Tag: South Carolina Gamecocks

South Carolina CB Brandon Cisse declares for NFL draft

Posted on | by Field Level Media

South Carolina junior cornerback Brandon Cisse announced Thursday that he will declare for the 2026 NFL Draft after one season with the Gamecocks.

The 6-foot, 190-pound South Carolina native previously played two seasons at North Carolina State. He had 27 tackles with an interception and a forced fumble as South Carolina went 4-8 to miss out on a bowl game.

In a post to the social media site X, Cisse said expressed his appreciation for playing at South Carolina, “and live out my dream of playing in my home state.”

“You all showed me the right way to handle things on and off the field,” Cisse wrote.

According ESPN, Cisse is projected to be a late-first round draft pick. He also earned praise for his ability in man coverage.

–Field Level Media

Ball-control offense carries Clemson past South Carolina 28-14

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Cade Klubnik threw for 268 yards and Ricardo Jones sealed the game with a 12-yard interception return for a touchdown as Clemson defeated South Carolina 28-14 on Saturday at Columbia, S.C.

Klubnik completed 24 of 39 passes with no touchdowns and one interception, Antonio Williams had seven receptions for 66 yards and T.J. Moore had six catches for 101 yards for the Tigers (7-5).

LaNorris Sellers completed 23 of 42 passes for 381 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Gamecocks (4-8).

Sellers completed touchdown passes of 53 yards and 74 yards in the first half, but with the Tigers clinging to a 20-14 lead with 3:20 left, he tried to dump off a short pass under pressure and Jones intercepted it and made it to the end zone.

The Tigers led 17-14 at halftime while dominating time of possession 21:44-8:16. The Gamecocks only ran 19 offensive plays in the first half.

After a scoreless first quarter, Kubnik drove Clemson 78 yards in the seven plays for a 7-0 lead. Adam Randall bounced off right tackle and scored from 10 yards out for a 7-0 Clemson lead.

Sellers wasted little time getting the score back, finding Nyck Harbor wide open for a 53-yard scoring strike for a 7-7 tie.

Klubnik came right back to drive the Tigers 85 yards in 11 plays.

A 21-yard strike to Turner and a facemask call against the Gamecocks gave Clemson first down on the SC 10. Three plays later, Klubnik was nearly sacked when Bryan Thomas blasted through and slapped the ball out of his hand. The ball bounced right back up to Kulnik who sprinted around the left end to make it 14-7 with 5:48 left in the half.

Sellers wasted even less time tying it this time.

He threw high to Vandrevius Jacobs in the flat and he went up over two defenders to make the catch and took off on a spring into the end zone for a 74-yard touchdown and a 14-14 tie.

–Field Level Media

No. 3 Texas A&M edges South Carolina with improbable comeback

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Marcel Reed threw three touchdown passes in the third quarter as No. 3 Texas A&M overcame a 27-point halftime deficit to beat South Carolina 31-30 on Saturday in a Southeastern Conference game in College Station, Texas.

Reed completed 22 of 39 passes for 439 yards and three TDs as the Aggies (10-0, 7-0 SEC) completed the improbable comeback over the stunned Gamecocks (3-7, 1-7).

Since 2004, SEC schools were 0-286 when trailing by 27 or more points. The comeback is the largest in Texas A&M history.

After the disaster of a first half, in which Reed had three costly turnovers, Reed threw scoring passes to Izaiah Williams (27 yards), Ashton Bethel-Roman (39 yards) and Nate Boerkircher (14 yards).

In the fourth quarter, Reed drove the Aggies 98 yards in 10 plays, with EJ Smith rushing 4 yards to give the Aggies their first lead at 31-30 and what proved to be the game-winner.

Everything that could go wrong did for the Aggies in the first half. The Gamecocks outgained them 312-132, including 108 to minus-9 on the ground.

The teams traded field goals early before the Gamecocks took control.

