Lone Star struggles: Gamecocks shut down in blowout loss to Texas A&M
The smattering of maroon-topped, cowboy hat-wearing students situated just below the press box at Kyle Field erupted in commotion.
“Beat the hell out of South Carolina” they echoed in chorus with a smidge of coaxing from the Texas A&M yell leaders situated at the foot of the north bleachers.
Mission accomplished.
Saturday, South Carolina (4-4, 1-4 SEC) was outworked, outgunned and overrun in No. 17 Texas A&M’s 44-14 annihilation of first-year head coach Shane Beamer’s squad.
The Gamecocks, to their credit, had shown signs of life in recent weeks. They found ways to smooth out an effective ground game against Tennessee. They charged to a shocking last-second win over Vanderbilt seven days ago.
But on Saturday in Aggieland, Jimbo Fisher’s squad that’s only two weeks removed from an upset of then-No. 1 Alabama mowed over South Carolina like a combine cruising through a wheat field.
“That’s what a dominant SEC football team is supposed to look like,” Beamer said postgame.
Texas A&M tight end Jalen Wydermeyer raced up, around and over the South Carolina secondary throughout Saturday’s first half. Wydermeyer — who had already notched eight catches for 114 yards and two touchdowns in his first two games against USC — recorded a pair of touchdown receptions of 25 and 28 yards, respectively, to vault the Aggies (6-2, 3-2 SEC) to a 31-0 halftime lead.
Struggling through first quarters against teams not named Vanderbilt or Eastern Illinois, South Carolina’s offense was downright anemic in College Station. The Gamecocks finished the first half with just 11 yards of offense and recorded only two first downs, one of which came via penalty. USC has also now been outscored 56-6 in the first quarter of SEC road games this season.
“They were definitely heating us up, but then they were also sacking us when they were rushing four as well and not having to bring pressure,” Beamer said of Texas A&M’s pass rush. “We’ve got to be able to block. We’re SEC football players too. We’re an SEC football team. We’ve got to be able to block guys when they bring four.”
Slogging out of halftime, South Carolina lacked much, if any tangible offensive competence. The Gamecocks watched its total yardage mark bottom out at six yards late in the third quarter. It took until just over nine minutes remaining in the fourth quarter before USC found its first third-down conversion on its 11th try.
The Gamecocks didn’t even find a first down in the second half until ZaQuandre White scampered for a 20-yard gain in the final frame and were outgained 463-15 through three quarters.
Running back MarShawn Lloyd gave South Carolina a brief gasp of positivity with his 9-yard touchdown run, before backup quarterback Jason Brown watched his underthrown pass in the back left corner of the Texas A&M end zone get picked off by Tyreek Chappell.
A Brown pass on the next drive was bobbled and landed in the hands of Aggies defender Deuce Harmon and gifted Texas A&M one last possession in Saturday’s boat race.
Starter Zeb Noland and Brown combined to finish the contest 15 of 26 for 114 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. South Carolina finished with 185 yards of offense — 170 of which came in the fourth quarter.
“I think Coach Beamer hit it on the head in the locker room,” safety Jaylan Foster said. “We’re a way better team than 4-4. We have to figure out ways to start the ball game better, stop putting ourselves in a hole.”
South Carolina has shined in spurts this fall. It showed guts finding ways to win against Vanderbilt and East Carolina. It even scored the first touchdown of the year against what’s been a monstrous Georgia defense.
Saturday, though, was different.
On a cool evening in Southeast Texas, the Gamecocks were swallowed up by a sea of maroon and white and sent crashing back down to earth.
First down
MarShawn Lloyd recorded the only score of South Carolina’s night. Lloyd, who didn’t play last season due to a torn ACL, was rated a top-60 recruit coming out of high school and is among the highest-rated USC has secured in recent years.
Lloyd’s 9-yard touchdown scamper in Saturday’s fourth quarter was the first score of his career.
Offsides
South Carolina is now 0-8 all-time against Texas A&M. The teams started playing annually for the James Bonham trophy in 2014 after the Aggies joined the SEC.
USC has lost its last three games against Texas A&M by an average of 33 points.
Key numbers
11 — The number of South Carolina first half yards
1 — the number of third downs converted by the South Carolina offense
15 — The Gamecocks’ total yardage mark after three quarters Saturday in College Station
Next USC football game
Who: South Carolina vs Florida
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 6
Where: Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia
TV: SEC Network
This story was originally published October 23, 2021 at 10:48 PM.
