The 3-2-1: Three key plays, two game balls, one burning question from South Carolina’s loss to Tennessee
Three Key Plays
1. Fourth and two
South Carolina kept the drive alive with a fake punt, but the Gamecocks kept the offense on the field for another first down. Tennessee got just enough pressure on Spencer Rattler to make his pass to Xavier Legette slightly off-target. Legette stumbled as he reached for the catch and wasn’t able to turn upfield for the first down. If the pass had been on target it would have been an easy pickup, instead, it was Tennessee ball.
2. Pick Six
South Carolina faced third and 22 on its own 19 with 55 seconds left in the first half. Instead of playing it safe with a handoff, South Carolina called a pass. Rattler was rushed again and threw high to O’Mega Blake. The ball went over his head and right to Kamal Hadden for an easy catch and a 28-yard touchdown return. There was no reason to pass the ball in that situation and it put South Carolina in a two-score hole.
3. Fourth and one
Mario Anderson’s 75-yard touchdown run gave the Gamecocks a spark, and after a defensive stop, South Carolina drove into Tennessee territory. South Carolina had third and one at the Tennessee 35, but was stuffed on consecutive plays. On third down Anderson was bottled up at the line of scrimmage. On fourth down South Carolina tried a quarterback sneak, but the offensive line got no push and Tennessee easily wrapped up Rattler for no gain. Although there was still almost a quarter and a half to play, it was South Carolina’s last, best chance to make the game close.
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Two Game Balls
Mario Anderson
Anderson rushed 10 times for 101 yards, including the 75-yard touchdown. He became the first Gamecock to rush for over 100 yards in almost a year (51 weeks, in fact).
DQ Smith
Smith got repeatedly burned in coverage last week. He missed a tackle on a long run early, but otherwise, Smith did a good job of bouncing back. He had an interception to set up a touchdown, forced a fumble, and had 12 tackles.
One Burning Question
Can South Carolina fix the blocking?
Consider this a repeat of the question from week one. Spencer Rattler was sacked nine times by North Carolina and six times by Tennessee, although it seemed like a lot more, and South Carolina failed to convert multiple short-yardage plays. Pressure can make the best quarterbacks look average, and Rattler spent most of the game running away from tacklers. It’s no surprise that he only mustered 169 yards passing and struggled to produce explosive plays. Some of the issues had to do with matchups (South Carolina was without Jakai Moore and true freshman Tree Babalade was in over his head), but South Carolina has to figure out a way to help the offensive line.
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