LaNorris Sellers, who threw for 246 yards, drove the Gamecocks 75 yards in six plays for the first touchdown. Sellers found Vandrevius Jacobs along the left sideline for a touchdown and a 10-3 South Carolina lead.

Reed dropped back on second down from his own 27 and had Dylan Stewart in his face. He fumbled as he tried to dump the ball off, and Nick Barrett scooped it and rumbled 17 yards for a touchdown and a 17-3 lead at the end of one quarter.

A William Joyce 41-yard field goal made it 20-3 South Carolina when the Texas A&M offense started clicking.

Reed completed a 24-yard pass to Rueben Owens to the South Carolina 14. On the next play, however, Reed underthrew a pass in the end zone, and Vicari Swain made his first interception to squash the threat.

Sellers made the Aggies pay in just one play. He found Nyck Harbor open in the right flat. Harbor shook two defenders and outsprinted everyone to the end zone for an 80-yard touchdown and a 27-3 South Carolina lead.

Two plays later, Swain intercepted Reed again on an overthrown ball and returned it to the Texas A&M 23.

The turnover led to a 35-yard Joyce field goal and a 30-3 halftime lead.

–Field Level Media

No. 3 Texas A&M not about to overlook South Carolina

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Texas A&M football coach Mike Elko knows better than to look past South Carolina when the No. 3 Aggies take the field Saturday at College Station, Texas.

For starters, the Aggies (9-0, 6-0 SEC) were smashed 44-20 by the Gamecocks (3-6, 1-6) last season after they were outscored 24-0 in the second half.

“Every Saturday, you’re at risk in this conference,” said Elko, whose Aggies’ teams have been ranked in the AP Top 25 in 19 of the 22 games he has been coach.. “That’s just the way it is. So we have to go play — regardless of what their record is — a really talented football team on Saturday.”

The Aggies, though, have looked nothing like the team that was embarrassed by the Gamecocks last season. Texas A&M leads the FBS in road wins over ranked opponents with three: Notre Dame, LSU. Missouri.

A 38-17 victory at Missouri last Saturday came on 221 yards passing from quarterback Marcel Reed, with two touchdowns. Rueben Owens II rushed for 102 yards and two scores. Elko will push for even more against South Carolina, including from a defense that allowed 77 total passing yards.

“It’s the same (Gamecocks) team that beat us by (24) points last year and really embarrassed us up and down the field,” Elko said. “If any of our players or anyone thinks it’s going to be anything different than that, they’re crazy.”

It doesn’t sound as if Elko will simply lean into the fact that Texas A&M is 9-0 for the first time since 1992 when R.C. Slocum’s Aggies posted a perfect 12-0 regular season. The Aggies are also 6-0 in SEC play for the first time since joining the conference in 2012.

Texas A&M’s No. 3 ranking in the CFP is their highest. The top four teams in the final CFP rankings would earn a bye into the quarterfinals, but an immediate goal is that Texas A&M’s can reach 10 wins for the first time since 2012 and the 13th time in its history.

Reed has thrown for two or more touchdowns in three straight games and has at least two passing scores in seven of the nine games this season. The sophomore ranks No. 21 nationally in total offense with 285.7 yards per game while averaging eight yards per play.

South Carolina still has quarterback LaNorris Sellers leading the way. Sellers scorched Texas A&M last season for 244 yards and two touchdowns through the air and another 106 yards and a score on the ground.

The early Heisman Trophy hopeful has slumped this season to only seven touchdown passes with five interceptions and has rushed for 158 yards with three more scores.

The Aggies will be the Gamecocks’ fifth straight opponent ranked No. 14 or better in the AP poll. South Carolina has lost to LSU, Oklahoma, Alabama and Ole Miss so far during the daunting run.

The Gamecocks led then-No. 4 Alabama by eight points late on Oct. 25 before falling apart in the final three minutes of a 29-22 loss.

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer knows the Gamecocks have their work cut out for them.

