South Carolina Football: Gamecocks defender granted SEC honor

South Carolina football picked up a huge win on Saturday when they knocked off Kentucky 17-14 at Williams-Brice Stadium. The Gamecocks had a rare good defensive game, and the Spencer Rattler to Xavier Legette connection yielded USC’s only two touchdowns, one for the game’s first score, and one for the game-winning score in the 4th quarter.

Several Gamecocks had standout performances, but the oldest player on the team picked up an honor from the Southeastern Conference.

Seventh-year defensive end Jordan Strachan was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week after tallying two sacks, including a strip sack in which the ball popped up into the air and landed in the waiting arms of Tonka Hemingway. The play allowed the Gamecocks to kill some crucial clock in the 4th quarter and flip the field, forcing Kentucky into a more difficult situation at the end of the game.

Strachan’s effort came as part of a much better defensive showing from the South Carolina football team on Saturday. Tonka Hemingway had a decent day but stepped up on the final drive, deflecting two passes at the line of scrimmage. Debo Williams was solid again, and Nick Emmanwori had his best overall game of the season, leading the team in tackles and intercepting a Devin Leary pass in the end zone.

Strachan got snaps at defensive end in both the 3-3-5 look and the 4-2-5 defense. He matched his season total for sacks (2) and forced fumbles (1) on Saturday. The game allowed Strachan to set a new high-water sack mark for his South Carolina football career (4).

Strachan and the Gamecock defense will look to ride the momentum from their good game into next Saturday’s rivalry game against the Clemson Tigers. The Gamecocks and Tigers will kick off inside Williams-Brice Stadium at 7:30. The game will be shown on the SECNetwork and the ESPN app.