South Carolina battles but No. 3 Florida’s firepower too much for Gamecocks

There are plays that turn games into college football upsets, or at least near-upsets. They’re the 50-50 balls an underdog catches. They’re the run that nets 10 extra yards instead of 3 off missed tackles. They’re the defensive stops that come when the chance is there, and even when it’s not.

It might be too far to say South Carolina had a strong chance to upset No. 3 Florida in The Swamp on a field named for the coach with the most wins in both schools’ histories, Steve Spurrier. But the Gamecocks had plenty of chances to make the Gators sweat.

Instead, those issues around the edges — dropped balls, conversions after the defense forced a negative play — haunted South Carolina in Saturday’s 38-24 loss, just as they plagued the Gamecocks in a defeat to Tennessee the week before. USC isn’t in a position to give plays away, and plays given away were again the theme of the day Saturday.

“Disappointed, I felt like there was some self-inflicted wounds,” Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp said, “as far as drops, eye control defensively, some things we need to continue to improve. But they’ve got a good football team. I appreciate how our team competed, but that’s not what we came here for. We came to win the game.”

Even when the Gamecocks opened the second half with a defensive stop and 42 yards of progress, the offense marched backward with 15 yards of penalties and fumbled the ball away.

Florida went up 31-14 and the game was close to over after that, though the Gamecocks made a push late to cut into a deficit that reached 24 points. USC, down two touchdowns, got the ball with more than eight minutes left but took 7:23 off the clock and ultimately didn’t score.

“We didn’t quit,” South Carolina QB Collin Hill said. “That’s something that we can build off of. The first half and the second half too, we just kind of were stopping ourselves.”

Hill was referring to dropped passes, penalties and other mistakes that seemed to short circuit possessions.

Gators quarterback Kyle Trask finished with 268 yards passing and four touchdowns, including two scoring throws to star tight end Kyle Pitts.

The loss means the Gamecocks will start 0-2 for the first time since the infamous 0-11 season in 1999, in part because of the all-SEC 2020 schedule in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Playing in the SEC, we can’t start slow,” starting corner Israel Mukuamu said, referencing seven explosive plays his group gave up before halftime. “We’ve just got to be ready to go.”

USC-Florida game moments

Star of the game: Gamecocks running back Kevin Harris showed the potential coaches talked up through much of last spring. He ran through contact often and put up more than 100 total yards, carrying the offense at times.

Play of the game: Florida quarterback Kyle Trask’s 16-yard pass to receiver Kadarius Toney in the middle of the second quarter. The Gators were facing third and 14 and the pass was short of the sticks. But USC couldn’t finish the play. The Gators scored a field goal to make it 17-14, got a stop and scored again for a double-digit lead UF never relinquished.

Stat of the game: Five, the total number of third downs the Gators faced before going up by 24 points in the third quarter. The Gamecocks could not get off the field and almost never forced UF to work for it. Hill had some shots early, but he started to take hits as he tried to lead a comeback.

Observations from Gamecocks vs. Gators

▪ South Carolina spent much of the game in dime defense, putting safety R.J. Roderick at linebacker. USC only had four healthy linebackers, including a true freshman and a former walk-on.

▪ Drops were again an issue for USC with four in the first half, plus a tipped ball that hit the intended receiver. They meant missing on a third down to continue a drive, a second down to force third and long, and a couple big plays.

▪ USC had a couple of moments that might’ve put some fear into the coaches when linebacker Ernest Jones and guard Sadarius Hutcherson both went down and had to be helped off. Each veteran came back.

Next USC football game

Who: South Carolina at Vanderbilt

When: Noon Saturday, Oct. 10

Where: Vanderbilt Stadium

TV: SEC Network

First Quarter

SC—Harris 2 run (P.White kick), 8:04.

FLA—Pierce 2 run (McPherson kick), 3:45.

FLA—K.Pitts 13 pass from Trask (McPherson kick), :06.

Second Quarter

SC—S.Smith 4 pass from C.Hill (P.White kick), 9:31.

FLA—FG McPherson 26, 3:31.

FLA—K.Pitts 4 pass from Trask (McPherson kick), 1:22.

Third Quarter

FLA—Whittemore 4 pass from Trask (McPherson kick), 7:47.

FLA—Ka.Toney 57 pass from Trask (McPherson kick), 4:44.

SC—FG P.White 45, :28.

Fourth Quarter

SC—Harris 9 pass from C.Hill (P.White kick), 10:21.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—South Carolina, Harris 22-100, Fenwick 6-32, C.Hill 8-(minus 15). Florida, Pierce 9-51, Trask 6-22, M.Davis 4-9, Wright 1-3, (Team) 2-(minus 1), Ka.Toney 2-(minus 4).

PASSING—South Carolina, C.Hill 28-47-0-212. Florida, Trask 21-29-1-268.

RECEIVING—South Carolina, S.Smith 12-85, Fenwick 5-24, Harris 4-27, Muse 2-21, Powers 2-19, Legette 1-22, Mullins 1-9, Vann 1-5. Florida, Ka.Toney 6-86, K.Pitts 4-57, Whittemore 2-30, Grimes 2-26, Shorter 2-16, M.Davis 2-13, Henderson 1-23, Copeland 1-12, Wright 1-5.

MISSED FIELD GOALS—None.

This story was originally published October 3, 2020 at 3:32 PM.

Ben Breiner

The State

Covers the South Carolina Gamecocks, primarily football, with a little basketball, baseball or whatever else comes up. Joined The State in 2015. Previously worked at Muncie Star Press and Greenwood Index-Journal. Picked up feature writing honors from the APSE, SCPA and IAPME at various points. A 2010 University of Wisconsin graduate. Support my work with a digital subscription