50 on a Thursday: USC handles in-state FCS foe SC State ahead of return to SEC play

Ben Portnoy
·3 min read

Five-hundred thousand dollars well spent.

On a night normally reserved for digesting game plans, Thirsty Thursday deals and quite literally anything but Southeastern Conference football, South Carolina handled S.C. State 50-10 in a game USC administrators paid their willing visitors half-a-million dollars just to show up.

Initially scheduled for Saturday, the third meeting between inter-state foes was bumped up 48 hours due to the impending impacts of Hurricane Ian, which ripped through Florida on Wednesday night and is headed for a second landfall in the Palmetto State.

It also marked the last of South Carolina’s three nonconference games against Georgia State, Charlotte and S.C. State — each of which received the standard checks for such games ranging from $500,000 to $1.45 million for their participation.

Thursday’s contest looked and felt like the last-minute meeting of SEC and FCS squads it was.

USC announced an official attendance of 61,551, marking the first non-sellout of the 2022 season. The stands, too, mostly cleared out by the beginning of the fourth quarter as South Carolina raced to a 36-7 lead.

Quarterback Spencer Rattler flashed the precision that made him one of the more sought after quarterbacks in last year’s transfer portal cycle, completing 17 of his first 22 throws and 22 of 27 overall en route to a second consecutive game with a completion percentage of 73% or better.

Rattler’s two interceptions, too, fell more on receiver Xavier Legette than anything South Carolina’s gun-slinging quarterback did on either play. Both throws, Legette watched balls go right through his hands before being deflected into the lap of Bulldogs defenders Duane Nichols and Zion Keith.

South Carolina running back Christian Beal-Smith also looked increasingly like the version of himself that led Wake Forest in rushing each of the last two seasons. Beal-Smith plowed over S.C. State’s Jamer Benjamin for a nine-yard third quarter reception. He followed that up with a one-yard plunge for his third touchdown over his last two games.

Defensive coordinator Clayton White’s squad rebounded from a sluggish start to last week’s win over Charlotte with another productive night.

The Gamecocks limited the Bulldogs to just 160 yards of total offense through three quarters. They also notched a trio of interceptions for the second consecutive week — giving South Carolina six picks in its last eight quarters of football.

Head coach Shane Beamer can now exhale. The Gamecocks are above .500 and have back-to-back victories for just the second time in his 18-game tenure.

South Carolina hasn’t exactly beat up on the nation’s best, downing Charlotte and S.C. State the last two weeks, but it’s better than the alternative.

With two largely comfortable wins in their pocket, SEC play begins in earnest at No. 7 Kentucky next week.

Having lost seven of the last eight in the series, South Carolina certainly won’t have to shell out $500,000 to ensure UK shows up in Lexington.

First down

South Carolina was without offensive line coach Greg Adkins on Thursday as he’s temporarily stepped away from the program due to minor health issues, USC announced pregame.

Adkins previously dealt with a minor health scare last season and missed South Carolina’s 2021 win over Auburn as a result.

Offensive analyst Lonnie Teasley will coach the offensive line in Adkins’ absence.

Touchdown

The Oklahoma connection was on display Thursday.

Sooners transfer Austin Stogner connected with his old OU teammate in Rattler for a 15-yard third quarter touchdown pitch and catch. The score marked the first of Stogner’s career in Columbia.

Stogner previously caught eight touchdowns over three years at Oklahoma.

Key stats

3 — South Carolina recorded three interceptions for the second week in a row. The Gamecocks now have seven picks on the year.

70 — Spencer Rattler completed at least 70% of his passes for the second-straight game

Next USC football game

Who: South Carolina at Kentucky

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8

Where: Kroger Field in Lexington, Ky.

TV: SEC Network

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • No plans to sell TikTok, Chinese parent firm says

    The comments from ByteDance come after reports it was exploring the potential sale of the platform.

  • Big Sur hotel receives highest ranking for inaugural 'Michelin keys'

    Big Sur hotel receives highest ranking for inaugural 'Michelin keys'

  • Q1 2024 Essential Properties Realty Trust Inc Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Essential Properties Realty Trust Inc Earnings Call

  • Q1 2024 Independent Bank Corp (Michigan) Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Independent Bank Corp (Michigan) Earnings Call

  • Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce spotted in Carmel

    Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce spotted in Carmel

  • GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks rise, yen plumbs 34-year low as BOJ stands pat on rates

    The yen fell amid volatile trade on Friday after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) maintained its accommodative monetary policy stance at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting, while Asian shares rose in the broader market. The BOJ kept interest rates around zero on Friday, as expected, while removing a reference to the amount of government bonds it has roughly committed to buying each month. Still, the Japanese yen fell to the weaker side of 156 per dollar in a knee-jerk reaction to the decision, and last stood at 156.15 per dollar.

