The Gamecock defense showed up when it counted the most.

After the offense put the team up by two touchdowns early in the second half, the defense was able to make plays when it needed to as South Carolina held on to beat N.C. State 35-28 in the season opener.

The Gamecocks are now 18-2 in season openers over the last 20 seasons.

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“I’m extremely proud of how our guys fought. Bottom line, we played a heck of a football team,” head coach Will Muschamp said. “N.C. State is a heck of a football team. Their front seven is as we’ll see this year. Hats off to them to how they’ve recruited and developed their players. Dave’s an outstanding football coach.”

After the Wolfpack tied the game at 21 right before the half, the offense began putting up points at a blistering pace to start the second half. After a defensive stop, Jake Bentley put his team ahead with a dazzling throw to Deebo Samuel.

After scrambling out of the pocket, he heaved a ball 60 yards down the field to Samuel, who hauled the ball in one-handed while falling out of the end zone.

That put the Gamecocks up seven and added to Samuel’s already big day. He finished with five catches for 83 yards and two receiving touchdowns, doubling his total in 13 games last season.

He also took the game’s opening kickoff back for a touchdown.

“I don’t think anyone in the country can guard him. Especially with the way we train together. I know where to put the ball when he’s covered,” Bentley said, making air quotes around covered. “That’s what we did today.”

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Rico Dowdle would make it a two-touchdown lead, punching it in from seven yards out after the defense forced a fumble giving the offense the ball back inside the Wolfpack 10 yard line.

After giving up 343 yards in the first half, the defense only gave up 46 in the third quarter and limited N.C. State to just 2.3 yards per play. They also sacked quarterback Ryan Finley three times in the quarter and four times in the game, including once on the final drive.

Finley finished with 415 yards passing and two touchdowns on 45-for-64 attempts.

“He knows where to go with the football, he’s very accurate, and the ball was out very quickly,” Muschamp said. “We got them in two third downs to start the second half and it was more of a drop back game so they held onto the ball longer. We had more time to get to him.”

The Pack made their run late, adding a touchdown early in the fourth quarter but couldn’t capitalize on Gamecocks’ inability to score.

They wouldn’t score on their last three drives, turning the ball over twice on downs, including throwing two incomplete passes to end the game essentially.

On the last defensive play of the game, D.J. Smith tipped a Finley pass out of the back of the end zone to seal the Gamecock win.

“I didn’t even need to look and see,” lineman Dante Sawyer said of the last play. “I knew my boys in the back had it taken care of.”

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Despite the Gamecocks being outgained 504 to 246, they were able to make plays and force turnovers when they needed to. They forced two fumbles, recovering both, and Bentley only threw once interception.

“We’re going to need to be an opportunistic team. The most important thing about this game is the ball, they named the game after it. And we got to get possession of the ball,” Muschamp said.“Our guys are very cognizant about getting the ball off of people.”

The Gamecocks try and use this momentum heading into their conference opener next week against Missouri, who scored over 70 points against Missouri State Saturday.

But, for now, they’re going to enjoy what could be a season-setting win.

“We’ll enjoy it tonight and we’ll go back to work tomorrow,” Muschamp said. “When you play a team like this in this setting, you find out a lot about your football team. And we got a good football team. We got to improve in a lot of areas, but it’s one game and that’s all it counts for.”

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Moments that mattered: With the Wolfpack driving at the end of the game, Bryson Allen-Williams picked up a sack to force third down and N.C. State to use their last time out. The next two plays were incomplete passes and the game ended after that.

Player of the game: Deebo Samuel had three touchdowns Saturday, including a kickoff return for a score to end the game. He finished with 83 yards receiving and two touchdowns through the air.

Up next: The Gamecocks are away from home again next week, traveling to Columbia, Missouri to face the Tigers. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST on ESPN 2.