Smelley 3 TD passes
leads Gamecocks 31-24
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) -- Chris Smelley threw
three touchdown passes, South Carolina's No. 1 defense held Mississippi to a
field goal in the second half and the Gamecocks beat the Rebels 31-24 on
Saturday.
Given the starting job over backup Stephen
Garcia on Thursday, Smelley completed 22 of 31 passes for a career-high 327
yards and led an 11-play, 95-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter to
put away Ole Miss, which stumbled a week after knocking off then-No. 4
Florida.
The Rebels (3-3, 1-2 Southeastern
Conference) appeared to take control early, but a pair of fumbles helped the
Gamecocks (4-2, 1-2) earn a critical win that kept them from exiting the SEC
East race in early October.
Smelley, pulled early rom the UAB game last
week by coach Steve Spurrier in favor of Garcia, made several strong throws
in the game and only one big mistake, a third-quarter interception that
didn't hurt South Carolina.
After Smelley hit Jason Barnes with a
touchdown pass on third-and-goal from the 20 early in the second quarter,
Gamecocks defensive lineman Nathan Peppers scooped up Jevan Snead's fumble
and returned it 29 yards for a 14-point swing in exactly a minute that gave
South Carolina a 17-14 lead.
Ole Miss answered to take a 21-14 halftime
lead on a 24-yard pass from Snead to Brandon Bolden, but another fumble in
the second half turned the game for the Gamecocks.
Chris Culliver forced Dexter McCluster to
fumble at the South Carolina 6 midway through the third quarter. Emmanuel
Cook returned the fumble to the 42. It was McCluster's second critical
fumble near the opponent's goal line in the last three games. A similar play
at the 1 helped Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss two weeks ago.
Smelley was especially sharp on the ensuing
drive, converting a pair of first downs with quarterback sneaks, including
fourth-and-inches at the Ole Miss 10. That set up the second of his two
touchdown passes to Barnes, a 6-yarder that put the Gamecocks up 24-21.
After Ole Miss downed the ball at the 5
following a punt on the ensuing drive, Smelley and tailback Mike Davis
marched South Carolina down the field. Davis rushed for 28 yards on the
drive and Smelley hit 5 of 6 passes for 54 yards, including a 4-yard
touchdown pass to Joe Hills.
The Gamecocks were the nation's top defense
entering the game, allowing 105 yards passing and 221 total yards per game
coming in. But the Rebels surpassed both marks by halftime. Snead completed
12 of 15 passes for 154 yards by the break and the team added another 78
yards rushing, including 29 yards and a 5-yard touchdown by McCluster out of
the Wild Rebel formation.
In the second half, however, a Gamecocks
defense led by Cook's 14 tackles held the Rebels to 129 yards and a field
goal.
Fittingly, South Carolina finished off the
Rebels with Carlos Thomas' drive-ending interception in the final minute.