“(Texas A&M) is a team that, in my opinion, is playing better than any team in the nation,” Beamer said. “They are clicking on all cylinders.”

Beamer made significant changes over the team’s bye week, firing offensive coordinator Mike Shula and offensive line coach Lonnie Teasley. South Carolina is last in the SEC in scoring (19.7 points per game), total offense (294.1 yards) and rushing offense (100.8 yards).

“There have been some take out, but there has also been some additions,” Beamer said. “Certainly, there’s different voices in there now leading the way.”

–Field Level Media

Nov 1, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Trinidad Chambliss (6) passes the ball during the first quarter against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Trinidad Chambliss scores 2 touchdowns as No. 7 Ole Miss routs South Carolina

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Trinidad Chambliss threw for a touchdown and ran for another Saturday night as No. 7 Ole Miss stopped visiting South Carolina 30-14 in Oxford, Miss.

Chambliss connected on 12 of 21 passes for 159 yards and an interception while adding another 59 yards on 15 carries. Running back Kewan Lacy tacked on 167 yards, plus the game-sealing touchdown run, on 24 carries.

Defensively, the Rebels (8-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) limited the Gamecocks (3-6, 1-6) to 230 total yards and collected six sacks while forcing three turnovers. South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers hit on 16 of 30 passes for 180 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions as the Gamecocks lost for the sixth time in seven games.

Sellers found Nyck Harbor for a 47-yard scoring strike just 3 1/2 minutes into the third quarter, pulling South Carolina within 17-14. But the Gamecocks couldn’t score again, and Ole Miss slowly pulled away.

Lucas Carneiro converted 27- and 34-yard field goals to push the lead to nine. Lacy broke the game open with a 54-yard touchdown run with 5:44 left, one play after Sellers was sacked for the sixth time by Da’Shawn Womack.

Sellers cashed in a 16-yard field on a 1-yard scoring run at the 9:13 mark of the first quarter to initiate the scoring. It came four plays after Harrison Wallace muffed a punt that Maurice Brown recovered.

The Rebels controlled most of the half’s remainder, getting on the board when Carneiro hit a 21-yard field goal with 3:56 left in the first. They took the lead for good via Chambliss’ 8-yard touchdown pass to Dae’Quan Wright, two plays after the Gamecocks failed on a fourth-and-1 play from the Ole Miss 46 when Matt Fuller lost three yards.

On their next possession, the Rebels ripped off their best drive of the night, an 89-yarder that saw Lacy carry the load. He ran on the first four plays for 48 yards, including a 29-yard gain, and Chambliss finished it off with a 15-yard keeper 6:56 before the half for a 17-7 advantage.

–Field Level Media

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback John Mateer (10) and Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. (3) warm up before the Red River Rivalry college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorn at the Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025.

No. 14 Oklahoma, South Carolina need to get back on winning track

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Oklahoma and South Carolina both enter Saturday’s Southeastern Conference game in Columbia, S.C., with a need to bounce back.

The 14th-ranked Sooners (5-1, 1-1 SEC) are coming off their first loss of the season, a 23-6 loss to Texas, where quarterback John Mateer struggled for the first time all season.

Mateer, who was coming off a surgery to repair a broken thumb just 17 days before the loss to the Longhorns, threw three interceptions.

“Decision making,” Mateer said of where he needed to improve most. “Taking another breath and really seeing the field, knowing the situation, not guessing and doing too much. That’s what came up and I’m obviously not happy about it. Nobody is, nobody should be.”

South Carolina is coming off a 20-10 loss to LSU, the Gamecocks’ third loss in their last four games.

After that game, South Carolina coach Shane Beamer fired offensive line coach Lonnie Teasley. Shawn Elliott will take over as the interim line coach for the rest of the season.

“Too many self-inflicted mistakes that keep showing up and felt the best thing was to see if we can get a new spark and have a new voice in there,” Beamer said.

