5 things we learned from South Carolina’s 24-14 loss to No. 1 Georgia
This game might feel like a gut punch to South Carolina fans, but the Gamecocks did better than most college football prognosticators gave them credit for during the week. Just a few plays short of a historic upset, USC goes back to Columbia 0-1 in SEC play following the 24-14 loss to No. 1 Georgia.
There are no “moral victories” in South Carolina football, head coach Shane Beamer said, but there’s still some lessons learned after facing the Bulldogs.
Stamina put to the test
Even with a lead to start the second half, Georgia’s 14-point third quarter wore out South Carolina’s defense, and understandably so. As the second half progressed, the Gamecocks looked visibly tired between plays, and it took more and more players to tackle a single Georgia player.
The Bulldogs finished with 79 plays, compared with 58 for South Carolina. UGA had 60 plays to the Gamecocks’ 35 through three quarters.
Even worse was when USC caught a break on second or third down, but then lost it with a penalty or a missed tackle.
“I mean, just didn’t play clean football in the second half,” Beamer said. “And that’s frustrating. Because those kids played their butts off and gave us an opportunity to win the game.”
The USC defense still played a strong game, despite probable exhaustion in the second half. But with Georgia having nearly 15 minutes more possession time for the game, that recovery window grew smaller with every drive.
Some strides for defense
Looking from a more positive perspective, the South Carolina defense was flying around during parts of the game. Linebacker Debo Williams led the defense with 11 tackles, including seven solo, with safety DQ Smith and defensive tackle T.J. Sanders not far behind with nine tackles each. Sanders had eight solo tackles.
Nick Emmanwori also returned after suffering an injury just minutes into the season-opener two weeks ago. The sophomore safety started and had 10 tackles, four solo.
“I think we’ve come a little more, you know, become closer,” Williams said. “And we’ll continue to keep making plays.”
The secondary rotation has been reliant on young players — including freshmen Jalen Kilgore and Judge Collier — but Emmanwori’s return is a boost for the depth.
USC did not force any turnovers Saturday and has three on the season, all interceptions.
South Carolina can still have success, just like last year
Last season, South Carolina had back-to-back ranked wins to close out its regular season. After the Week 1 loss against UNC to start 2023, it almost felt like that first impression scared off hope for another ranked win.
Yet, walking into Athens on Saturday, USC felt like there was an opportunity to make some magic on the road. Despite no victory, the Gamecocks proved they have what it takes to shake things up as the season progresses.
“I was telling the group in the locker room after the game, we should have our heads high,” quarterback Spencer Rattler said. “We’re not happy about a loss, but to have that be a one-score game until the last six minutes of the game, you know, that’s impressive.”
The overall improvement with the offensive line and with depth stepping up in the secondary and receiver, that first half Saturday showed there’s some untapped Gamecock potential.
Where’s Beamer Ball?
Despite the storylines and talk of special teams, Beamer and coordinator Pete Lembo didn’t pull many tricks against the Bulldogs.
In fact, they didn’t have any. No onside kick, no fake punt — nothing. Instead, they benefited from Georgia kicker Peyton Woodring’s two missed field goals.
There also wasn’t much trickeration from the offense. The only thing close to a sneaky play was Dakereon Joyner lining up in the wildcat formation and scoring a rushing touchdown just before halftime with Spencer Rattler standing five yards to his left.
The hardest part is over (in theory)
The Gamecocks have some tough SEC opponents on the schedule. The good news, however, is that there’s only one Georgia.
Mississippi State and Tennessee — the next two opponents — still present a tall task, but that should be easier than facing the back-to-back national champions.
It also helps that Beamer said he sees his team’s improvement over three weeks.
“I just feel like we’re a better team than what we were two weeks ago,” Beamer said. “And again, we’re not patting ourselves on the back and excited about the way the game the day went today, but also know that we’ve made strides as a team are going to continue to get better.”
It’s no cakewalk, but at least for now, the worst should be over.
This story was originally published September 17, 2023 at 6:40 AM with the headline "5 things we learned from South Carolina’s 24-14 loss to No. 1 Georgia."
