A game-winning 39-yard field goal from Parker White was just enough to help South Carolina edge out a 20-17 victory over ECU in Greenville, N.C. on Saturday.

Shane Beamer said on Thursday that the Gamecocks would need to jump on East Carolina early to keep the Pirates at bay.

Mike Houston and the ECU offense got the ball first and did just that.

East Carolina was able to jump on South Carolina early with a 75-yard touchdown pass on the first game of the play when sophomore wide receiver Tyler Snead took a jet sweep in the backfield before heaving up a pass to a wide open Jsi Hatfield for a touchdown on the gadget play.

The rest of the first quarter seemed to be more of the same.

Though the Pirates didn't score again in the quarter, miscommunication on the offensive side of the ball for the Gamecocks stopped any chance to build momentum. Starting quarterback Zeb Noland threw a pass that was intended for Jaheim Bell but was picked off; Bell didn't even see the ball coming.

The Gamecock defense performed well throughout the first quarter, with the exception of the first play of the game, with ECU only gaining 49 total yards.

South Carolina had a chance to score before the end of the first quarter when Noland found Josh Vann across the middle and he appeared to cross the goal line before fumbling the ball in the end zone.

Upon official review, it was determined that Vann fumbled the ball before breaking the plane and the play ended in a touchback after the ball squirted out of the back of the end zone.

The second quarter was more of the same offensively for the Gamecocks.

The offense totaled only 10 yards along with a turnover, a Dakereon Joyner fumble to set the Pirates up with prime field position leading to ECU's only other touchdown of the game, a scamper into the end zone by Holton Ahlers.

Defensively, USC held ECU to 57 yards in the quarter and forced two turnovers. Defensive back Darius Rush and linebacker Damani Staley managed to pick off Ahlers twice in the second quarter, with Staley taking his interception 63 yards back for a touchdown.

For a second at the end of the third quarter, it looked like Noland had found his footing. Noland completed a 45-yard pass to Vann that set up a 13-yard touchdown pass to Joyner to tie the game going into the fourth quarter.

The defense continued to dominate ECU in the third quarter, allowing only 46 total yards.

The fourth quarter of the game was summed up by both teams trading field goals. ECU kicker Owen Daffer missed a field goal in the beginning of the game but was able to hit a 26-yard field goal to give the Pirates the 17-14 lead with just under seven minutes to go in the game.

In the ensuing drive the Gamecock offense was able to march down to the other side of the field thanks in part to a 61-yard kickoff return by freshman JuJu McDowell, leading to a 39-yard field goal make from Parker White to tie the game.

In the end, a 10 play drive was enough to drain the clock and set up Parker White for a game-winning 36-yard field goal as time expired to secure the victory for the Gamecocks.

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