Carolina Pride: Gamecocks Defeat No. 1 Alabama

For the first time since November of 2007, the Alabama Crimson Tide have lost a regular season game.

Courtesy of three Stephen Garcia touchdown passes (two to Alshon Jeffery) and a three touchdown effort by Marcus Lattimore, the South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide, 35-21.

Prior to Saturday afternoon, the Gamecocks had never defeated a No. 1 team in football. However, once the day was done, the Tide had been “rolled”…and South Carolina was the talk of the nation.

In a game which reminded many Alabama fans of the contest with Arkansas, the Tide fell in a hole during in the initial period of play.

Alabama kicked an early field goal to take a 3-0 lead, but South Carolina would quickly take control of the game thanks to an amazing effort by quarterback Stephen Garcia and a rocking crowd at Williams-Brice Stadium.

The Gamecocks led 21-9 at the half, but in typical and certainly expected fashion, Alabama rallied.

Following a safety and a Tide field goal, the lead was cut to 21-14, however the biggest opportunity for Alabama would come in the latter stages of the game.

South Carolina wide receiver Alshon Jeffery was “all world” against the Crimson Tide, however a pass he should have caught, turned into an interception by Alabama defensive back Will Lowery.

With the Gamecocks leading 28-21 early in the fourth quarter, Alabama was given a short field courtesy of the interception with a chance to tie the game and gain the momentum.

However, the Tide scoring attempt would stall and a fake field goal would prove unsuccessful.

In retrospect, the inability of Alabama to produce after forcing a critical turnover certainly proved to be a major factor in the final result.

After the missed scoring opportunity for Alabama, the Gamecocks would orchestrate a 75-yard drive which would culminate in a Marcus Lattimore 2-yard touchdown run.

When the game was over the Alabama 19-game winning streak had been
snapped…and the No. 1 team had been trampled.



Video Courtesy of TideSports.com

STATS OF NOTE:

-Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson combined for only 64 yards rushing.

-As a team, the Tide only rushed for 38 yards (obviously counting sacks as minus yards) which is the third fewest in the Nick Saban era.

-Greg McElroy threw for a career-high 315 yards, but was sacked a total of seven times.

-South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia threw for 201 yards and three touchdowns, going 17-of-20 for the game.

-Julio Jones caught eight passes for 118 yards and one touchdown, while South Carolina’s Alshon Jeffery caught seven passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns.