On Saturday night, the South Carolina football team fell to the Missouri Tigers 20-29 at Memorial Stadium in a game defined by missed opportunities, defensive struggles and penalties.
Going into this game, the Gamecocks was not sure if redshirt sophomore quarterback LaNorris Sellers was going to be able to play. Although he ended up playing in the game, the Gamecocks was not able to secure the win.
Offensively, the Gamecocks had a productive first half, scoring 14 points on two touchdown drives. However, there were still many plays the Gamecocks missed out on, including an incomplete pass on third-and-12 to sophomore wide receiver Mazeo Bennett Jr. that would have placed the Gamecocks on the Missouri 2-yard line.
Self inflicted errors have been trend for the Gamecocks this season. On Saturday, it had 14 penalties for 98 yards, something that head coach Shane Beamer attributed the loss to.
“When you have 14 penalties, it's going to be hard to win,” Beamer said.
The Gamecocks had multiple drives that were stalled by penalties. Saturday night, it had 6 false start penalties.
A penalty went South Carolina's way when it was able to draw a false start, leading to Sellers throwing a 49-yard touchdown pass to redshirt sophomore wide receiver Vandrevius Jacobs with 11:26 remaining in the second quarter.
Missouri proceeded to march down the field but was stopped in the red zone by the Gamecock defense, resulting in backup freshman kicker Robert Meyer kicking a field goal to take a 9-7 lead with 5:54 remaining in the second quarter.
Despite the mistakes, South Carolina still found itself with a lead going into the second half with 14-12 after freshman wide receiver Brian Rowe Jr. caught a 24-yard touchdown from Sellers with 2:31 remaining in the second quarter.
“What I told them at halftime is, 'You’re on the road in the SEC,'" Beamer said. "We've not played good enough football at the half, but we're right where we need to be.”
Beamer emphasized the defense's need to get a stop to open the second half. As a result, the Gamecock offense started right where it left off when Seller threw a 43-yard bomb to Jacobs, putting the Gamecocks on the Missouri 2-yard line.
However, the Gamecocks could not capitalize, as Sellers took a 13-yard sack on the 2-yard line, and then a holding penalty brought the Gamecocks back even further to the Missouri 25-yard line. A 9-yard reception from junior wide receiver Nyck Harbor put the Gamecocks back in field goal position. The Gamecocks went from being in prime position to score a touchdown to being forced to settle for 3 points.
The Gamecock defense also had multiple missed tackles tonight that proved to be costly. Midway through the third quarter, Missouri sophomore running back Ahmad Hardy took over for the Tigers, as he has the ability to get past defenders. Hardy, a Louisiana-Monroe transfer, had four carries for 51 rushing yards in that drive alone. Missouri marched down the field and capped off the six-play touchdown drive with a 5-yard rushing touchdown from Hardy, where he ran into a wall of Gamecock defenders but was still able to stay on his feet and run into the end zone.
“He's got really good contact balance, and he can break tackles, and he runs physical," Beamer said. "He was the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year last year for a reason.”
The Gamecocks responded with what looked to be a strong drive but resulted in a field goal after Sellers hit Harbor with a 33-yard reception on third-and-37.
Missouri held on to win the game after scoring another touchdown midway through the fourth quarter and stopping the Gamecock offense for the rest of the night.
South Carolina's penalties and defensive mistakes allowed Missouri to drive down the field, resulting in the road loss. Beamer said the Gamecocks will look to improve heading into next week.
"When you're on the road in the SEC, you've got to make plays — offense, defense and special teams," Beamer said. "And we did not make enough plays tonight."
What's next?
The South Carolina Gamecocks (2-2) is back home to take on the Kentucky Wildcats (2-1) at Williams-Brice Stadium on Sept. 27. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.