Spencer Rattler praises USC effort in loss to UGA: ‘We should have won the game’
Spencer Rattler believes South Carolina wasn’t too far off from pulling an upset over top-ranked Georgia.
The Gamecocks quarterback used the term “self-inflicted” mistakes several times in his postgame remarks made after the 24-14 loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday at Sanford Stadium.
“We know what we need to clean up. I’m proud of my guys a lot. We battled against the best team in the country and we should have won the game,” Rattler said.
Rattler referenced the team’s 11 penalties, some of which came in inopportune times, including a holding call after Georgia’s second touchdown of the third quarter that backed up the Gamecocks deep into Georgia territory.
There was another key penalty in the fourth that negated a big gain down to the UGA 32 with the Gamecocks trailing 24-14.
“Self-inflicted stuff. If we clean that up, the outcome is a little different.” Rattler said.
The Gamecocks were clicking in the first half and so was Rattler, who completed his first 10 passes and finished the first half 16-of-18 for 152 yards as USC led 14-3 at halftime.
Rattler acknowledged that Georgia made some changes that made things difficult on the Gamecocks in the second half. The former Oklahoma transfer was under duress a lot in the second half and was just 6-of-24 passing with two interceptions.
UGA was able to make South Carolina a one-dimensional team, holding the Gamecocks to just 53 rushing yards.
Still, Rattler remained positive during and after the game.
He complimented USC’s offensive line, which struggled in the opener against UNC and gave up nine sacks. He said he encouraged freshman Tree Babalade, who made his first start on Saturday at left tackle as the Gamecocks try to find the right mix along the front.
Rattler also gathered his teammates in the locker room, letting them know they have a lot of the season left and applauding their toughness and grit.
“We should have our heads high. Obviously, we aren’t happy about a loss,” Rattler said. “To have that be a one-score game until the six minutes of the game is impressive. They are back-to-back national champions. We went out there toe-to-toe and should have won the game.”
This story was originally published September 16, 2023 at 8:45 PM.
