, setting up South Carolina's offense at the Tigers' ten yard line. Sanders followed the play with a 10-yard touchdown run, giving the Gamecocks a 17-0 lead.
LSU cut into the Gamecocks' lead after an eight play, 75-yard drive that was capped by a 26-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Caden Durham, making the score 17-7 South Carolina. The Tigers' defense forced another turnover when Sellers fumbled the ball after being sacked by junior safety Sage Ryan. LSU was able to capitalize on the turnover after junior kicker Damian Ramos made a successful 28-yard field goal.
After the field goal, the Gamecocks answered with a 75-yard touchdown run by Sellers, giving South Carolina a 24-10 advantage. Both teams continued to go back and forth when the Tigers scored quickly on a 12-yard touchdown by fifth-year wide receiver Kyren Lacy. Following the touchdown, LSU missed its extra point attempt, making the score 24-16 at halftime.
In the first possession of the second half, the Tigers drove the ball deep into South Carolina territory. However, the Gamecocks' defense gained momentum after it stopped LSU twice at the one yard line, giving the ball back to South Carolina's offense. After the Gamecocks were forced to punt, the Tigers went on a five-play drive that ended in a nine-yard touchdown run by Durham, his second of the game, making it 24-22 Gamecocks.
LSU's offense continued its stellar play in the second half when it opened the fourth quarter with a two-yard touchdown catch from junior tight end Mason Taylor, which gave the Tigers a 29-24 lead. The Gamecocks responded with a 66-yard touchdown run by Sanders, giving the team a 30-29 advantage. After South Carolina's defense forced another turnover, when Nussmeier fumbled a snap, Herrera converted a 42-yard field goal, making the score 33-29 in favor of the Gamecocks.
After the two teams traded turnovers, Lacy caught a two-yard touchdown pass, giving LSU a 36-33 lead. In the final drive of the game, the Gamecocks drove down the field, but Herrera missed a game-tying field goal attempt from 49 yards out.
"I told them that I'm proud as heck of them," Beamer said."They just kept coming. We put our defense in some tough situations today, and our offense got put into some tough situations, obviously with some injuries. We made a lot of really good plays today."
Sellers suffers injury, Ashford fills in
Sellers left the game with an ankle injury late in the second quarter. He returned early in the second half, but left the game again. Because of this, fifth-year quarterback Robby Ashford was ushered into the game to guide the offense in Sellers' absence.
"He's got a little bit of an ankle sprain. I think he's gonna be fine," Beamer said."I went in the training room at halftime, and they were checking his ankle out."
Sellers completed nine of his 16 passes for 113 yards and threw an interception. He rushed ten times for 88 yards and a touchdown.
Ashford completed half of his pass attempts (2-4) for 42 yards and rushed 11 times for 11 yards.
"We just felt like, 'You know what, if he's not gonna be able to move like he wants to move, we'll get him out,'" Beamer said. "So that was where the conversation was, just felt like Robby gave us a better opportunity because LaNorris certainly wasn't 100% there."
Penalties cost the Gamecocks
The Gamecocks committed 13 penalties for 123 yards against the Tigers. In the first quarter, fifth-year defensive back O'Donnell Fortune intercepted Nussmeier and returned it for a touchdown. But the play was called back due to a personal foul penalty against Kennard.
"I want to apologize to our fans. Thirteen penalties – you're not gonna win football games in the SEC with 13 penalties," Beamer said. "I don't know if I've ever seen two defensive touchdowns come back because of penalties."
In the fourth quarter, junior defensive back Nick Emmanwori got a pick-six of his own against Nussmeier, but the touchdown was called back because of another personal foul penalty against Kennard.
"The one at the end with Nick, I watched it," Beamer said. "And anytime there's an interception, we tell our guys, you know, find the quarterback and, make sure we get him blocked. It wasn't vicious by any stretch of the imagination."
LSU's offense comes alive
Despite being shut out in the first quarter, LSU's offense found a rhythm against South Carolina's defense. Nussmeier finished 24-40 for 285 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. Nussmeier was also only sacked twice by a South Carolina defense that entered the contest with 10 sacks through its first two games.
Taylor also had a strong individual performance, with six catches for 58 yards and one touchdown. Lacy recorded five catches for 63 yards and a score, while sophomore wide receiver Aaron Anderson caught five passes for 96 yards.
LSU also found success on the ground, as it rushed 32 times for 132 yards and three touchdowns. Durham rushed 11 times for 98 yards and two touchdowns.
What's next?
South Carolina will continue its home stand on Sept. 21 against Akron. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m., and the game will be televised on ESPNU.