The South Carolina football team picked up a 35-9 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Gamecocks' defense helped it gain an early lead that it would not relinquish the rest of the game, bringing the team's record to 4-3 overall and 2-3 in SEC play.
South Carolina forced turnovers on Oklahoma's first three drives of the contest, one that came on the first play of the game when junior defensive back Nick Emmanwori picked off a pass from freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. The Gamecocks eventually took advantage of the turnover, scoring the first points of the game on a three-yard rushing touchdown from senior running back Raheim Sanders.
South Carolina then scored two defensive touchdowns stemming from takeaways — one of which came on a fumble recovery by fifth-year defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway, and the other coming on a pick 6 from Emmanwori. These two touchdowns brought the Gamecocks' lead to 21-0.
The Sooners eventually got on the board with a field goal in the second quarter, but the team's efforts on offense were to no avail, as the Gamecocks built further on its lead before the end of the half. Redshirt freshman quarterback LaNorris Sellers' 33-yard touchdown pass to sixth-year tight end Joshua Simon, followed by a successful 2-point conversion attempt, made the score 32-3 in favor of the Gamecocks at the half.
The second half showcased fewer explosive plays than the first, as South Carolina focused on controlling possession and maintaining its wide lead. The Sooners scored the team's only touchdown in the third quarter when junior wide receiver Brenen Thompson found the end zone on a 54-yard pass.
But South Carolina's defense would continue to disrupt throughout the period, most notably when it forced its fourth turnover of the game on a forced fumble.
In the game's closing moments, sixth-year quarterback Davis Beville — who played at Oklahoma for two years before joining the Gamecocks in the offseason — entered the game and took a knee, clinching the team's fourth win of the season.
Dominant defense
South Carolina's defense was dominant from the opening whistle, playing a pivotal role in helping the team quickly build an early 21-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Gamecocks would sustain that momentum through the rest of the game, as it continued placing pressure on the Sooners' quarterbacks and preventing the home team from sustaining long drives. South Carolina forced four total turnovers against Oklahoma, including two interceptions and two fumbles, which tied for the most takeaways it recorded in a single game this season.
"I think just defense in general is about effort," Beamer said. "The keys to the game this week was to dominate the turnover battle... and strain every play."
The Gamecocks also recorded nine sacks and 12 tackles for loss throughout the game, both of which were season highs.
"It shows a lot... Just seeing nine different players out there, we were actually having fun," Hemingway said. "Seeing everybody come on the sideline and smiling, it just meant a lot to see everybody get the win."
South Carolina's aggressiveness on offense
South Carolina has relied heavily on its run game early in the 2024 season and, on two occasions this season, has logged more rushing yards than passing yards in a game.
This was not the case against the Sooners, as the Gamecocks logged more than twice as many passing yards (180) than it did rushing yards (74). South Carolina also averaged 10.6 yards per completion.
Head coach Shane Beamer said the Gamecocks' efforts on offense were a testament to the team's efforts to place pressure on Oklahoma's defense throughout the game.
"We wanted to be aggressive and take shots downfield and press the issue," Beamer said.
Sellers shines in win
While South Carolina's defense helped the team to an early lead, Sellers played a pivotal role in keeping the Sooners' defense on the field for extended periods of time. Sellers completed 16 of his 24 pass attempts for 175 yards, the second-highest single-game passing total of his collegiate career, and threw one touchdown pass.
Simon, the recipient of Sellers' lone passing score, said the Gamecocks' offense was motivated by continuing to build on its early advantage.
"I was thinking, 'Get more points than them,'" Simon said. "They were scoring, and I was like, 'We need to go down and score too, and see how many we can get.'"
Sellers said his mentality in facing the Sooners' defense was to be smart in terms of protecting the football, but also still taking shots downfield when the opportunity presented itself.
What’s next?
South Carolina (4-3, 2-3 SEC) will have its second bye-week of the 2024 season this upcoming week. But it will return to action on Nov. 2, when it will take on No. 14 Texas A&M (6-1, 4-0 SEC) at Williams-Brice Stadium. The kickoff time for this game remains to be determined, but it will air on the SEC Network.