Five Key Plays and Game Balls

Five Key Plays

1. Fumble

After a Gamecock punt pinned them deep, the Tigers called a safe pass play to get some breathing room. Drew Lock threw a screen to Dimetrios Mason, who picked up about ten yards. But Mason was sandwiched on the tackle, and Steven Montac stripped the ball. Chris Lammons fell on the fumble at the 20, giving the Gamecocks a short field. Four plays later they were in the end zone and never trailed.

2. False start

After a fourth down stop, South Carolina looked poised to take a quick two touchdown lead as Jake Bentley hit Deebo Samuel for 16 yards. Except Bryan Edwards was called for holding on the play. A pair of runs by Rico Dowdle got the first down anyway, and Edwards’ penalty was forgotten. But then he was called for a false start. That penalty was too much to overcome and South Carolina settled for a punt. There just isn’t enough firepower on the South Carolina roster to overcome two penalties, especially from a wide receiver. Instead of possibly turning the game into and early rout, South Carolina was stuck in a tight game until the fourth quarter.

3. Bentley to Dowdle

On the play before, Bentley threw a fade to KC Crosby in the end zone. The play was ruled incomplete and upheld on review, despite every (biased) fan in the stadium thinking Crosby had gotten a toe down inbounds. Bentley didn’t hang his head, and came right back with a touchdown toss to Dowdle. He threw the ball short, so Dowdle could come back to it. Linebacker Eric Beisel never saw the pass, and the ball actually bounced off his shoulder. Dowdle stayed with the play and made a diving grab of the ricochet for a touchdown. It was confidence, athleticism, and effort all on one play and all by two true freshmen.

4. Bentley to Deebo

Bentley made several tough throws during the game, but his third quarter strike may have been the best. On third and six (the only third down the Gamecocks faced on the drive), Bentley slid around in the pocket, avoiding pressure. He bought just enough time to find Samuel heading toward the sideline. Bentley dropped the pass right in Samuel’s outstretched hands, and Samuel made the catch and tapped his foot on the ground before falling out of bounds. The 25-yard pass was the longest play on the 98-yard third quarter touchdown drive.

5. Dowdle right

A missed field goal gave South Carolina the ball with a little over 12 minutes left in the game. South Carolina wanted to do two things with the possession: bleed the clock and score to make it a two possession game. On the first play, Dowdle took a handoff and burst through a gaping hole on the right side. He picked up 23 yards before being dragged down. That play set the tone for the drive, as Dowdle ran for 57 yards on the drive, South Carolina milked 4:29 off the clock, and an Elliott Fry field goal grabbed the two-score lead.

Game Balls

Offense

Jake Bentley

Bentley set career highs for completions and yards, and once again finished without a turnover. Bentley finished a very efficient 22-28 for 254 yards and two touchdowns. He orchestrated a 98-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter and made several huge third down throws. Most impressively, Bentley did not get down after missed plays and bounced back with big throws.

Deebo Samuel

Samuel has been the biggest beneficiary of Bentley’s emergence. Samuel set a career-high with eight receptions in each of Bentley’s first two starts, and topped that with nine catches for a career-high 125 yards against Missouri. Samuel and Bentley have developed chemistry on the field where Bentley doesn’t always have to make a perfect throw, but Samuel knows how to get to the ball. Samuel’s third down sideline grab to keep the 98-yard drive alive was a thing of beauty, and he rushed for a touchdown in the first quarter. Now if he could just get better at fielding punts…

Rico Dowdle

Dowdle carried the ball 27 times for the second week in a row and finished with a career-high 149 yards rushing. He also made an acrobatic touchdown catch in the second quarter. Most importantly, he got better as the game went on. Dowdle had 57 yards on the game-clinching field goal drive. “Those defensive kids get tired of hitting him,” Will Muschamp said. “I’ve coached defense my whole life and I’ve seen it - and heard the excuses.”

Defense

Rashad Fenton

Fenton finished with only five tackles, but he made a pair of very timely plays. His third quarter interception not only snuffed out a Missouri scoring drive, but completely changed the momentum of the game. In the fourth quarter, he fought through a block to tackle Demetrius Mason for a three yard loss. Missouri had to settle for a 44-yard field goal after that, which it missed.

Defensive line

The defensive line did not play well for most of the game, giving up several long runs and allowing the Tigers’ top two running backs to average 6.8 yards per carry. But in the fourth quarter, with the game in the balance, the line stepped up. Taylor Stallworth deflected a pair of passes. Darius English snuffed out a trick play for a loss of 10 yards. On the final drive, Drew Lock was harassed on nearly every play. The line drew two holding calls, got a sack, and forced the bad throw for the game-ending interception.

Special Teams

Elliott Fry

It’s more of a career game ball for Fry. In the second quarter, Fry made his second PAT of the game to become the career scoring leader at South Carolina. He missed a field goal in the third quarter, but made a chip shot in the fourth quarter to give South Carolina a two score lead.

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