Gamecocks Fall Flat In 34-12 Loss At Missouri

The defense picked up where it left off last week by allowing three extended touchdown drives on the first four possessions, Spencer Rattler suffered 6 sacks, star wide receiver Xavier Legette did not return after a second quarter upper-body injury and the Gamecocks were embarrassed 34-12 at No. 20 Missouri.

Missouri (7-1, 3-1 SEC) did not score points on its opening possession, but it did not take long to get the offense going. After Rattler took a crucial third-down sack to create a 51-yard field goal attempt Mitch Jeter left short, the Tigers stormed down the field and capped off a 67-yard touchdown drive with a 42-yard touchdown strike to leading receiver Luther Burden.

Before the quarter even ended running back Cody Schrader scampered home from 10 yards out to double the lead, and quarterback Brady Cook capped off an 87-yard touchdown drive with a 17-yard run of his own to make it 21-0. By this point South Carolina’s (2-5, 1-4 SEC) defense had allowed five touchdowns on its last six possessions dating back to the Florida game, and the damage was done. Shrader rushed for 159 yards on 26 carries, Cook was his usual efficient self with 198 passing yards and no turnovers and even without a ton of second half explosiveness, Missouri’s offense did more than enough early.

Legette suffered his injury on the ensuing kickoff return after Missouri went up 21-0, and from there any hopes of explosive offensive plays in a comeback were essentially zero. The offense did string together field goal drives on either side of halftime and even had a flicker of real hope midway through the third quarter when Missouri punter Luke Bauer dropped a snap and set the Gamecocks up at the 33-yard-line.

Two plays later the ball was at the 13, but a second down sack and a third down sack led to another field goal that only trimmed the deficit to 24-9. It was not the first, but certainly the most significant moment where right tackle Vershon Lee’s injury was very evident. The defense got its third consecutive stop early in the fourth quarter to force a 54-yard field goal attempt, but Harrison Mevis knocked it through to officially send the small patches of garnet and black tucked away into the corner of Faurot Field for the exits.

Even when the offense set up first-and-goal at the 5-yard-line on the ensuing possession with an opportunity to climb within 11, three plays totaling two yards led to a fourth Jeter field goal.

This 2-5 start is the worst start for the Gamecocks since the ill-fated 2020 season that cost Will Muschamp his job, and the worst start in a full-length season since the winless 1999 campaign. They will be back in action for their final road game of 2023 at 12 p.m. ET next Saturday at Texas A&M.

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