The Gamecocks (3-3, 1-3) have been one of the most-penalized teams in FBS, averaging 9.17 penalties per game.

The offensive line has played a significant role in that.

South Carolina was called for six pre-snap penalties in last week’s loss, with five coming from the offensive line.

Last year’s game between the teams was over shortly after it began.

The Gamecocks forced three turnovers in the first six minutes, scoring two defensive touchdowns and setting up a quick score on a short field with the other to quickly jump ahead 21-0 en route to a 35-9 victory.

LaNorris Sellers threw for 175 yards and a touchdown in that game, though he didn’t need to do much as South Carolina built a quick, big lead.

Both teams have struggled on the ground this season, with Oklahoma averaging 122.3 rushing yards per game and South Carolina averaging just 115.3.

Freshman Tory Blaylock is the Sooners’ leading rusher, averaging 48.3 yards per game.

“I think it’s just the whole unit,” Blaylock said. “I’m not the type to point fingers. If anything, I’d just point the finger back to myself. I’ve got to create explosive plays.”

There’s a big difference in the rushing defenses, though.

Oklahoma is 10th nationally, holding opponents to just 84.8 yards per game on the ground. South Carolina is 73rd, allowing an average of 147 yards per game. Missouri ran for 285 yards in its Sept. 20 win over South Carolina.

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said he wasn’t concerned about his team letting the loss to Texas linger.

“This is a group that knows how to punch back and dust themselves off and go right back at it,” Venables said. “It’s a group of competitors, both coaches and players. … You come right back and you do it again.”

-Field Level Media

Oct 11, 2025; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Tigers quarterback Garrett Nussmeier (18) hands the ball off to running back Harlem Berry (22) against the South Carolina Gamecocks during the first half at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

No. 11 LSU puts together solid effort, handles South Carolina

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Garrett Nussmeier threw two touchdown passes and No. 11 LSU overcame his two interceptions in a 20-10 victory against South Carolina on Saturday night in Baton Rouge, La.

The Tigers (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) rushed for a season-high 166 yards and took the ball away twice from the Gamecocks (3-3, 1-3).

Nussmeier completed 20 of 33 passes for 254 yards, and Trey’Dez Green had eight catches for 119 yards and a touchdown.

LaNorris Sellers was 15 of 27 for just 124 yards with an interception for the Gamecocks.

South Carolina received the second-half kickoff and drove to William Joyce’s 47-yard field goal, which tied the score at 10 with 8:39 left in the third quarter.

LSU needed just four plays to regain the lead as Nussmeier threw 5 yards to Kyle Parker, who turned the catch into a 43-yard touchdown that gave the Tigers a 17-10 lead.

On its next possession, LSU drove from its 8 to the Gamecocks’ 9, but Nussmeier was intercepted by Peyton Williams at the 1, leaving the advantage at 17-10 at the end of the third quarter.

South Carolina reached the Tigers’ 27, but a false-start penalty, a grounding penalty and a sack led to a punt.

The Gamecocks got the ball back at the LSU 37 after a punt, but they turned the ball over on downs.

Damian Ramos’ 22-yard field goal pushed the Tigers’ lead to 10 with 1:47 left.

On South Carolina’s first offensive play of the game, Sellers fumbled and Patrick Payton recovered for LSU at the Gamecocks’ 17. The Tigers couldn’t gain a first down and Ramos kicked a 28-yard field goal to give them a 3-0 lead.

LSU was on the verge of increasing its lead when Ju’Juan Johnson fumbled as he was approaching the South Carolina goal line and Bryan Thomas Jr. recovered in the end zone of the Gamecocks.

Three plays later, Matt Fuller ran 72 yards for a touchdown that gave South Carolina a 7-3 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Nussmeier’s 6-yard touchdown pass to Green with 13:01 left in the second quarter gave LSU a 10-7 halftime lead.

