South Carolina vs. Auburn grades: Jaycee Horn fuels USC upset
For the first time since 1933, South Carolina defeated Auburn, beating the No. 15 Tigers, 30-22, in an emphatic upset. So what grades did the Gamecocks earn in the victory?
Passing offense
Shi Smith gets an “A.” The rest of the passing game gets a “D.”
The Gamecocks struggled to find any sort of consistency through the air in the first half, as quarterback Collin Hill threw for just 78 yards on 10-of-16 passing. Drops, once again, hurt the USC passing game early, as even Smith dropped the ball twice on catchable passes.
But Smith more than redeemed himself in the second half, making a dazzling leaping catch in the corner of the end zone to give the Gamecocks a 20-19 lead. Hill baited the Auburn defense offsides, then threw a well-placed jump ball on the free play. Smith followed up that play with another highlight-reel catch on third down in the fourth quarter, extending a USC drive and setting up a crucial field goal. Smith caught eight passes for 76 yards.
No other USC receiver tallied more than two catches or 30 receiving yards. A deflected pass off the hands of quarterback-turned-receiver Dakereon Joyner led to an Auburn interception in the red zone. Hill finished the game with just 144 passing yards, completing 15-of-24 passes.
GRADE: C-
Rushing offense
The ground game remains the strength of USC’s 2020 offense, as the Gamecocks relied on their one-two punch of Kevin Harris and Deshaun Fenwick to carry the offensive load. Harris’ numbers could’ve looked even better if not for a holding call that negated a 78-yard touchdown run. Even still, Harris tallied two touchdowns on the ground — his fifth and sixth of the season — and rushed for 83 yards on 25 attempts. Fenwick added 68 yards on 12 attempts in a change-of-pace role. For the second straight week, offensive coordinator Mike Bobo also employed Joyner in the running game, giving him the ball on an end-around for a 14-yard gain. Joyner scored a 47-yard touchdown on a similar play last week.
GRADE: A
Passing defense
Junior corner Jaycee Horn earns an easy, obvious “A+” as he might’ve been the best player on the field Saturday, almost singlehandedly carrying USC’s secondary. Despite a strong reputation as one of the top corners in the conference, Horn entered Saturday’s game with zero career interceptions. He left the game with two — each setting up scoring drives for the Gamecocks offense. Horn also broke up a pass that teammate Jaylin Dickerson intercepted. In all, Horn broke up four passes and made two tackles and won the battle against stud Auburn receiver Seth Williams.
The rest of the secondary had a more difficult time against Auburn quarterback Bo Nix, especially in the first quarter, as Nix completed passes to six different receivers in an efficient first two drives. Nix passed for a season-high 272 yards against a USC secondary that was missing key veteran Israel Mukuamu. The play of Horn boosts the grade for the entire group.
GRADE: B-
Rushing defense
Freshman Tank Bigsby could’ve been a Gamecock. Instead, he’s impressed as the Tigers’ lead back. USC’s defense couldn’t contain Bigsby on Saturday, allowing him to run for 111 yards and a touchdown on 16 attempts. The Gamecocks also allowed a whopping 69 yards on 15 carries by the dual-threat quarterback Nix. In all, USC allowed 209 rushing yards. However, the defensive line, buoyed by the return of Keir Thomas, held tough in the red zone, allowing just the one rushing score.
GRADE: C-
Special teams
Punter Kai Kroeger was the special teams star of the day for USC as he pinned Auburn inside the 20 three times, including twice inside the 10-yard line. Placekicker Parker White made his lone field-goal attempt, a 39-yarder, to help build USC’s late lead. The only blemish on the day for USC was a poor 16-yard kick return by Smith that was further hampered by a penalty.
GRADE: A-
Coaching
Coach Will Muschamp led the Gamecocks to their first win over Auburn since 1933, securing an upset victory against the No. 15 team in the country. It’s hard to quibble with a coaching performance that leads to that kind of result. While it didn’t always look pretty for the Gamecocks, there’s no doubt Saturday’s win was an important one for the program and for Muschamp.
GRADE: A+
This story was originally published October 17, 2020 at 4:08 PM.
