South Carolina Football: 3 Takeaways from Season Finale Loss to Kentucky

1. South Carolina Controlled Tempo in Second Half

The second half started with scores from both teams on their opening drives. Kentucky had possession first and Terry Wilson finished the drive with a one-yard rushing touchdown, after running seven and a half minutes off of the clock

South Carolina put its first touchdown of the night up when Kevin Harris rushed the ball 15 yards for the score. The score was 34-10 with 5:21 left in the third quarter and neither team would add to it before the end of the quarter.

The Gamecocks were also the first to score in the fourth quarter after both teams traded downs for several drives. Doty and Joyner connected for a 30-yard touchdown and the two-point conversion attempt was successful when Doty hit Nick Muse with the pass and South Carolina lessened the gap in the score, 34-18.

Kentucky answered in the next possession when Rodriguez added another touchdown to his stats when he took the ball 79 yards to the endzone in the first play. There were only six drives in the entire fourth quarter and South Carolina kept possession of the ball in the next drive to close out the game.

The Gamecocks nearly turned the ball over early in the drive, but avoided the fumble on official review, only to have the drive end with a fumble almost four minutes later.

Kentucky ended their season with a win at home, 41-18, while South Carolina ended their season with a 2-8 record.