SPORTS VIEW AMERICA – We Are Your Top Sports Source …
Content by – CLEMSON ATHLETICS – SPORTS VIEW AMERICA …
Please check us out on X, INSTAGRAM, & FACEBOOK …
Photo Galleries at Facebook.com/Sportsviewamerica
South Carolina Tramples Kentucky, 31-6
Graham Shepherd – Lexington, KY
Kentucky fell to South Carolina by a score of 31-6 in Lexington on Saturday afternoon. It was a massive letdown game for the ‘Cats, who had hopes of a big season hinging on their showing against the Gamecocks. After a struggling start to the game and first half, the ‘Cats fell flat in a scoreless second half. Kentucky failed to score a touchdown in the game. The Kentucky quarterbacks combined for a total of just 44 passing yards in the game and just 183 total yards of offense. South Carolina took advantage of every mistake the ‘Cats made on both sides of the ball after they struggled in their season-opener a week ago against Old Dominion. Kentucky was penalized 11 times in the game, showing a lack of discipline on both sides of the ball. This is a tough loss for Kentucky as they now look ahead to next week when they take on the No. 1 ranked Georgia Bulldogs in Lexington. The outlook of the season took a strong hit Saturday afternoon.
Pre-game thoughts:
South Carolina enters the game following a narrow 23-19 victory in Columbia over Old Dominion. Kentucky enters the matchup following a lighting-shortened home opener that ended in a 31-0 win over Southern Miss in just 35 minutes of play. The game limited the ability for the Big Blue Nation to see much of the team, as the entire day was a complete mess at Kroger Field. We did get a chance to see the debut of new transfer QB Brock Vandagriff, who showed glimpses of Will Levis in spurts during the game with big throws and physical running ability. South Carolina started Freshman QB Lanorris Sellers, and will now come into Lexington for his first SEC road game of his young career. The South Carolina scoring was aided by defensive stops and turnovers that created prime field position against Old Dominion, and the offense struggled to move the ball outside of those possessions. The offense features a strong running attack of “Rocket” Saunders (transfer RB from Arkansas) and Sellers. The Gamecocks sport a physical defense with a budding Freshman star in DE Dylan Stewart who had 1.5 Sacks in his collegiate debut. For the ‘Cats, Vandagriff looked good throwing the ball and completing 66% of his passes in his shortened debut. He collected 3 passing touchdowns and threw 1interception a week ago. The running game totaled 148 yards on the ground scattered across three running backs and Vandagriff. The big play makers in the wide receiving core made their presence felt with Barion Brown going for 2 receiving touchdowns, Key with 60 receiving yards, and Maclin with 66 receiving yards. The ‘Cats look to continue their early season momentum into SEC play against the Gamecocks at home in Lexington. Kentucky entered the game as 9.5 point favorites. The game Over/Under was 41.5 total points.
Game Recap:
First Quarter
South Carolina won the toss and differed to the second half. Kentucky received the ball to begin the game. Brown returned the kick to the 19-yard line to begin the first drive of the game for the ‘Cats. Sumo-Karngbaye got two carries to gain a first down. Wimsatt entered for his first snap of the season and gained a couple yards on a carry. Vandagriff tossed the ball out of bounds on a third down to force the first punt of the game. South Carolinas first play saw Saunders run for a short gain. Kentucky put pressure on Sellers but he threw it away before getting taken to the ground. Kentucky forced a third down stop as the Gamecocks also punted the ball away on their first possession. Sum-Karngbaye gained 9-yards on a first down carry. Brown was dropped for a loss of 7-yards on a 2nd down end-around run. Kentucky was forced to punt for a second consecutive possession. The Gamecocks gained 19-yards on their first down play. Sellers found a wide open Bennett Jr. for a 24-yard touchdown and the first points of the game. The Gamecocks led 7-0 after the PAT. Brown crafted his way into a return of 24-yards on the ensuing kickoff. Patterson took a carry for 5-yards, fumbled, but was recovered by Key. Vandagriff then found Key for a big 32-yard gain down the sideline. The Gamecock defense then put together two stops to force a 3rd-and-23. Vandagriff fumbled the ball but the ‘Cats recovered again and were forced to punt. Berry punted the ball down to the South Carolina 9-yard line. Two rushing stops by Kentucky forced a 3rd-and-long. A third down stop forced a Gamecocks punt deep in their own territory. The next Kentucky drive began on their own 44-yard line. Vandagriff was called for intentional grounding on his first down pass attempt. Kentucky got nothing going once again on their drive and were forced to punt again. Ashford entered at QB for South Carolina. The ‘Cats trailed 7-0 after the first quarter.
