‘Celebration was absolutely crazy’: Memories vivid from USC’s 2019 upset win over UGA
Dakereon Joyner’s eyes light up when he’s asked about what happened Oct. 12, 2019 in Athens, Georgia.
His memory of the 20-17 double-overtime South Carolina win over a No. 3 Georgia in Sanford Stadium is particularly rosy. Then a redshirt freshman quarterback-receiver hybrid dealing with a nagging hamstring, Joyner remembers when coach Will Muschamp thrust him onto the field after Ryan Hilinski was injured early in the second half.
“It was just that shock of them telling me I gotta go play, and me limping around out there, kind of just trying to do what I can do,” Joyner recalled.
Joyner admits now, two years later, he wasn’t supposed to play in the Georgia game. But he trotted out there anyway, going 6-for-12 passing for 39 yards and rushing six times for 28 yards. Muschamp after the game called it a “gutsy as hell performance” by Joyner.
It was the kind of result his teammate, former South Carolina offensive lineman Chandler Farrell, wasn’t surprised by. Farrell watched Joyner dominate the Charleston-area prep scene when they played at rival high schools. He’s known to be the kind of player who won’t let pressure get to him.
“When he came in the game, there was nobody who lost confidence. Nobody,” Farrell told The State. “Nobody felt like the situation would be too big for him. It wasn’t, and he came out there and he did his job, dominated, and he helped us win that game.”
The slugfest ended after Georgia kicker Rodrigo Blankenship missed a field goal attempt that would’ve sent the matchup into a third overtime. Instead, South Carolina players rushed the field in celebration. Farrell recalled looking into a sea of Georgia fans in shock and disbelief, their arms folded and hands on their heads — “surrender cobras,” as it’s often called. It was the type of road game where you could hear a pin drop in the stadium afterward.
Then, the Gamecocks went for the hedges.
Chunks of the historic green hedges lining the field at Sanford Stadium were ripped out, thrown to fans and even chewed on by some South Carolina players. A few assistant coaches were photographed holding pieces of the shrubs too, including Muschamp, a UGA alum.
“The celebration was absolutely crazy,” Farrell said. “Somehow we all ended up with a piece of the hedge out of Georgia. I’m not gonna say how we ended up with that, but we all ended up with a piece out of the Georgia hedges. We were just in the locker room with music going crazy.”
Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity publicly voiced his displeasure with the hedges being pulled, telling the AJC’s DawgNation “we sure don’t do that when we win at an opponents’ venue under Kirby (Smart)‘s leadership.” USC athletic director Ray Tanner then extended an apology to Georgia and McGarity.
A few hundred miles down the road, Shane Beamer was with Lincoln Riley’s staff at Oklahoma coaching Jalen Hurts to a Red River Showdown victory for the Sooners over Texas.
Busy coaching a Big 12 matchup, Beamer didn’t catch the USC-UGA game in real-time. But he did hear about it immediately afterward.
“My family runs on the field after the game, and I’m thinking they’re going to be excited because we just beat Texas,” Beamer said. “Swear to goodness, the first words out of my kids and my wife’s mouth is, ‘South Carolina just beat Georgia.’ ”
Back in Columbia, running back Kevin Harris watched the game in his dorm with tight end Keveon Mullins as he recovered from a torn groin muscle. Harris still grins, too, when he recalls 2019.
“I probably remember the pick-six from (Israel Mukuamu),” Harris said, smiling. “That was a good memory for me.”
Mukuamu intercepted Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm three times that day, returning one for an interception.
That day’s atmosphere in Athens can’t be replicated for Farrell. He said the Gamecocks had been discounted that year. South Carolina traveled to Athens a 21-point underdog, unranked with a 2-3 record against a top-five opponent with national attention.
“It was just an unbelievable experience to celebrate a win of that caliber against a team with a ranking like that when nobody else believe in you,” Farrell said. “Everybody on the team knows we can win, but nobody else thinks you can.”
Georgia throttled South Carolina last year in Columbia 45-16, and this year’s Gamecocks travel back to Athens with arguably more odds stacked against them. Georgia is favored to win by 32 points, the most in the matchup’s history.
Joyner isn’t letting any of the noise spoil his excitement. He said this year’s team knows the challenge ahead of them, and they’re in a different mindset than they were in two years ago.
“I can’t compare this team to 2019,” Joyner said. “This team is a whole different vibe. Not to say anything bad about the 2019 team, but I think we love each other more. We care about each other more.”
Joyner, himself, will be in a different role this time around. He’s played primarily at wide receiver this season, lining up for a few wildcat packages here and there.
This week isn’t about focusing on the past. Beamer told reporters on Tuesday he hasn’t mentioned the 2019 game to his players. Even still, this year’s Gamecocks are ready to head back to a place where some of them have tasted victory before.
“I’m excited to go back to Athens,” Joyner said. “Enjoy the atmosphere, just go back with my brothers and just go handle business.”
This story was originally published September 16, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
