Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down: South Carolina vs. Texas A&M

The big play passes

The Gamecocks were able to sling it around with six passes of 21 yards or more. That included a 45-yard touchdown pass to Shi Smith, USC’s second-longest pass of the season.

First-half defense

USC’s defense bent a few times, but the group created some negative plays and held the Aggies to 4.1 yards a play.

Googer’s health

It was a scary moment when he went down and had to be taken to the hospital. But he was able to return to the stadium before game’s end.

Another special teams takeaway

USC recovered a muffed Texas A&M punt. It was South Carolina’s ninth takeaway of the season.

Offensive consistency

South Carolina got some big passes and one long run, and for that, they could only average 5 yards per play. That included 9 total yards in the final quarter.

Corralling Mond

When the Gamecocks could keep things in front of them and prevent Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond from getting into space, they got stops. That didn’t hold in the second half, as he ran for 95 yards, converting more than a few first downs.

The ground game

The sacks skewed the stats, but Ty’Son Williams averaged 3 yards per carry outside his 34-yard run. The rest of the backs had minus-4 yards on three carries.

Pass protection

Things didn’t go well early and got real bad late. Jake Bentley went down seven times, losing 56 yard, and had to escape more than a few other sacks along the way.

Ben Breiner

This story was originally published September 30, 2017 at 11:37 PM with the headline "Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down: South Carolina vs. Texas A&M."