Recap, scoring plays: No. 4 Alabama avoids upset, beats South Carolina
South Carolina (3-5, 1-5 SEC) couldn’t complete an upset bid over No. 4 Alabama (7-1, 5-0 SEC) at home in Williams-Brice on Saturday. The Crimson Tide won the game 29-22.
Here are the highlights and scoring plays from the game.
Score updates
1st quarter
South Carolina 3, Alabama 0: The Gamecocks have to settle for a 24-yard field goal from William Joyce after a strong opening drive. Scoring drive: 15 plays, 74 yards, 07:22
Alabama 7, South Carolina 3: Alabama scores after an 18-yard pick six from DaShawn Jones.
2nd quarter
Alabama 7, South Carolina 6: William Joyce hits a 34-yard field goal. Scoring drive: 13 plays, 42 yards, 07:13
Alabama 14, South Carolina 6: Ty Simpson finds Josh Cuevas for a 3-yard touchdown pass. Scoring drive: 9 plays, 81 yards, 02:23
3rd quarter
Alabama 14, South Carolina 12: LaNorris Sellers throws a 54-yard touchdown pass to Nyck Harbor. The two point conversion is no good. Scoring drive: 1 play, 54 yards, 00:09
South Carolina 15, Alabama 14: William Joyce hits a 47-yard field goal. Scoring Drive: 11 plays, 46 yards, 04:53
4th quarter
South Carolina 22, Alabama 14: LaNorris Sellers 10-yard touchdown rush. Scoring drive: 6 plays, 30 yards, 03:28
South Carolina 22, Alabama 22: Ty Simpson finds Germie Bernard for a 4-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion is good. Scoring drive: 14 plays, 79 yards, 07:38
Alabama 29, South Carolina 22: Germie Bernard scores on a 25-yard rush. The extra point is good. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 38 yards, 01:05
Costly fumble leads to Alabama points
LaNorris Sellers had the ball stripped from his hands on 2nd and 4 in Gamecock territory with 1:39 left on the clock.
The ball was recovered by Alabama and gives the Crimson Tide the ball at the USC 38-yard line.
Alabama scored five plays later. Germie Bernard gave the Crimson Tide a 29-22 lead on a 25-yard touchdown rush with 35 seconds left in the game. DQ Smith could’ve made a tackle to stop the touchdown, but seemingly let Bernard score, opting to give South Carolina time to score a touchdown of their own as opposed to trying to block a game winning field goal.
South Carolina got the ball back with 39 seconds on the clock at their own nine yard line and couldn’t get anything going. The game ended with Sellers being sacked.
Going down to the wire in Williams-Brice Stadium
The game is tied with just over two minutes remaining on the clock.
Alabama cut the lead to 22-20 after capping off a 14 play, seven-minute drive to with a touchdown pass. The successful two-point conversion made it a 22-22 game.
South Carolina will get the ball back with 2:16 left on the clock and two timeouts. Alabama has all three of its timeouts remaining.
South Carolina catches a break
The Gamecocks went three and out after taking the lead on Joyce’s field goal but were able to get the ball back.
Mason Love’s punt was muffed by an Alabama returner and recovered by Nyck Harbor. That allowed South Carolina’s offense to take over at the Alabama 30-yard line.
South Carolina scored six plays later on a 10-yard rush from LaNorris Sellers. The score gives the Gamecocks an eight point lead with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
Gamecocks leading late
South Carolina enters the fourth quarter with the ball and the lead.
The Gamecocks are up 15-14 after a 47-yard field goal from William Joyce with 1:38 left in the third quarter.
South Carolina forced Alabama to go three and out for the fifth time in the game as the third quarter ended. The Gamecock offense will have 2nd and 4 yards to go from their own 22 yard line at the start of the fourth quarter.
Big touchdown for Gamecocks
The Gamecocks forced Alabama to turn the ball over on downs at midfield and immediately took a shot on offense.
