The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, October 31, 2005, Page 10, Image 10
-- TH#feAMECOCK
I 'k I 1 T I 1 SPURRIER SAID IT
| W U ■ 1 J ' I “Well, I’ve finally got a new line. God is smiling on
i I I ■ I ^ I i the Gamecocks.’’
Page 10 -/ -JL vy _1_ _JL rV_y Monday, Oct. 31,2005
Rice, Rice Baby
Turning Points
Former Tennessee quarterback
Peyton Manning has his jersey retired
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Receiver Sidney Rice catches the first
touchdown of the game
Rice leaps over the Vol
defense for his second TD
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USC kicker Josh Brown celebrates
his game-winning 49-yard field goal
Juan Btasl THE CIAMKCOCK
Gamecock freshman receiver Sidney Rice catches his second touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter of USC’s 16-15 upset win against Tennessee.
UICTORV • con WD PROITII
and one to Florida.
“This is definitely the
best win since I’ve been
here,” senior offensive
lineman Na’Shan Goddard
said. “This is definitely the
best feeling I’ve had in a
long time... . This win was
for Syvelle and all the
seniors last year who never
beat Tennessee.”
While the seniors could
look at this as one of the
greatest wins of their
college careers, it was a
freshman who again led the
Gamecocks to victory.
Receiver Sidney Rice
continued his blazing pace
through USC record books,
catching a touchdown for
the seventh straight game
and breaking the all-time
school record for
touchdown catches in a
season (11).
His first touchdown
came with 8:07 remaining
in the first quarter when
Rice pulled down a 19-yard
pass from quarterback
Blake Mitchell to give USC
a 7-0 lead.
The Vols answered the
score with a 12-play, 72
yard drive, immediately
tying the score at 7 on an
Arian Foster 1-yard
touchdown run. Foster, a
freshman filling in for the
injured Gerald Riggs Jr.,
ran well all at points for
Tennessee, finishing with
148 yards on 25 carries.
The rest of the first half
was dominated by defenses
as the Volunteers scored 5
additional points off a
James Wilhoit 38-yard field
goal and a sack of Blake
Mitchell for a safety.
A key point in the game
came with just more than
two minutes left to play in
the half when Tennessee
recovered a fumbled
kickoff and drove the bail
to the USC 1-yard line,
UICTORV • 9
>1
Carolina
12 Record number of touchdowns caught by Sidney Rice,
two against the Vols
49 Career long field goal for Josh Brown, a game winner
242 Passing yards by quarterback Blake Mitchell
2 Number of victories USC has over the Vols in Knoxville
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Number of victories USC has over the Vols in Knoxville
Number of punts Brandon Colquitt had downed inside
the 20
Number of plays quarterback Rick Clausen played in
before the fourth quarter
Attendance of Saturday’s game
www.dailygamecock.com
Simpson, Carolina defense
come up with crucial stops
Stephen Fastenau
THE GAMECOCK
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Ko
Simpson dropped an
interception that would have
ended the game.
It seemed like just another
unlucky break for the
Gamecocks.
In any other game,
Tennessee would have taken
advantage of its new life and
driven down the field, kicked
a game-winning field goal and
beaten USC as it had done so
many times before.
In any other game, the
Gamecocks’ defense would
have watched helplessly as
another big game slipped
through its hands.
This, as it turned out,
wasn’t any other game.
Simpson rebounded from
his missed opportunity to
break up a Rick Clausen pass
on fourth down to give the
sophomore safety, and the
Gamecocks’ defense, the
much-needed stop, and win,
they had wanted for years.
“I knew that they had
another play coming (after the
drop),” Simpson said. “I just
knew ‘shoot, I got to make a
play, I got to make up for it’
and I did.”
USC took advantage of a
Tennessee quarterback
controversy, holding the
Volunteers to 99 passing
yards. Gamecock cornerback
Johnathan Joseph set the tone
by intercepting starting
quarterback Erik Ainge’s first
pass, and the Vols weren’t able
to gain any momentum
through the air after that.
Clausen was inserted as
Tennessee’s quarterback on
oerense • 9