Garnet edges Black in defensive South Carolina football spring game
Head coach Shane Beamer, quarterback LaNorris Sellers and the South Carolina football team get together Friday night for their annual spring football game at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Here were some of the highlights from Friday:
Scoring summary: Garnet wins, 10-7
Second quarter
GARNET: Mason Love 36 FG, 5:52
BLACK: Cutter Woods 1 run (Joyce kick), 3:16
GARNET: Malik Clark pass from Luke Doty (Love kick), :01
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING - B: Howell 4-19; Faison 3-10; McCracken 2-6; Woods 1-1. G: Fuller 5-20; Doty 3-10; Savage 4-7; Adaway 5-7.
PASSING - B: Noland
Another INT
The Garnet team tallied its second interception of the night with a little less than three minutes to go in the game.
Cutter Woods stepped up in the pocket and rolled out to his right under presser and then fired a ball into traffic close to the right sideline. Buddy Mack III came up with the interception, setting up the Garnet team close to midfield up 10-7.
— Michael Sauls
Uneventful third quarter
Not much of note happened in the third quarter of Friday’s spring game.
Neither team was able to get much of anything going on offense, resulting in a scoreless quarter. Similar to the way the first quarter went.
The Garnet team still leads 10-7 as we enter the fourth quarter.
— Michael Sauls
Spring superlatives
South Carolina handed out its spring practice award winners and they wereLaNorris Sellers (Offensive Player), Dylan Stewart (Defensive Player), Buddy Mack (Special teams), Brady Hunt (Student Athlete), Larry Scott (GPA Offense Award), Gerald Kilgore (GPA Defense Award), William Joyce (GPA Special Teams), Nyck Harbor (Most Improved Offense), Peyton Williams (Most Improved Defense), Jatius Geer and Jaron Willis (Most Improved Special Teams), Maurice Brown (Toughness Offense), Bryan Thomas (Toughness Defense), Boaz Stanley (Spirit Offense), Nick Barnett & DQ Smith (Spirit Defense), Shed Sarratt (Offensive Newcomer), Brandon Cisse (Defensive Newcomer), Brandon Cisse and Brian Rowe (Special Teams Newcomer).
— Lou Bezjak
First impression
The biggest cheer from the first half happened from a play by freshman Cutter Woods. The former Westside standout hit Vandrevius Jacobs on a 51-yard pass on his first throw of the game.
— Lou Bezjak
Field goal competition
Beamer stopped the spring game briefly for what looked like a field goal kicking competition between William Joyce, Peyton Argent and Mason Love.
All three lined for a 40 yard field goal and Beamer encouraged the crowd to get loud and attempt to rattle the kickers.
Joyce drilled his kick, Argent’s doinked off the upright and Love easily made his.
— Michael Sauls
Interception (for real this time)
The Garnet team came up with an interception in the second quarter after having one wiped off the board earlier.
Air Noland dropped back to pass for the Black team and fired a ball over the middle that was picked off by Myles Norwood. Norland tried to throw the ball back over the middle of the field.
Norwood’s interception gave the Garnet team the ball at 40 yard line with just over eight minutes left before halftime.
— Michael Sauls
She said yes!
There might not have been any scoring in the first quarter but one couple is going home happy Friday night.
In between the first and second quarters a message saying “Alyssa, will you mary me?” flashed on the jumbotron. Alyssa said yes in the end zone of Williams-Brice Stadium and the happy couple is now engaged. Beamer congratulated the couple with a hug.
— Michael Sauls
Scoreless first quarter
While the spring game might have pitted garnet vs black, it was the defense that won the first quarter.
Neither offense managed to score in the opening quarter and the first 15 minutes were marred with a number of penalties on offensive linemen.The black team, led by quarterback LaNorris Sellers for three drives before QB Air Noland came in, were being hounded by guys like EDGE Desmond Umeozulku and DB Jackson Burger.
The garnet team, being quarterbacked by Luke Doty the entire first quarter, struggled to move the ball. With that: garnet running back Matthew Fuller — a redshirt freshman — had a number of nice runs and showed off his speed.
— Jordan Kaye
Early ending for Sellers
LaNorris Sellers’ night ended in the first quarter.
The Gamecocks starting QB led the Black Team on two drives but then was replaced by Ohio State transfer Air Noland.
— Lou Bezjak
Gamecock women’s golf team honored
Hours after winning the Southeastern Conference championship, the South Carolina women’s golf team was honored during the first quarter.
USC defeated No. 24 Florida, 4.5-0.5, to win the SEC Championship at Pelican Golf Club in Florida It is the program’s second SEC title and first since 2002.
— Lou Bezjak
Replay gets involved
The Garnet team had an interception wiped off the board. DQ Smith deflected a pass from LaNorris Sellers near the sideline and Jaron Willis came up with the interception.
The play was reviewed and eventually overturned after the official determined Willis came from out of bounds to make the play.
“The previous play is under review...until Coach Beamer makes a decision,” the official quipped.
— Michael Sauls
Opening play gets creative
The first play of the game for the Black team was drawn up by Elijah Campbell, radio host at 107.5 The Game. Campbell drew some inspiration from a Texas-Iowa State game in 2012 for the play-call. The Black team lined up in the wishbone for a trick play that involved LaNorris Sellers throwing it to Jordan Dingle for a gain of 29 yards.
— Michael Sauls
Spring game QBs, rosters: The highlights
The Garnet and Black teams have three quarterbacks each for the intrasquad scrimmage.
Starting QB LaNorris Sellers will be on the Black team roster along with Ohio State transfer Air Noland and freshman Cutter Woods. The Garnet team QBs feature super senior Luke Doty, redshirt freshman Dante Reno and walk-on Jimmy Francis.
Dylan Stewart, the team’s top defensive returner, is on the Garnet team at edge. Texas A&M transfer Gabe Brownlow-Dindy will be with Stewart on the defensive line.
Three of the six freshman receivers are on the Garnet team — Malik Clark, Jordon Gidron and Jayden Sellers. Nyck Harbor also is a WR on the Garnet team. The Black team receivers include freshmen Brian Rowe and Lex Cyrus, sophomore Mazeo Bennett and Jared Brown. Donovan Murph, the sixth freshman signed, won’t enroll until May but will be at the game.
Transfers Zavion Hardy (DE) and Brandon Cisse (CB) will be ones to watch on the Black team’s defense
The game should be a fairly traditional intrasquad scrimmage with a running clock possible at some point in the second half.
— Lou Bezjak
Injury and availability update
South Carolina will be missing several players in Friday’s game. Defensive back Jalon Kilgore and Jalewis Solomon weren’t on the rosters released Friday morning.
USC coach Shane Beamer said on Thursday’s “Carolina Calls” radio show that Michael Smith, Damola Ajidahun, transfers Nick Sharpe and Jaylen Brown won’t play in the game. Smith and Ajidahun haven’t been through any of spring practices, while Sharpe and Brown were injured during the spring.
Beamer also said offensive lineman Ryan Brubaker, who played in five games last year, “is very unlikely to be able to do anything this upcoming season.”
Gamecocks’ WR Mazeo Bennett was spotted in pre-game in street clothes and won’t play.
— Lou Bezjak
Can I watch the spring game?
No, but a 30-minute special on the game will air at some point on the SEC Network. You can listen to the game live in the Columbia area on 107.5 FM The Game.
This story was originally published April 18, 2025 at 6:50 PM.