Second Quarter
The ‘Cats forced a 3rd-down stop on the first play of the second quarter to force a South Carolina punt. The ‘Cats began their drive on their own 10-yard line. Sumo-Karngbaye carried it twice for a first down gain. Brown-Stephens carried an end-around for 8-yards. Kentucky attempted a QB sneak on their own 31-yard line and didn’t make the line to gain on 4th down. The ‘Cats held on defense deep in their own territory and forced a Gamecock punt. Herrera’s 29-yard field goal was good to push the Gamecocks lead to 10-0 with 8-minutes to play in the first half. The next Kentucky drive began on their 29-yard line. Sumo-Karngbaye gained 11-yards on his carry. Two more consecutive carries for Sumo-Karngbaye gained another first down. Patterson relieved Sumo-Karngbaye and gained 8-yards on his carry to push the ball to the South Carolina 38-yard line. Patterson gained a first down followed up by another 6-yard gain. Kentucky continued to run the ball down the field with Patterson and Sumo-Karngbaye. The drive was stalled and Kentucky was forced to kick a 32-yard field goal with Raynor to cut the deficit to 10-3 South Carolina. The drive featured 11 consecutive rushing attempts. South Carolina began their next drive on their 25-yard line with 1:55-minutes to play in the half. Sellers overthrew the ball and Bryant picked off the pass and returned it to the 27-yard line with 1:39-minutes to play. Kentucky ran it twice then Key dropped a first down catch to force another field goal before the end of the half. Raynor nailed a 39-yard field goal to bring the score to 10-6 South Carolina with 19-seconds to play in the half. The Gamecocks led 10-6 at the half.
The ‘Cats struggled mightily to move the ball through the air in the first half, gaining just 30-yards through the air to 85-yards on the ground. Sumo-Karngbaye led the team with 73 rushing yards in the half and Raynor converted two field goals for the first half Kentucky points. Outside of the broken play to Bennett, the Gamecocks also struggled to move the ball. South Carolina gained just 101 total yards in the half.
Halftime: Kentucky 6 – South Carolina 10
Third Quarter
South Carolina received the ball to begin the second half. The Gamecocks picked up a quick first down. The ‘Cats forced a fumble but the ball bounced directly to the South Carolina running back and lost only 2-yards. Sellers fumbled it again but the Gamecocks again recovered it for a loss of 8-yards. Kentucky forced a 3rd-and-long stop and a punt on the first drive. Kentucky began their drive at their own 23-yard line. A quick 3-and-out forced a punt for Kentucky. The Kentucky defense stopped a 3rd down QB run to force a 4th-and-short at the 50-yard line. South Carolina converted the 4th down via an offsides penalty on Kentucky. The Gamecocks converted a 3rd-and-14 and left a wide open receiver for a gain of 32-yards to the Kentucky 16-yard line. The next play saw another wide open receiver catch a 16-yard touchdown for South Carolina. The Gamecocks led 17-6 with 6:49-minutes to play in the game. Kentucky began their next drive on their own 12-yard line after a bad kickoff return attempt. Three consecutive penalties on Kentucky forced a 1st-and-19 from their own 3-yard line. Kentucky was forced to punt on their own 2-yard line with 4:44-minutes to play in the third quarter. Kentucky gave up another 3rd-and-long on the next possession. Saunders ran 22-yards on a 3rd-and-1 attempt on the next set of downs. Saunders took a 6-yard carry in for a touchdown and gave South Carolina a 24-6 lead with 30-seconds to play in the third quarter. Kentucky trailed 24-6 at the end of the third quarter. The ‘Cats totaled a loss of 13-yards through two drives in the third quarter.
Fourth Quarter
Vandagriff threw a pick-6 on his first pass attempt in the fourth quarter as South Carolina pushed their lead to 31-6. Gavin Wimsatt entered at QB for Kentucky on their next drive. Consecutive illegal formation penalties negated a long run by Sumo-Karngbaye. Wimsatt scrambled for a long gain of 24-yards. Wimsatt found Key for a short gain. Wimsatt ran for another first down gain on 3rd-and-short. Wimsatt was intercepted on his next pass attempt. Another chunk yardage play for South Carolina drove the ball deep into ‘Cats territory. Kentucky struggled to move the ball the remainder of the game and fell to South Carolina, 31-6.
Final: Kentucky 6 – South Carolina 31
Game Stats:
Total Yards:
Kentucky – 183 (44 Passing, 139 Rushing)
South Carolina – 252 (166 Passing, 86 Rushing)
Turnover Differential:
Kentucky 2 – South Carolina 1
Time of Possession:
Kentucky – 32:21 minutes
South Carolina – 27:39 minutes
Player Stats:
Offense:
Brock Vandagriff – [(3 comp – 10 att) (30 yds) (0 TDs) (1 INT)]
Demie Sumo-Karngbaye – [(17 car) (70 rush yds)]
Jason Patterson – [(10 car) (45 rush yds)]
Dane Key – [(2 rec) (36 yds)]
Defense:
D’Eryk Jackson – [(6 totTk) (3 solo) (1 TFL)]
Zion Childress – [(5 totTk) (4 solo) (1 sack) (3 TFL) (1 FF)]
Alex Afari Jr. – [(5 totTk) (4 solo) (2 TFL)]
Jamon Dumas-Johnson – [(4 totTk) (3 solo) (1.5 TFL)]
Ty Bryant – [(4 totTk) (1 solo) (1 INT)]
The ‘Cats (1-1, 0-1 SEC) will stay in Lexington next week to take on the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs (2-0, 0-0 SEC). Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST. The game will be televised on ABC.
