White the hero as Gamecocks complete dramatic comeback over LaTech

Parker White was booed coming off the field at the end of the first half. He was cheered leaving the field.

White would nail a game-winning field goal with four seconds left to give the Gamecocks a 17-16 win over Louisiana Tech Saturday.

White would miss his first two attempts of the day but nail the 31-yarder to win the game. It came just a few plays after Louisiana Tech went up by two points on a field goal.

The kick was set up by a 24-yard scramble by Jake Bentley and a 41-yard bobbling catch from Bryan Edwards to put the Gamecocks in field goal range. The rest was up to White, who hadn't made a field goal in four career attempts.

"I knew I was going to get a chance when we were in field goal range when he caught it," White said. "First half didn't go the way I wanted to, I didn’t make my kicks. But the biggest thing as a kicker is you have to forget about the previous kicks. You just have to move on to the next one.”

South Carolina wouldn't score until the fourth quarter but went up quickly on a OrTre Smith touchdown pass where he bulldozed his way into the end zone from 10 yards out.

The lead came two defensive stops later. After Bentley found Bryan Edwards for a 39-yard gain on first down, Ty’Son Williams would bust through the line for a 35-yard rushing touchdown, his first as a Gamecock.

Williams got the start and would rush for a career-high 95 yards on 13 carries. It was also the sophomore's first-career start.

“I was first in the rotation," Williams said. "I kind of had it in my mind that I was going to start this game. also being that Rico was dealing with an injury.”

It was the Gamecocks' (3-1, 1-1 SEC) fifth win in their last six non-conference regular season games.

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Louisiana Tech would capitalize early on a missed South Carolina field goal and march the ball 64 yards over the course of seven minutes to take a three-point lead in the first quarter.

Parker White would miss the kick on the Gamecocks’ first drive of the game, pushing a 34-yard field goal wide left. South Carolina kickers started the season 1-for-7 on field goals. White would miss another at the end of the first half from 46 yards.

Louisiana Tech would tack on another field goal but couldn’t punch it in during the first half. The second field goal was set up by a Jake Bentley interception, his fourth of the season.

He only had four last year in seven games. Bentley would finish 22-of-34 with 295 yards and a touchdown. Ten different players caught passes Saturday, including Edwards catching for a career-high 122 yards.

Ty’Son Williams would finish the first half with 64 yards, 50 on the ground after only picking up seven total yards last week. South Carolina would average 4.5 yards per carry.

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Louisiana Tech would come out firing to start the second half. The Bulldogs would string together a 12-play, 75-yard drive aided in part by a Jamyest Williams pass interference call on third down.

The Bulldogs would convert the other two third downs on that drive, including the three-yard touchdown pass.

It looked like the Gamecocks could try and come back in their first drive of the second half, picking up 41 yards in five plays, but Williams fumbled away any momentum the team had.

It was regained on the very next drive with a JaMarcus King interception near the Gamecock goal line. It was his first pick of the year.

"I saw him beeline and flush the quarterback out of the pocket so I just pursued my receiver to the sideline and I kind of knew I touched with both feet down," King said.

South Carolina would be shutout through the first three quarters for the first time since Nov. 12 against Florida. The Gamecocks, who finished with seven points against the Gators then, were able to find some rhythm in Saturday's game against the Bulldogs.

"We had a bad snap, just some mental errors on our part," Bentley said. "It was nothing really they did it. It was just a matter of execution. We have to get better at that. that’s the big thing, just go get better. We won, and that’s all that really matters.”

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Player of the game: Parker White would get redemption after missing all of his previous field goals to start the season. He would slot a 31-yarder to give the Gamecocks a 17-16 win.

Up next: South Carolina hits the road, traveling to Texas A&M next week. The game starts at 7:30 p.m. will be televised on SEC Network.