In photos: South Carolina blows late lead to Florida
It was a very tough night for South Carolina as the Gamecocks watched a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter evaporate in a 41-39 loss to the Gators.
The Gamecocks are now 2-4 overall and 1-3 in the SEC with road trips to Missouri and Texas A&M looming to close out October.
Before that, though, GamecockCentral was on hand to photograph the game. Here are two photo galleries from C.J. Driggers and Chris Gillespie from the loss.
C.J. Driggers
Chris Gillespie
Late fourth quarter touchdown gives Florida win over South Carolina
by Jack Veltri
The opportunity was there for South Carolina to pull away from Florida. All it needed to do was put together one more good drive and it would be on its way to a win.
[Enter to win a Spencer Rattler-autographed Gamecocks football]
But on a third down play with under three minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Spencer Rattler’s pass was short of the first down marker. Fourth down.
After moving deep into South Carolina territory, Florida quarterback Graham Mertz found his receiver Ricky Pearsall open in the end zone for a 21-yard touchdown.
Just like that, South Carolina’s double-digit lead was gone.
In what was a battle from start to finish, South Carolina couldn’t slam the door and it paid the price. The Gators did more in the end and won 41-39 Saturday afternoon.
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One of the biggest questions coming into Saturday was if South Carolina (2-4, 1-3 SEC) could stop the run. It struggled doing so in Gainesville last year, and it was the same story from the game’s first drive.
The Gators drove down the field in nine plays, capped off by a three-yard touchdown run from Trevor Etienne.
On the next drive, the Gamecocks found themselves in a potential three-and-out spot. Rattler’s pass was way off target to Ahmarean Brown, but the Gators were flagged for pass interference.
South Carolina would take complete advantage of the mistake as it got into Florida territory on a 30-yard run by Mario Anderson. Three plays later, Rattler hit Trey Knox for a six-yard score to tie it up.
