South Carolina football has had one of the country’s top quarterback-wide receiver combinations in the early portion of the 2023 college football season. Spencer Rattler and Xavier Legette both entered week 4 in the top-10 nationally in passing yards and receiving yards, respectively, and the duo got off to a great start in the first quarter against Mississippi State.
After the Gamecock defense forced a Mississippi State punt, Carolina was pinned deep in their own territory, but after Rattler found tight end Trey Knox for a first down, the offense had some breathing room.
That was all that Xavier Legette would need.
On 3rd down, Spencer Rattler found Legette on a shallow crossing route, but #17 was running so fast that every Mississippi State defensive back couldn’t get the angle on the garnet-clad speedster. In the end, no defender was within ten yards of catching Xavier Legette as he crossed the goal line, much to the joy of the raucous South Carolina football fans in Williams-Brice Stadium.
Xavier Legette at 6’3”, 227, should not be able to move this fast. My goodness. pic.twitter.com/wYlYa7Yo7X
— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) September 23, 2023
Legette took the catch for 76 yards and a touchdown. The gain was the longest play of the season for the Gamecocks.
Legette entered the game with the most receiving yards ever for a South Carolina football player through three games of a season. His 367 yards were 131 short of keeping up with Alshon Jeffery’s 2010 4-game pace, but the 76-yard catch and run certainly put him well on his way to matching Jeffery (who, coincidentally, will have his jersey retired at halftime of this game).
The Gamecocks currently hold a 14-0 lead over Mississippi State and have the ball once again. There are over 14 minutes to go in the 2nd quarter as the Gamecocks look to bring their record back to .500 at 2-2 with a victory tonight over the Mississippi State Bulldogs.