–Field Level Media

LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier (18) walks across the field during a college football game between Ole Miss and LSU at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss., on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. Ole Miss defeated LSU 24-19.

No. 11 LSU starts SEC gauntlet against South Carolina

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LSU had an open date last week, giving it extra time to regroup after a 24-19 loss at Ole Miss two weeks ago.

The No. 11 Tigers (4-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) squandered much of their margin for error in trying to reach the CFP. Now they begin a challenging stretch of five consecutive games against SEC opponents when they face South Carolina (3-2, 1-2) on Saturday night in Baton Rouge, La.

“I think we’ve all realized that each and every week, if you do not play your best against an SEC opponent, you leave yourself vulnerable,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said. “We know that. We know what’s in front of us.”

The open date enabled several banged-up Tigers to heal, most notably quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who has been playing through what Kelly has called a “torso” injury.

“He’s feeling better, and we didn’t do a lot with him last week,” Kelly said. “We wanted to use that as a recovery week. He stayed involved in everything that we’re doing. … We just cut him down from the throwing.”

Kelly said leading rusher Caden Durham, who missed the last game because of an ankle injury, is expected to return Saturday. The performances of Nussmeier and Durham will be key if the Tigers are to find the offensive productivity that they have been lacking.

“We have to be more efficient in our passing game,” Kelly said. “We’ve got to hit shots down the field, and then we have to be much more efficient with the run game. … An efficient four quarters of offense is what’s needed.”

The Tigers rank 12th in the SEC in total offense (364.2 yards per game) and 13th in scoring offense (27.0 points per game) as well as 15th in rushing offense (104.8 yards per game).

“This is the part of the season now where teams begin to show what they’re made of, and for us what we’re looking for is a complete game where our offense complements our defense and special teams,” Kelly said. “That hasn’t shown itself yet, but it will.”

South Carolina, which is also coming off an open date, has had offensive struggles similar to those of LSU. The Gamecocks rank 14th in scoring (24.8) and 16th (last) in rushing (99.8) and total offense (308.6)

“We’re not running the ball consistently enough right now,” South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer said. “We haven’t been as effective running the ball as we need to be. … We have to be able to throw more consistently than we have.”

Beamer noted that in the Gamecocks’ 35-13 victory against Kentucky two weeks ago, the offense ran the ball on every down of a 16-play, 68-yard drive that used up 9:28 of the fourth quarter.

“To line up and run the ball (that many plays in a row) is a pretty strong identity that we put on tape against Kentucky,” Beamer said. “We want to continue to put that on tape, the ability to run the football and make explosives in the passing game. We’ve shown signs of that. … We just haven’t done it consistently enough.”

-Field Level Media

Sep 27, 2025; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks running back Rahsul Faison (1) rushes for a touchdown against the Kentucky Wildcats in the first quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

South Carolina takes charge in 2nd quarter, rolls past Kentucky

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South Carolina scored two defensive touchdowns in a span of 45 seconds and Rahsul Faison rushed for two more scores as the Gamecocks routed Kentucky, 35-13, Saturday night in Columbia, S.C.

LaNorris Sellers completed 11 of his 14 pass attempts for 153 yards without an interception and rushed 14 times for a team-high 81 yards as South Carolina (3-2, 1-2) snapped a two-game losing streak.

It was a much-needed win for head coach Shane Beamer after the highly touted Gamecocks had reached No. 11 in the AP poll before sustaining back-to-back SEC defeats.

South Carolina grabbed the lead for good in the second quarter when Jatius Geer scored on a 41-yard fumble return. Then, on the Wildcats’ ensuing possession, Gerald Kilgore raced 45 yards with a pick-six to give the Gamecocks a 21-10 lead.

With six sacks, including two by Bryan Thomas Jr., South Carolina rattled Kentucky quarterback Cutter Boley, who was making his first start both on the road and in the SEC.

