South Carolina football: top New Year’s Day moments in program history
By Jacob Elsey
Celebrate the new year with some top moments from South Carolina football.
South Carolina won’t be playing in a bowl game this postseason, after pulling out of a Gasparilla Bowl matchup with UAB due to COVID issues in the locker room. While the Gamecocks will have to sit this year out, we can still celebrate the new year by reliving some of the program’s top New Year’s Day moments.
As we welcome in 2021, let’s take a look back at several memorable plays and games that have helped the Gamecocks ring new years of the past, starting with a 2013 meeting with Michigan in the Outback Bowl.
The Hit
It’s hard not to start here when looking at top New Year’s Day moments for the Gamecocks. Flashback to the 2013 Outback Bowl, a loaded South Carolina defense matched up against the Michigan Wolverines.
A bizarre second half spot resulted in Michigan being awarded a first down on a fourth down conversion deep in their own territory. The ball appeared to be well short of the line to gain, but the referees moved the chains anyways.
This set the stage for defensive end Jadeveon Clowney to take the game into his own hands. The very next play, Clowney broke through the Michigan offensive line untouched and nearly decapitated Wolverine running back Vincent Smith, forcing a fumble which Clowney then scooped up with his left hand.
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The Gamecocks would score on the very next play, and would go on to win the game 33-28.
Last second field goal
In a 2002 edition of the Outback Bowl, South Carolina was facing off against Ohio State for the second time in as many years. The year prior, the Gamecocks blew the Buckeyes out 24-7, and things seemed to be trending in that direction in this game, too, as South Carolina held a 28-0 lead late in the second half.
The Buckeyes battled back, though, eventually tying the game 28-28. With the game seemingly slipping from the Gamecocks’ hands, the offense mounted one final drive, which ended with a last second field goal attempt from kicker Daniel Weaver.
Weaver’s kick had just enough leg, as he split the uprights with the final seconds ticking off the clock, preserving the Gamecocks’ 31-28 victory.
Ryan Brewer v. OSU
The year prior to Weaver’s late game heroics, South Carolina embarrassed the Buckeyes behind a performance from Ohio native Ryan Brewer.
Brewer was overlooked in the recruiting process by his home state program, but got the last laugh in this 2001 matchup. He would score all three of the Gamecocks’ touchdowns, amassing over 200 yards of total offense on his way to Outback Bowl MVP honors.
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Shaw finds endzone three different ways
Connor Shaw is the most decorated Gamecock quarterback in program history, and he had maybe his best game as a player in his final bowl matchup. The 2014 Capital One Bowl pitted a 10-win South Carolina squad against Wisconsin.
Shaw would throw for a season high 312 yards and three scores, while adding another 47 yards on the ground. He also caught his first career touchdown reception, and accounted for all five of the Gamecocks’ scores.
South Carolina would win the game 34-24.
Second half comeback
In the Gamecocks’ most recent bowl win, they used a 23-point run to erase a 19-3 third quarter deficit, and take down the Michigan Wolverines.
South Carolina scored three touchdowns in the game’s final 18 minutes, and forced the Wolverines into five turnovers, leaving Tampa with a 26-19 win. The victory capped a nine-win season for the Gamecocks, and is the largest come-from-behind bowl win in program history.
Jake Bentley threw for over 200 yards, taking home the game’s MVP award, while all-time leading receiver Bryan Edwards hauled in a touchdown pass.