‘Let’s get down to the field’: Inside South Carolina’s stunning upset of No. 5 Tennessee
The remnants of a night that won’t soon be forgotten in Columbia lay strewn across the ground at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Crushed cans of Bud Light littered the South Carolina side of the field near the 39-yard line. The white towels that enveloped the bleachers minutes earlier rested on the turf. The hedges that were once meticulously manicured were trampled.
All of it served as a messy reminder of the program’s most consequential win in a decade and the bonkers scene that unfolded in the immediate aftermath.
“There was nobody in the entire world, other than my family and — well, I’m not sure (my family) thought we were going to win,” South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer said, tongue-in-cheek, following USC’s 63-38 dismantling of No. 5 Tennessee.
Beamer was right. Nobody predicted what transpired on Saturday night. And why would they?
South Carolina (7-4, 4-4 SEC) was beaten to a pulp a week ago by a Florida team that backed up its win by dropping a road trip this weekend at Vanderbilt. The Gamecocks were out-gained in yardage in that one 219-37 in the first quarter. They practically trailed 21-0 before they could get off the bus in Gainesville.
But weeks past be damned. Saturday night was one for the books. This one will be part of lore.
There’s 1984 Florida State. And 2010 Alabama. And now, 2022 Tennessee.
“Tonight, man,” quarterback Spencer Rattler said, pausing, “That was one of the best wins ever in college football history.”
South Carolina’s offense suddenly looked the part of 2019 LSU. And it was the much-maligned signal-caller in Rattler who provided the flair — and explosiveness — as the Gamecocks raced to more than 600 yards of offense on the fifth-best team in America.
USC’s big-armed gunslinger was borderline flawless. He threw almost as many touchdowns (six) as he had incompletions (seven). His touchdown passes to Josh Vann (twice), his scrambling ability on a toss to Jaheim Bell and the darts he fired in Antwane “Juice” Wells’ direction all night made the NFL scouts littering the press box ogle over his potential.
This was the Rattler we were promised in the preseason. This was the version of Rattler that could — and did — go out and win a football game.
“Spencer is a talented guy, right?” Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said. “At times, when he had gotten hot, he plays hot. And he was.”
The postgame pandemonium Rattler helped incite ensued with as much order as a bull ripping through a china shop. The yellow-jacketed security employees lining the student section vacated their posts along the back portion of the north end zone with six minutes remaining.
They knew the storm that brewed amid those undergrad-clad bleachers was worth dodging.
As the clock hit zero, students flung themselves over the hedges guarding the field. Fans old and young jumped the 6 feet from the bleachers lining the home sideline. “It’s a bigger drop than you think,” remarked a middle-aged man donning a black USC-logoed sweatshirt.
Those who weren’t close enough to simply leap over the banister made their way through the intertwining and cavernous concourses of Williams-Brice Stadium. They yelled in unison. They jeered toward those in Tennessee garb, heading for the exits likely bounced from the College Football Playoff picture.
“Let’s get down to the field,” remarked a college-aged man racing toward an entryway into the stands.
South Carolina’s players wrestled through the crowd, attempting to make their way into the Gamecocks’ tunnel guarded by state troopers and security officials. Rattler was mobbed for photos with each step. Towering tackle Jakai Moore exhaled as he reached the opening — “Man!” he exclaimed.
Coaches continued to spill through the opening, hugging their loved ones as ear-to-ear smiles ran across their faces.
South Carolina director of on-campus recruiting Jessica Jackson and a fellow recruiting staffer created the most significant parting of the mass of bodies thanks, in part, to their precious cargo: Shane Beamer’s youngest daughter, Olivia.
“We got her!” Jackson yelled, jokingly, helping her co-worker carry Olivia into the tunnel, all three grinning with delight. “Out of the way, y’all!”
South Carolina still has one week left in its regular season. A final clash with Upstate rival Clemson will be on everyone’s minds come Monday. But for one night, Beamer and his squad deserve time to celebrate.
It’s only two years since the Gamecocks finished 2-8 and fired Will Muschamp in the middle of an abysmal 2020 season. Fourteen of South Carolina’s listed starters on Saturday night were members of that squad.
Perched behind the fold-up table in the underbelly of Williams-Brice Stadium, receivers Josh Vann and Dakereon Joyner — both members of that 2020 team — smirked toward one another as their postgame press conference neared its end.
Vann and Joyner each participated in Saturday’s Senior Day festivities. It’s likely the final time either will run onto the field as players in Columbia. Next comes graduation and fatherhood, as Vann goes home to his almost 1-year-old daughter, while Joyner is expecting his own baby girl in the coming months.
“We’re going to tell our daughters about this one day,” Joyner said.
“Yeah, we are,” said Vann, bumping fists with Joyner one last time.
This story was originally published November 20, 2022 at 7:50 AM.
