COLUMBIA, S.C. — LaNorris Sellers ran for 106 yards and threw for 244 more and South Carolina finally knocked off one of the Southeastern Conference’s playoff contenders, beating No. 10 Texas A&M 44-20 on Saturday night.
The Gamecocks (5-3, 3-3) took LSU and Alabama to the wire this season before losing. But this time their freshman quarterback and senior transfer Raheim Sanders ran all over Aggies (7-2, 5-1), who came into Saturday allowing just 104.5 yards a game.
Sanders, the all-SEC transfer from Arkansas, rushed for 144 yards and two touchdowns.
Sellers threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score.
“He’s special. He’s just going to get better,” Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer said about the quarterback who played only his fourth full game in college. “When he had those two losses against LSU and Alabama he was inexperienced.”
Beamer said he felt like all he heard before the game was how powerful Texas A&M was on both lines. He was proud they gained 286 yards on the ground and shut out the Aggies in the second half.
“We’re a pretty freaking physical team around here too,” Beamer said is a raspy voice with a thick black chain with a Gamecock logo around his neck that was given to him by a student storming the field.
The Aggies ground their way through the SEC to be the last undefeated team in the league and worked their way back to a lead before halftime after falling behind 14-0 less than six minutes into the game.
But South Carolina’s chaotic defense came through when needed. It stopped the Aggies twice on fourth-and-1, picked off Marcel Reed’s pass as the freshman threw off his back foot as Texas A&M drove early in the fourth quarter, then scooped up Reed’s fumble to squash their last hope.
Reed was 18 of 28 for 206 yards and ran for 46 yards as the Aggies starter Conner Weigman didn’t play. Texas A&M coach Mike Elko said Reed is the starter right now but that could always change,
Texas A&M rushing leader Le’Veon Moss left the game early and didn’t come back. Elko said his injury didn’t look as serious as first thought, but he was waiting for more information.
Big guys
Over and over again, the Texas A&M defense appeared to have Sellers sacked or Sanders stopped for a short gain and they bounced away. Elko said his team needs to realize it takes good form to bring down big men.
“Obviously I did a poor job getting our defense to understand how you tackle a 240-pound kid. We kept trying to get up high,” Aggies coach Mike Elko said at his postgame news conference, his comments barely heard over fans still in the stands and on the field yelling “Game” and “Cocks.”
Takeaways
Texas A&M: The loss is a blow to the Aggies’ SEC title hopes, but not a fatal one. They join four other teams — LSU, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas — with one conference loss. Texas A&M is at lowly Auburn then ends the regular season hosting the Longhorns. They have never made it to Atlanta to play in the championship game in 13 years in the SEC.
South Carolina: The Gamecocks are one of the SEC’s most volatile teams. Saturday they showed they can beat about anyone in the league and are just a win away from a bowl with lower division Wofford still on the schedule.
Poll implications
No. 10 Texas A&M is going to drop some places in the AP Top 25, but with losses by both teams tied at 11th, Iowa State and Clemson, the Aggies may not fall too far.
Up next
Texas A&M: Hosts New Mexico State on Nov. 16.
South Carolina: At Vanderbilt next Saturday.
