South Carolina and Spencer Rattler got off to an uneven start to 2022 but ultimately captured a commanding victory over the visiting Georgia State Panthers on Saturday night, defeating Shawn Elliott’s squad 35-14 off the strength of excellent special teams play.
The Gamecocks and Panthers got things started with a largely uneventful and scoreless first quarter, with the main highlights being a fourth down stop by South Carolina and some early indications that Rattler is the best quarterback to set foot in Columbia in quite some time.
The action heated up in the second quarter, with receiver Jalen Brooks making a SportsCenter-worthy grab, the Gamecocks successfully pulling off a fake field goal, and MarShawn Lloyd finally scoring his first touchdown in the Garnet and Black, staking USC to a 6-0 lead after a bad snap botched the point-after attempt.