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South Carolina Gamecocks vs. UNC: Five Key Plays

By Sanders Early

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The South Carolina Gamecocks met the North Carolina Tarheels in Charlotte, NC on Thursday night for a match-up that most thought would be a shoot out based on how poorly both defenses played last season. It was anything but that as both offenses struggled to score throughout the game. The Gamecocks prevailed in the end, winning 17-13. Here are five key plays that lead to the victory.

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  1. After the Gamecock offense went three and out in the first drive of the game, the Tarheels offense came out and immediately drove down the field. With the Tarheels getting into the redzone, it seemed pretty likely that the Tarheels would get some points. Skai Moore would not allow that to happen. On 3rd and goal, he picked off a pass from Marquise Williams in the endzone (Moore’s 8th career interception) to get the Gamecocks out of trouble.
  2. After North Carolina scored a touchdown on their second drive of the game, Spurrier needed to find a way to move the ball down the field and get an answer. The Gamecocks drove 75 yards down the field and Pharoh Cooper caught a 9 yard touchdown pass from Connor Mitch to tie up the game.
  3. The Tarheels held a 13-10 lead with 8:25 to play in the 3rd quarter and the ball on their own 20 yard line. 3 plays later, the Tarheels looked like they could be going up by 10 as they drove all the way to the Gamecocks 21 yard line. On 2nd and 10, Jordan Diggs bailed the defense out when he jumped a slant route and intercepted Williams.
  4. With the Gamecocks trailing 13-10 early in the fourth quarter, it was urgent that they find someone that could get some points to at least get them into field goal range to tie the game. After David Williams picked up a first down on 3rd and 3, Shon Carson entered the game. He took advantage by taking the very next snap 48 yards for the game winning touchdown.
  5. With 8:56 left to play in the game, UNC took the ball over on their own 12 yard line after the Gamecocks failed to convert on 4th down. On what could be their last chance to regain the lead, and potentially win the game, the Tarheels knew they had to make something happen quickly. They marched 80 yards down the field, ultimately getting all the way to the Gamecocks 3 yard line. Dante Sawyer came away with a huge sack for a loss of five yards, but it was Skai Moore that sealed the win for the Gamecocks as he picked off a pass from Williams on 4th down and 8.

The Gamecocks play the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday, September 12. The game starts at 7:30 PM ET and will be televised on the SEC Network.

Next: Gamecocks Win a Close One Over UNC

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