  • Paramedic sentencing in Elijah McClain's death caps trials that led to 3 convictions

    Almost five years after Elijah McClain died following a police stop in which he was put in a neck hold and injected with the powerful sedative ketamine, three of the five Denver-area responders prosecuted in the Black man's death have been convicted. Experts say the convictions would have been unheard of before 2020, when George Floyd's murder sparked a nationwide reckoning over racist policing and deaths in police custody. Previously, she has said the two acquitted Aurora police officers, as well as other firefighters and police on the scene, were complicit in her 23-year-old son’s murder and that they escaped justice.

  • Q1 2024 Antero Midstream Corp Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Antero Midstream Corp Earnings Call

  • UPDATE 1-India votes in second election phase as Modi vs Gandhi contest heats up

    India began voting on Friday in the second phase of the world's biggest election, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his rivals raise the pitch of the campaign by focusing on hot-button issues such as religious discrimination, affirmative action and taxes. Almost one billion people are eligible to vote in the seven-phase general elections that began on April 19 and concludes on June 1, with votes set to be counted on June 4. Modi is seeking a record-equalling third straight term on the back of his economic record, welfare measures, national pride, Hindu nationalism and personal popularity.

  • Joel Embiid pushes through the pain, delivers epic performance in 76ers' Game 3 win over Knicks

    The reigning MVP put his franchise on his powerful shoulders to complete arguably the strongest playoff performance of his career.

  • Massive fire burns at Oceanside Pier in California

    STORY: Plumes of smoke barraged the pier as firefighters responded from the ground and above, with helicopters making multiple water drops to fight the flames.The Oceanside Fire Department said the fire started in a vacant building at the end of the pier.According to local media, some businesses closed due to the fire. As of Thursday, the Oceanside Fire Department is still working to learn the cause of the fire.

  • Repatriated South African apartheid-era artworks on display to celebrate 30 years of democracy

    A selection of South African artworks produced during the country’s apartheid era which ended up in foreign art collections is on display in Johannesburg to mark 30 years since the country's transition to democracy in 1994. Most of the artworks were taken out of the country by foreign tourists and diplomats who had viewed them at the Australian Embassy in the capital, Pretoria. The embassy had opened its doors to Black artists from the townships to be recognized and have their artworks on full display to the public.

  • Allianz (ETR:ALV) Is Paying Out A Larger Dividend Than Last Year

    Allianz SE ( ETR:ALV ) has announced that it will be increasing its dividend from last year's comparable payment on the...

  • Q1 2024 Third Coast Bancshares Inc Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Third Coast Bancshares Inc Earnings Call

  • Defence gear maker Saab raises sales outlook after Q1 profit jumps

    STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Swedish defence equipment maker Saab reported on Friday a 28% rise in operating profit for the first quarter and raised its organic sales growth outlook for the full year. Operating profit at the maker of the Gripen fighter jet was 1.19 billion crowns ($109 million), compared with 928 million a year earlier. Saab, which competes with U.S. defence giant Lockheed Martin, France's Dassault and Britain's BAE Systems, has seen strong demand for its products over the past year and has been boosted by Sweden's accession to NATO.

  • ‘There’s Still Tomorrow’ director Paola Cortellesi talks success, toxic relationships and hope

    LONDON (AP) — Actor Paola Cortellesi has long been a staple on the Italian pop culture scene, mostly known for her work as a comedian. Then she turned to directing and her first feature movie, “There’s Still Tomorrow,” took Italy by storm. The black-and-white film about an ordinary woman trapped in a toxic marriage in post-World War II Italy opened in October. The low-key drama resonated with women from all walks of life, even overtaking the global hit “Barbie” at the Italian box offices. After

  • Q1 2024 Antero Resources Corp Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Antero Resources Corp Earnings Call

  • Gordon, Jokic lead the Nuggets to the brink of a sweep with a 112-105 win over the Lakers in Game 3

    LOS ANGELES (AP) — With one championship ring and a tenacious veteran core, the Denver Nuggets are a daunting matchup for any opponent in the NBA. They're clearly a particular nightmare for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, who are one game away from an early summer after Denver stretched its winning streak in this rivalry to a whopping 11 games. Aaron Gordon had a playoff career-high 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and the Nuggets mo

  • Balfour Beatty's (LON:BBY) Upcoming Dividend Will Be Larger Than Last Year's

    Balfour Beatty plc ( LON:BBY ) has announced that it will be increasing its dividend from last year's comparable...

  • Dow Jones Futures: Microsoft, Google Jump; New Market Rally Still Must Do This

    Microsoft and Google jumped on earnings late after the market rally attempt showed resilience Wednesday amid Meta's sell-off.