Gamecocks hang on against Vandy

COLUMBIA — Steve Spurrier called it the first 99-yard drive he’s had as coach of South Carolina.

The fourth-quarter possession that ended with a 43-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Stephen Garcia to receiver Alshon Jeffery couldn’t have come at a better time as it helped lift the No. 23 Gamecocks past Vanderbilt, 14-10, on Saturday in Columbia, ending a two-game losing streak to the Commodores.

“I’m proud of the guys,” said Spurrier, who tied Vince Dooley for the third-most coaching wins in the SEC with 105. “We outscored them in the second half. It was a good win for us. We didn’t play great, but we won the game.”

The Gamecocks (6-2, 3-2 SEC) were behind 10-7 going into the fourth quarter and started the drive on their on 1-yard line.

On the first play, Garcia threw a pass out of his own end zone to receiver Tori Gurley, who made a falling-down catch on the sideline for a 43-yard gain.

Spurrier said he thought Jeffery was going to be in when the play was called, but it worked out going to Gurley instead.

“When coach found out I was in I heard he wasn’t too happy about it,” Gurley said. “But after the catch was made, me and him were best friends again.”

On the next snap, Garcia found freshman Jeffery for a 23-yard completion to the Commodore 33.

After a holding play put the Gamecocks on the Vandy 43 for third down, Garcia threw a pass down the middle of the field to Jeffery, who broke a tackle and scored the 43-yard, go-ahead score with 12:51 remaining.

“I actually thought I overthrew him there for a second but he ran right under it,” said Garcia, who was 22-of-33 passing for 312 yards and two touchdowns. “I guess that’s the way you draw it up.”

The scoring play was a route the Gamecocks have been working on in long third down situations, Garcia said. And after they ran it earlier in the game and Jeffery mishandled the pass, he was glad to get a second chance.

“The first time we ran it I dropped it,” said Jeffery, who had eight receptions for 161 yards. “The second time I was wide open again and he threw a perfect ball. Once I caught it I knew I was going to score.”

The two teams combined for 24 penalties and 16 punts in a sloppy performance.

USC totaled 431 yards with Garcia going 22-for-33 passing with 312 yards. The Gamecocks picked up 18 first downs but struggled on third downs, converting 6 of 16.

Running back Kenny Miles led the ground game with 102 yards on 18 carries.

Vanderbilt (2-6, 0-5) struggled greatly on offense, being held out of the end zone and totaling 273 yards.

However, the Commodores threatened on their last drive of the game, reaching the Gamecock 25 with two minutes to play. But, an intentional grounding call on quarterback Larry Smith left Vandy with a fourth-and-32, which it was unable to convert, allowing USC to run out the final 1:25 of the game.

“It was a very close game, hard fought game,” Vandy coach Bobby Johnson said. “We had a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter, which is the opportunity we wanted, but we just did not make it happen in that last drive. Give credit to South Carolina.”

A lethargic start turned into some action in the second quarter when USC got on the board in with 7:52 to play when Garcia found redshirt freshman receiver D.L. Moore for a 35-yard touchdown pass, which was reviewed because he juggled the catch before getting a foot down in bounds for the score. It was the first of Moore’s career.

Vandy answered 14 seconds later with a 99-yard kick return right up the middle for a touchdown by Warren Norman to tie the game before the half.

The two teams combined for six punts in the third quarter, and the only score came on a Ryan Fowler 21-yard field goal with 8:55 to play in the quarter that gave Vandy a 10-7 lead.

But after the Gamecocks went up early in the fourth, they finished the job of keeping the Commodores out of the end zone for the USC victory.

“This is a good team,” Garcia said about Vandy. “They fight hard until the very end and we knew that going in. We knew it was going to be a dogfight but a win’s a win. We’ll take it no matter what.”