Light turns on for Mike Davis

The player leading USC out of the tunnel on Thursday night was a bit of a surprise.

Senior Mike Davis was at the head of the line, a few days after being disciplined and temporarily losing his starting spot.

Davis, who was injured much of the preseason, was benched after having been found to break into a team refrigerator to get a soft drink, according to a team source.

He missed a series and a half, coming in with 8:24 remaining in the first half. He quickly became the featured back, scoring the game’s first touchdown on a fourth-down, 1-yard run in the third quarter.

He was the closest thing the offense had to a star, finishing with nearly 100 yards, He uncorked a 50-yard run in the fourth quarter, the longest of his career.

Taylor Rank, who began the preseason buried on the depth chart, got the start. He ran for a 10-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Push-ups are bad for you. USC’s Emanuel Cook drew an unsportsmanlike penalty in the fourth quarter, after the safety punished himself with 10 push-ups for missing an interception.

That turned what was going to be a fourth down — N.C. State was sending its punt team on the field — into first down at the Wolfpack 33. The crowd, which had cheered Cook’s push-ups, booed when referee announced the penalty.

He keeps going. Kenny McKinley didn’t wait long to extend his consecutive games with a reception streak. The senior pulled down a 10-yard hitch route on the second play of the game to give him 34 consecutive games with at least one catch, tying him with Jermale Kelly and Sterling Sharpe for the school record. McKinley had six receptions for 37 yards in the first half.

Stewart starts. Spur linebacker Darian Stewart, who was questionable with a left foot injury, started in the Gamecocks’ 4-2-5 scheme. It didn’t take Stewart long to find action: The junior from Huntsville, Ala., had a tackle on the Wolfpack’s second offensive play.

McKnight shines. Since he arrived at USC, redshirt freshman Byron McKnight has been overshadowed by the other defensive end on his high school team.

But McKnight showed signs Thursday of being a factor, recording a third-quarter sack, the first of his career, and getting a lot of snaps.

McKnight was a teammate of sophomore Travian Robertson at Scotland County High School, in Lauringburg, N.C.

Extra points. As expected, Spencer Lanning was the starting punter. His first two punts were impressive on the yardage sheet (92 total yards), but the first was into the end zone, and the second was saved by a nice open-field tackle by Captain Munnerlyn. ...

The offense’s first play was with a two-back set. Moe Brown got the nod at second receiver over Dion LeCorn. ...

True freshmen seeing action: Receiver C.C. Whitlock, linebacker Shaq Wilson and cornerback Akeem Auguste. ...

Scott Spurrier, the walk-on son of coach Steve Spurrier, played on the punt return team.

Reach Emerson at (803) 771-8676. Staff writer Joe Person contributed to this report.