Jaylen Wright powers No. 21 Tennessee past South Carolina
Jaylen Wright rushed for 123 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown to help No. 21 Tennessee to a 41-20 win against visiting South Carolina in an SEC game on Saturday night.
Joe Milton III completed 21 of 32 passes for 239 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, and wide receiver Squirrel White caught nine passes for 104 yards for the Volunteers (4-1, 1-1 SEC).
South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler finished 24-of-35 for 169 yards and an interception.
Mario Anderson rushed for 101 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown for South Carolina (2-3, 1-2).
Tennessee running back Jabari Small scored on a 2-yard run with 42 seconds left in the first quarter to give the Volunteers a 14-10 lead and they kept the lead the rest of the way.
Wright scored on a 42-yard run on Tennessee’s first possession for a 7-0 lead.
Mitch Jeter kicked a 36-yard field goal to trim the lead to 7-3, and DQ Smith then intercepted Milton’s pass over the middle and returned it to the Tennessee 30.
On third-and-goal from the 6, Rattler scrambled up the middle and stretched the ball across the goal line to give the Gamecocks a 10-7 lead with 2:03 left in the first quarter.
Tennessee answered with a 50-yard reception by White that set up the 2-yard touchdown run by Small, moving the Volunteers ahead for good 14-10.
Charles Campbell’s 24-yard field goal extended Tennessee’s lead to 17-10 with 8:50 left in the first half.
Rattler overthrew a sideline pass on third-and-22 and Kamal Hadden intercepted it, running it back 28 yards for a touchdown for a 24-10 lead with 47 seconds left in the half.
The Volunteers received the second-half kickoff and marched 75 yards in 12 plays, extending their lead to 31-10 on a 6-yard touchdown catch by Jacob Warren.
The Gamecocks quickly struck back on a 75-yard touchdown run by Anderson to trim the deficit to 31-17 with 10:28 left in the third.
Campbell tacked on a 33-yard field goal with 12:42 left to stretch the lead to 34-17. Jeter answered with a 47-yarder to cut it to 34-20 with 8:35 left.
Dylan Sampson tacked on a 6-yard touchdown run for the Volunteers with 4:09 left to make it 41-20.
–Field Level Media
