COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — LaNorris Sellers and South Carolina were sliding and lost during a three-game stretch where they squandered two double-digit leads at home and were blown out at Alabama.
“We had three straight losses,” Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer said. “But there was a lot of good in those games. There was a lot of growth.”
That showed once more Saturday when Sellers and the Gamecocksrallied to beat No. 11 Tennessee 27-24 on a perfectly timed strip-sack fumble by end Dylan Stewart and Malik Orsan’s walk-off, 48-yard field goal.
“We just kept fighting and fighting,” said Sellers, who ran for two scores and threw for another. “It wasn’t pretty.”
It was picture perfect, though, though at the end when Sellers took on two defenders, stayed upright and stretched the ball into the pilon for a tying touchdown with 1:1`7 to play.
Sellers seemed like he would end up short, but “he was a DB (defensive back) and I’m 240 (pounds),” he said. “I’ve got to get in.”
That’s when Stewart and the Gamecocks’ defense took over, swarming Tennessee quarterback George MacIntyre who fumbled the ball with 33 seconds to play. Defensive tackle Tomiway Durojaiye fell on it.
South Carolina (4-3, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) ran the clock down to three seconds and Orsan easily put the kick through the uprights for the walk-off win.
Fans rushed the field to celebrate the second straight ranked victory for South Carolina, which defeated then-No. 16 Florida two weeks ago at The Swamp.
The game appeared over a few minutes earlier when the Vols, up 24-17, went for a fourth-and-1 with 3:35 left on South Carolina’s 39 and MacIntyre was stuffed.
“If you let a good football team hang around on the road, it has got a chance to sure bite you and it did in this game,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said.
Sellers took full advantage and on third-and-goal he was hit by two defenders and fought through to get the pilon for a touchdown that was upheld on review.
It was a satisfying victory for the Gamecocks, who looked like they would fall for a third straight time at home after holding double-digit leads over opponents.
Tennessee rallied from 14-0 down to lead 24-17 but could not contain the dynamic Sellers at the end. He finished 18 of 32 for 210 yards passing and ran for 96 yards, including the two touchdowns.
Tennessee tailback DeSean Bishop ran for 130 yards and a touchdown, but it was not enough as the Vols lost for a second straight time at Williams-Brice Stadium.
The Takeaway
Tennessee: The Vols have some work to do, including mentally as they came out flat to fall behind 14-0 and never fully got control of the game after a dominating 26-10 victory at home over Alabama last week.
South Carolina: The Gamecocks aren’t done yet, looking to pull off another second-half run as they did in 2024 when they won six in a row after starting 3-3.
Too many penalties
Tennessee had eight penalties for 60 yards, including three that took touchdowns off the board. An illegal shift by receiver Braylon Staley wiped out his 35-yard scoring catch in the second quarter. Staley had a second scoring catch, this one from 18 yards out in the third quarter, nullified by holding.
“We all know how different this game would have looked if we didn’t have those penalties,” Tennessee’s MacIntyre said. “It didn’t feel like we had a lot of penalties all game but they happened at the worst time possible. Just really shot ourselves in the foot.”
Birthday present
One of Beamer’s first post-game tasks was finding his father, Virginia Tech’s great Frank Beamer for a hug before taking questions. Beamer turned 80 this past Sunday. “That was a heck of a birthday present,” the younger Beamer said with a grin.
Up next
Tennessee: Hosts No. 12 Kentucky on Nov. 7.
South Carolina heads to Oklahoma next Saturday.
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Pete Iacobeli, The Associated Press