Sports Talk

Columbia, South Carolina: moments after shocking the #1 team in the SEC standings the Gamecocks faithful rush the field surrounding Shane Beamer as he completes his post-game interview. The moment for Beamer is bigger than just a singular win as he adds another game to a legacy which was started a generation ago with his father Frank, who is on the field tonight. It’s moments like these that Shane hopes to pass on to his son, also present on the field, someday. It’s moments like these that make college football amazing. It’s this moment that has the potential to shake up the layout of college football and make things interesting entering the final four weeks of the season.

Texas A&M was never expected to be in this position by people outside of college station, the Aggies had just parted ways with Jimbo Fisher in a buyout sure to rattle the pockets of any athletic department. Under the first year of former defensive coordinator Mike Elko’s tenure as head coach the expectation was that this would be more of a rebuilding year for the team, A thought seemingly confirmed by a week one loss at home against Notre Dame. Against expectations Elko’s Aggies quickly responded, rattling off 7 consecutive wins including two against top 10 ranked opponents and 5 in SEC play. The Aggies early out of conference loss seemed a non-factor as they sat undefeated atop one of the premier conferences in college football with a seemingly straight path to a chance at an automatic bid to the playoffs in the SEC championship. The Gamecocks, however, had different plans.

The introduction of “Beamer Ball” to South Carolina has been a work in progress as Coach Beamer’s Gamecocks have tried to escape the regular mediocrity of a team which has struggled in its SEC tenure outside of three 11-2 seasons under former head coach Steve Spurrier. Last year was undoubtedly a disappointment for South Carolina fans finishing with only 5 wins, though entering this game with a 4-3 record the Gamecocks had an opportunity to match that win total in the first 10 weeks of this season. While the Gamecocks entered this game only one win over .500 they do so with three ranked losses notably a 3 point loss to LSU and a 2 point loss to Alabama in Tuscaloosa where a comeback seemed within reach before an errant throw and interception sealed the game for the Tide. The Gamecocks were only 2 plays away from being 6-1 and in the thick of the SEC, however on any given Saturday anything can happen, as we saw in Columbia.

Though the Gamecocks opened the game with an explosive first two drives resulting in a 14-0 lead with 10 minutes remaining in the first quarter. Elko’s Aggies were not content to simply roll over this early into the game and put together a string of quality possessions to take the lead before a late field goal by South Carolina kicker Alex Herrera leveled the game at 20 at the end of the first half. Beamer Ball has always been reliant on a strong and consistent run game, which showed up on Saturday for the Gamecocks as they racked up 286 yards on the ground. With the mobility of 6’3 242lbs quarterback, LaNorris Sellers and a slew of rumbling rushes by speedy running back Raheim “Rocket” Sanders, the Gamecocks forced Texas A&M to respect their run game, opening up avenues for big plays through the air. In the second half it was big plays such as these which allowed South Carolina to run away with the game, specifically a 52-yard touchdown run by Sanders and a 57-yard touchdown reception by receiver Joshua Simon. So as the fans rushed the field in South Carolina took another step towards a chance at a bowl game and the establishment of a young team with an exciting coach in Columbia.

For the rest of college football this loss only served to throw an additional level of chaos into the season. With no undefeated teams remaining in SEC play, the race for the conference’s automatic bid has become much more interesting. The general assumption as of now is that the game will be played between some combination of, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas A&M, or Texas. However, Tennessee and Georgia, face off against each other as well as Texas A&M and Texas, and with Georgia set to play Ole Miss this weekend and Tennessee with a game against a feisty Vanderbilt team there is an opportunity for the winner of Alabama vs LSU or Ole Miss to slip into the playoff precursor. Though there are now a plethora of confusing possibilities on how SEC play will end, one thing is for sure: the SEC has delivered a must-watch product this season and as it comes to an end there’s nothing we can do except keep our eyes glued to the television and fireworks on screen.