South Carolina opened the day with a look that matched the moment: black helmets, black jerseys and black pants against No. 11 Tennessee at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia.
The Gamecocks, coming off their road win Oct. 10 over the ranked Florida Gators, entered Saturday at 3-3 overall and 1-3 in the SEC. Tennessee arrived at 6-1 and 3-1 in league play, setting up a 3:30 p.m. meeting with a ranked opponent that could give South Carolina another major conference result.
Before kickoff, former South Carolina tight end Hayden Hurst got the crowd going by leading the pre-game Game-cock chant. Hurst played for the Gamecocks from 2015-17, was a first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and went on to play for five different teams before retiring in 2024.
South Carolina also entered the game with a mixed injury update. Defensive back Quay’sheed Scott was out because of an undisclosed injury after getting hurt while delivering a hard hit in the overtime loss to Kentucky on Oct.
- He also missed the Florida game.
Center Carter Miller, who sat out against Florida, was back for the Tennessee matchup.
The betting market had already shifted toward the home team by the time the game kicked off. Tennessee opened as a 2.5-point favorite, but the line moved quickly the other way, with South Carolina closing as a 2-5 favorite according to DraftKings, FanDuel and VegasInsider.
On the field, South Carolina wasted little time. The Gamecocks drove 75 yards in 10 plays and scored on their opening possession when LaNorris Sellers found Mazeo Bennett for a 17-yard touchdown. That made it South Carolina 7, Tennessee 0.
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