KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — No. 21 Tennessee won their first SEC game of the season by beating South Carolina on Saturday inside Neyland Stadium, 41-20.
Vols center Cooper Mays made his first start of the season after recovering from a hernia surgery.
Tennessee scored first when running back Jaylen Wright went right up the middle for a 42-yard score, his first touchdown of the season.
After the touchback, South Carolina’s second drive began on its own 25-yard line. Rattler’s 44-yard screen pass to Ahmarean Brown led to the Gamecocks second first down of the night. However, that momentum faded throughout the rest of the possession, forcing them to kick a 36-yard field goal to cut into Tennessee’s lead, 7-3.
With about five minutes left in the first quarter, Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton threw his second interception of the season right into the hands of Gamecocks defensive back DQ Smith. The Gamecocks took over on Tennessee’s 29-yard line, and six plays later, Rattler scrambled up the middle for a six-yard score to put South Carolina up 10-7.
On the Vols’ next possession, wide receiver Squirrel White made an acrobatic 51-yard snag to put Tennessee right into the Gamecocks five-yard line. Milton would then hand the ball off to running back Jabari Small for a two-yard touchdown to give the Vols back the lead, 14-10.
In the second quarter, South Carolina hit a fake punt on Tennessee for the second time in three years, a 32-yard gain on the Vols’ 40-yard line, but a turnover on downs gave the ball back to Tennessee on its own 31-yard line.
Milton completed a 37-yard pass to running back Dylan Sampson, but Tennessee was forced to kick a 23-yard field goal six plays later, putting them up 17-10.
On the next offensive drive for the Vols, wide receiver Bru McCoy was injured on a 17-yard pass from Milton. The senior was down on the field for several minutes until Tennessee’s medical staff carted him off.
Tennessee’s defense came up with a huge play to end the half. Cornerback Kamal Hadden intercepted Rattler’s pass and returned it for it for a 28-yard touchdown. Tennessee led 24-10 at halftime.
To start the second half, the momentum kept in the Vols’ favor. Milton connected with tight end Jacob Warren on a six-yard touchdown pass to extend the Tennessee lead to 31-1-0.
The Gamecocks answered fast with a Mario Anderson 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the drive, making the score 31-17.
With 2:48 left in the third quarter, South Carolina’s Jalon Kilgore intercepted Milton’s pass, and the Gamecocks took over on their own two-yard line. However, they were forced to punt three plays later.
In the fourth quarter, Tennessee was forced to kick a field goal on 4th and three, this put the Vols up 34-17.
South Carolina kicked a field goal to trim the deficit back down to 14, but UT responded when Sampson scored on a six-yard rushing touchdown to close the door on a comeback.
Tennessee will have a bye week next week. On Oct. 14 they will host Texas A&M. Game time has not been determined.