Kentucky halts rally, crunches Gamecocks

South Carolina lost its SEC opener, another home game and starting quarterback Connor Mitch on Saturday night in Williams-Brice Stadium.

Kentucky narrowly held onto a 17-point halftime lead, prevailing 26-22 to win its first road game in 23 tries and for the first time in Columbia since 1999. That was also the last time the Wildcats notched back-to-back wins over the Gamecocks as they now have again.

South Carolina (1-1, 0-1 SEC) faces No. 10 Georgia in Athens, Ga., this coming Saturday.

Starting quarterback Connor Mitch suffered a separated shoulder while trying to recover a fumbled option toss in the first half and likely is out for the season, head coach Steve Spurrier said. Junior Perry Orth took over for most of the second half, although freshman quarterback Lorenzo Nunez made his collegiate debut with two carries for 40 yards.

Linebacker Skai Moore made his third interception of the season. Senior tailback Brandon Wilds carried 16 times for 107 yards, and junior wide receiver Pharoh Cooper had nine catches for 100 yards.

South Carolina gained 417 yards to Kentucky’s 399 yards. The Gamecocks scored their first touchdown of the second half on a 33-yard strike from Orth to tight end Jerell Adams with 8:09 left in the game to pull within two at 24-22. The Gamecocks put wide receiver Cooper in the wildcat formation for the 2-point conversion, but Cooper fumbled the carry, and Kentucky’s Denzil Ware returned it 98 yards for a two-point conversion for his team, putting the Wildcats up 26-22.

TURNING POINT

The fumble that led to Mitch’s shoulder injury set up a fourth-and-11 and 42-yard field goal attempt from sophomore Elliott Fry. A conversion would have cut Kentucky’s lead to 17-10, but Fry missed the kick and the Wildcats went 76 yards in seven plays to go ahead 24-7. Fry bounced back to hit three field goals in the second half.

THREE POINTS

Star of the game: Backup quarterback Perry Orth, a former walk-on who was bagging groceries at downtown Publix during the preseason, took over for injured Connor Mitch and completed 13-of-20 passes for 179 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Stat of the game: After allowing Kentucky 15 first downs in the first half, South Carolina’s defense allowed only four first downs in the second half. The Gamecocks disguised their coverages better in the second half, Spurrier said.

Play of the game: With 4:32 left in the game and South Carolina carrying all the momentum, a scrambling Orth was intercepted by Chris Westry at the Kentucky 26-yard line. Gamecocks wide receiver Deebo Samuel appeared to cause Westry to lose possession of the ball, and South Carolina offensive lineman Alan Knott recovered the ball. However, Westry was ruled down before the fumble and video replay upheld the call.

OBSERVATIONS

Quarterback conundrum: Orth will take over as the starter, Spurrier said, and Gamecocks fans should expect to see more of Nunez in some capacity. Orth played well Saturday until a fourth quarter interception that stalled South Carolina’s comeback.

Impressive fight: The Gamecocks were thoroughly dominated in the first half and had to face the prospect of a second half without their starting quarterback and with Kentucky getting the ball to open the second half. Instead of packing it in, South Carolina put together an impressive comeback that was gratifying for a sellout Williams-Brice crowd, most of whom stayed for the entire game.

Rush defense still progressing: The Wildcats averaged 6.24 yards per carry on 25 carries in the first half. Kentucky had 15 first downs and 307 yards of offense after 30 minutes as the Gamecocks could do nothing to stop the Wildcats running game. Many of Kentucky’s carries came when South Carolina had eight defenders within 7 yards of the line of scrimmage.

UP NEXT

Who: South Carolina (1-1) at Georgia (2-0)

When: 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 19

Where: Sanford Stadium

TV: ESPN

USC 7, Kentucky 0

Scoring play: Connor Mitch 1-yard run (Elliott Fry kick) 12:03

Drive: 1 play, 1 yard, 0:05

Key play: Skai Moore intercepts a Patrick Towles pass at the 15-yard line and returns it 14 yards to the Wildcats 1-yard line to set up the score. Boosie Whitlow had the pressure on Towles.

USC 7, Kentucky 7

Scoring play: Mikel Horton 9-yard run (Austin MacGinnis kick) 7:49

Drive: 10 plays, 80 yards, 4:07

Key play: Towles connects with Garrett Johnson on a 19-yard gain to convert a fourth-and-4 from the South Carolina 39-yard line.

Kentucky 14, USC 7

Scoring play: Jojo Kemp 2-yard run (MacGinnis kick) 1:48

Drive: 8 plays, 76 yards, 3:02

Key play: Boom Williams rushes for an 18-yard gain on a third-and-6 from the USC 48-yard line. The Wildcats had runs of 24 and 17 yards on the drive.

Kentucky 17, USC 7

Scoring play: MacGinnis 29-yard field goal 7:29

Drive: 15 plays, 59 yards, 6:25

Key play: Williams runs for 13 yards to convert a third-and-8 from the USC 27-yard line.

Kentucky 24, USC 7

Scoring play: Towles 1-yard run (MacGinnis kick) 0:17

Key play: Towles connects with Jeff Badet on a 42-yard pass play to move the ball to the USC 11-yard line.

Kentucky 24, USC 10

Scoring play: Fry 27-yard field goal 11:13

Drive: 5 plays, 33 yards, 1:25

Key play: Perry Orth takes over for the injured Connor Mitch and throws to Pharoh Cooper for 16 yards on the first play of the drive.

Kentucky 24, USC 13

Scoring play: Fry 29-yard field goal 6:18

Drive: 7 plays, 47 yards, 2:06

Key play: Brandon Wilds lines up in the Wildcat formation and runs for 34 yards on the first play of the drive to move the ball to the Kentucky 24-yard line.

Kentucky 24, USC 16

Scoring play: Fry 21-yard field goal

Drive: 10 plays, 56 yards, 4:53

Key play: Shon Carson runs it for a first down at the 2-yard line but Alan Knott is whistled for unsportsmanlike conduct to push the Gamecocks back to the 17-yard line.

Kentucky 24, USC 22

Scoring play: Jerell Adams 33-yard pass from Perry Orth (run failed) 8:09

Drive: 10 plays, 78 yards, 4:49

Key play: Orth connects with Deebo Samuel for a 10-yard gain on fourth-and-two from the Kentucky 43-yard line. Adams scored on the next play.

Kentucky 26, USC 22

Scoring play: Denzil Ware 98-yard fumble return on two-point conversion try.

Chris Dearing

This story was originally published September 12, 2015 at 11:05 PM with the headline "Kentucky halts rally, crunches Gamecocks."