Grading South Carolina football's Gator Bowl collapse against Notre Dame
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After a dominant first quarter, South Carolina football collapsed in the second half and lost 45-38 to Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl on Friday.
The Gamecocks (8-5) took a 21-7 lead on the Irish (9-4) in the opening minutes of the game but couldn't hold on, giving up 28 points and 355 total yards after halftime. The offense reached the end zone just once in the second half and three times total.
Notre Dame takes a 4-1 lead in the all-time series after winning its first meeting with the Gamecocks since 1984.
Here's how we graded South Carolina's Gator Bowl performance.
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Offense: B-
After a hot start, Spencer Rattler and the Gamecocks offense couldn't keep the momentum up. Rattler finished 29-of-46 passing for 246 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The unit's biggest issue was penalties: A late unsportsmanlike conduct call on Juju McDowell cost the Gamecocks the chance to tie the game, and an intentional grounding call on the play before put the team into a third-and-long situation that it couldn't overcome.
With both starting tight ends Jaheim Bell and Austin Stogner in the transfer portal, senior Nate Adkins delivered as the lone tight end on the roster who saw the field during the regular season. He led the team in receiving with 78 yards, including a 24-yard catch that set up the Gamecocks' first touchdown. Wide receiver Xavier Legette had the offensive play of the game, a spectacular 42-yard touchdown catch that he kept in bounds on a toe tap.
Defense: B
With the amount of missing starters, South Carolina's defense was impressive in that it was not a total disaster. There were several shining moments, from freshman DQ Smith's interception returned 53 yards for a touchdown to O'Donnell Fortune's historic 101-yard interception returned for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
However, the unit struggled against Notre Dame quarterback Tyler Buchner as it has against mobile QBs for much of the season. Buchner scored two of the Irish's rushing touchdowns and was the team's No. 3 rusher with 61 yards. The second half was particularly rough for the South Carolina run defense, which gave up 211 of 264 the Irish's rushing yards after halftime.
Special teams: A+
What more is there to say about the Gamecocks' special teams unit? They did what they've done all season against the Irish, setting the tone in the first quarter with a fake field goal touchdown. Punter Kai Kroeger threw his second 20-plus yard touchdown of the season, hitting long snapper Hunter Rodgers to give the Gamecocks back the lead after Notre Dame tied the score at seven.
Kroeger's punting wasn't as consistent as usual, but he still hit one over 50 yards and two inside the 20-yard line. Mitch Jeter converted his lone field goal to finish the year with a 100% conversion rate.
Coaching: C
Shane Beamer was secretive about who would call plays for South Carolina following Marcus Satterfield's departure for Nebraska, and it seemed to pay off. The Gamecocks' offense took risks when it needed to and wisely leaned on its strengths in the passing game without MarShawn Lloyd or Bell as major rushing threats.
However, there was an overwhelming sense of chaos and lack of discipline in the final minutes of the game. In the fourth quarter, the team took a delay of game on a punt following an apparent miscommunication between Ahmarean Brown and Rattler on a third-down route. Beamer got an unsportsmanlike conduct flag in the first half, and the aforementioned McDowell call could have cost the team the game.
Overall: B-
After ending the regular season on a high, the Gator Bowl wasn't the triumphant finale that South Carolina hoped for. There were excellent moments that give the Gamecocks hope for next season, but they clearly have a long way still to go.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina football report card: Gator Bowl collapse vs Notre Dame