LaNorris Sellers dropped back to pass and hit Nyck Harbor for a 54-yard touchdown pass. It’s Harbor’s third touchdown catch of the year.
Alabama leads at the half
The Crimson Tide are leading the Gamecocks 14-6 going into halftime.
After being out-gained 128-11 in the first quarter, Alabama totaled 162 yards of offense while South Carolina recorded just 41 yards. Alabama has 173 total offensive yards in the first half compared to South Carolina’s 169.
Both teams have struggled in the run game. The Crimson Tide have just two rushing yards and the Gamecocks have 28 yards.
LaNorris Sellers is 12-for-21 through the air for 141 yards and one interception. Rahsul Faison leads South Carolina in rushing (13 yards) and receiving (51 yards). DQ Smith, Judge Collier and Nick Barrett are all tied for the lead with three tackles.
South Carolina forces a turnover
The Gamecock defense struck just as Alabama began to get things rolling on an offensive drive.
South Carolina defensive back Vicari Swain sacked Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson and forced a fumble in the process. Defensive tackle Troy Pikes fell on the ball.
South Carolina’s offense took over at its own 42 yard line as a result and scored three points on a field goal 13 plays later.
Missed field goal for the Gamecocks
South Carolina had a shot to cut the lead to one early in the second quarter but failed.
The Gamecocks put together a six play drive that went 48 yards that ended with a missed field goal by William Joyce at the start of the second quarter.
Joyce missed from 47 yards out. It’s his third field goal miss on the year. Joyce made up for his miss with successful field goal in the second quarter.
Strong defensive showing in first quarter
South Carolina’s defensive unit kept Alabama under wraps to start the game.
Defensive coordinator Clayton White’s unit held the Crimson Tide to just 11 yards of total offense in the first quarter. Alabama went three and out and punted on both of its first quarter drives.
The Gamecocks have also gotten after Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson already. Bryan Thomas Jr recorded a sack on Alabama’s first drive.
Early interception from Sellers
South Carolina’s offense looked strong on its first drive of the game but its second drive ended before it ever really started. The Gamecock defense forced Alabama to go three and out. The Crimson Tide punted, putting South Carolina at its own 18 yard line to start its second drive.
LaNorris Sellers dropped back to pass on the first play of the drive and then dumped the ball off to Rahsul Faison in the flat. Faison bobbled the ball and it ended up in the hands of Alabama defensive back DaShawn Jones, who took it back for a touchdown.
The final injury report
South Carolina has just one player listed on Saturday’s pregame injury report: offensive lineman Cason Henry.
Henry is slated to have season-ending surgery on his shoulder soon.
Gamecock captains
South Carolina’s captains for its matchup with Alabama are: defensive lineman Nick Barrett, wide receiver Vandrevius Jacobs, quarterback LaNorris Sellers, defensive back Vicari Swain.
South Carolina uniform combo
The Gamecocks are breaking out the “Big Game Garnet” uniform combinations for Saturday.
South Carolina will be wearing white helmets (with garnet and black stripes) and black facemasks. Both the jerseys and pants are garnet with black and white stripes.
Final betting odds
Alabama is the favorite in the matchup. The Crimson Tide were favored by as many as 13.5 points but are currently a 10.5-point favorite, according to the Vegas Insider consensus.
The Gamecocks have a 17.8% chance to win, according to ESPN Analytics.
Watch the Gamecocks play today
- Who: South Carolina
- When: 3:50 p.m. Saturday
- Where: Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, SC
- TV: ABC
- Stream: ESPN.com or the ESPN app
- Broadcast crew: Joe Tessitore, Jesse Palmer, Katie George
- Local radio crew: Todd Ellis, Tommy Suggs, Chet Tucker
- National radio crew: Nate Getter, Derek Rackley (Westwood One)
- Satellite radio: SiriusXM Channel 84
- Series history: Alabama leads all-time series 12-4 (Alabama won last matchup in 2024)
This story was originally published October 25, 2025 at 2:48 PM.