The redshirt freshman committed the game-changing fumble and threw two interceptions, with all of his turnovers coming in a nightmarish second quarter as South Carolina outscored Kentucky 21-0.

Boley finished with 10 completions in 19 attempts for 124 yards.

Seth McGowan had 112 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries for Kentucky (2-2, 0-2), which lost to South Carolina for the third straight year after winning eight of nine games in the series between 2014 and 2022.

Kentucky started strong, needing just eight plays on its first possession to produce a touchdown. McGowan’s 20-yard scoring burst came just 3:33 into the game.

South Carolina answered on the ensuing possession with a 75-yard drive capped by a 12-yard sprint by Faison that tied it 7-7.

Early in the second quarter, Dylan Stewart jarred the ball loose from Boley on a blitz and Geer picked the ball off the turf and raced 41 yards for a touchdown to give the Gamecocks a 13-10 lead.

Moments later, Kilgore followed with his pick-six.

South Carolina upped its lead to 28-10 after an interception by Brandon Cisse set up a 6-yard touchdown run by Faison.

Matt Fuller added a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter for the Gamecocks.

Vandrevius Jacobs had five catches for 108 yards for South Carolina.

–Field Level Media

Sep 6, 2025; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks defensive back Vicari Swain (4) celebrates his second punt return touchdown against the South Carolina State Bulldogs in the second quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

Vicari Swain’s 2 TDs on punt returns propel No. 10 South Carolina past SC State

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Vicari Swain returned a pair of second-quarter punts for touchdowns, helping No. 10 South Carolina overcome a slow start and pull away with a 38-10 win over South Carolina State on Saturday night in Columbia, S.C.

Swain, who padded South Carolina’s lead last Sunday in a 24-11 home win over Virginia Tech with an 80-yard punt-return touchdown, once again delivered a special teams spark for the Gamecocks (2-0).

With South Carolina facing a 3-0 deficit on Saturday, Swain returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown to get the Gamecocks on the board with 5:01 left in the first half. Less than two minutes later, he again housed a punt, this one a 42-yard return after it was partially blocked, to make it 14-3 over the Bulldogs (1-1).

Two games into the season, Swain has tied the South Carolina single-season record with three punts returned for a touchdown, and already has the most punt-return touchdowns in a season by any player since Washington’s Dante Pettis returned four punts for touchdowns in 2017.

With William Joyce’s 49-yard field goal as time expired, the Gamecocks scored 17 points over the final 5:01 of the first half to distance themselves from their tepid offensive start.

The Gamecocks were outgained 89-12 in the first quarter, with no first downs to four penalties committed for 35 yards. Starting quarterback LaNorris Sellers was 0-for-3 in the opening 15 minutes.

While the Gamecocks were sputtering, the Bulldogs took an early lead by marching down the field on a nine-play, 54-yard drive to set up a 21-yard field goal for Nico Canavillas Alti.

SC State QB William Atkins IV got the start and completed 10 of 14 passes for 118 yards. He was replaced in the third quarter by Ryan Stubblefield, who was 8 of 14 for 90 yards and a touchdown.

The Gamecocks scored their elusive first offensive touchdown on the opening drive of the second half. Oscar Adaway III punched in a 5-yard run to make it 24-3.

A 46-yard fumble-return touchdown by Jaron Willis extended that lead to 31-3 midway through the third quarter, and Sellers’ only touchdown pass of the night, a 35-yard deep ball to Vandrevius Jacobs, made it 38-3 late in the third quarter.

Sellers was 11-for-19 (57.9 percent) for 128 yards with 23 rushing yards on eight carries.

With 12:32 left, the Bulldogs reached the end zone on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Stubblefield to Nicholas Sowell. It was the first touchdown the Gamecocks have allowed this season after starting out with seven quarters of touchdown-free play.

The Gamecocks won handily on the scoreboard despite being outgained 270-253 by the Bulldogs.

–Field Level Media