The very first time Marcus Lattimore touched the ball he fumbled and it looked like it might not be the Gamecocks night. South Carolina turned the ball over twice in their first three plays but somehow took a 10-0 lead. Vandy came roaring back when Jordan Rodgers hit Jordan Matthews and the South Carolina safety missed a tackle and Matthews rumbled 78 yards.
Connor Shaw had an up and down game. He didn’t look good throwing the football but he did run for almost 100 yards. Shaw got banged up and had to leave the game before half-time but came back in the second half and was an emotional catalyst for the team. Marcus Lattimore didn’t look like the same Marcus Lattimore but he had a very solid game with 109 yards rushing and 2 TDs.
South Carolina escaped in this game but they have to find some sort of downfield passing attack. Their leading receiver was Marcus Lattimore with 3 receptions for 21 yards. That’s not going to win many games for you. Vandy played tough but missed a lot of opportunities. Vandy has some weapons on offense this year (Zac Stacy, Wesley Tate, Jordan Matthews) and they might just have a shot at finally pulling off an upset this season.
South Carolina escaped with a win and that’s all that matters in the end. That being said, the Gamecocks should be pretty worried right now about an offense that seems void of playmakers and a defense that looks to have a very questionable secondary.
Overall, this game ended about how I thought it would as I predicted a 20-14 Gamecocks victory and said “going to be a close game and it will make for some very nervous moments for the Gamecocks but when all is said and done I expect the Gamecocks to come out victorious”. The Gamecocks won and getting a victory is the most important thing but they have a lot to work on before Missouri comes calling on Sept 22nd.
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