Written By: Brian Pohl
Tampa, FL- Thanks to a late scoring surge that saw three unanswered touchdowns in the second half, the South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the Michigan Wolverines 26-19 in the 2018 Outback Bowl.
A very slow first half saw both defenses in full control, as Michigan was able to take a 9-3 lead into halftime thanks to two costly fumbles by the Gamecocks that the Wolverines were able to turn into points. I wrote in my bowl preview that this could be a low scoring defensive game that would come down to who could protect the ball better. Early in the third quarter it looked like Michigan would do just this, but South Carolina would make some late adjustments in the second half, opening up the offense and creating turnovers themselves on their way to winning the Outback Bowl.
The momentum shifted with just over 3 minutes left in the third quarter when running back Rico Dowdle rushed for a 17-yard touchdown, lighting a fire under the entire South Carolina team. The score cut the Michigan lead to 19-9, and on the next drive, the Wolverines would give the ball right back to USC deep in their own territory.
This is when the young South Carolina quarterback would step up, as Sophomore Jake Bentley would throw the first of his two touchdowns, connecting with wideout Bryan Edwards for a 21-yard score. Cutting the Michigan lead to just three points, all the momentum was with the Gamecocks heading into the 4th quarter, and they wouldn’t let off the gas.
The final of the three USC touchdowns was the play of the game. Bentley found receiver Shi Smith, who had gotten separation from his defender, streaking down the field, and hit the wideout in stride for a 53-yard touchdown. The score gave the Gamecocks their first lead of the game, and they wouldn’t give it back.
Bentley finished his game completing 19 of his 32 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns. The Gamecocks offense looked dead to rights, as they struggled to move the ball throughout the first half and into the third quarter, but when Bentley was called upon to open up the passing game, he delivered the best performance of his career, leading the Gamecocks to an Outback Bowl victory. Bentley received the MVP trophy of the 2018 Outback Bowl, but said in his post-game press conference that the trophy would live on Campus because “the win was a complete team effort.”
It truly was a team effort for USC head coach Will Muschamp’s group, as the defense lived up to the hype in difficult circumstances. Muschamp spoke about the defensive performance and how key they were saying, “The key of the game, to me, was obviously the turnovers in the second half, but in the first half holding [Michigan’s offense] to field goals.” The play of the defense throughout the game kept the Gamecocks in the game and solidified the victory once the offense got going in the second-half.
The USC defense held Michigan quarterback Brandon Peters to completing less than 50% of his passes, and kept up great pressure on the young quarterback, sacking him twice. The Michigan offense as a whole was stifled, as they totaled under 280-yards of total offense for the game. The Wolverines had several opportunities in the first half, pouncing on two USC fumbles in the first half, but the stout defense of South Carolina would hold them to only six points off of the turnovers, keeping the Gamecocks in the game.
Muschamp spoke on how big of a game this is for his program and the what the future holds saying, “I think [this win] says we’ve made progress. It’s easy to point at tangible things and say this is good.” He continued, “It helps recruiting, obviously, it helps your fan base, and we’ve got to continue to move forward.”
Coach Muschamp then went on to speak on the offseason going forward saying, “70% of our roster is Freshman and Sophomore’s, we have a bunch of really good players coming back next year, we need to have a great offseason.” He continued, “I told the underclassmen when you come back in January it’s all gas no breaks, let’s get ready to roll.”
The South Carolina will look to build on their 9-4 season next year, competing for a South-Eastern Conference East Division Championship.
A very slow first half saw both defenses in full control, as Michigan was able to take a 9-3 lead into halftime thanks to two costly fumbles by the Gamecocks that the Wolverines were able to turn into points. I wrote in my bowl preview that this could be a low scoring defensive game that would come down to who could protect the ball better. Early in the third quarter it looked like Michigan would do just this, but South Carolina would make some late adjustments in the second half, opening up the offense and creating turnovers themselves on their way to winning the Outback Bowl.
The momentum shifted with just over 3 minutes left in the third quarter when running back Rico Dowdle rushed for a 17-yard touchdown, lighting a fire under the entire South Carolina team. The score cut the Michigan lead to 19-9, and on the next drive, the Wolverines would give the ball right back to USC deep in their own territory.
This is when the young South Carolina quarterback would step up, as Sophomore Jake Bentley would throw the first of his two touchdowns, connecting with wideout Bryan Edwards for a 21-yard score. Cutting the Michigan lead to just three points, all the momentum was with the Gamecocks heading into the 4th quarter, and they wouldn’t let off the gas.
The final of the three USC touchdowns was the play of the game. Bentley found receiver Shi Smith, who had gotten separation from his defender, streaking down the field, and hit the wideout in stride for a 53-yard touchdown. The score gave the Gamecocks their first lead of the game, and they wouldn’t give it back.
Bentley finished his game completing 19 of his 32 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns. The Gamecocks offense looked dead to rights, as they struggled to move the ball throughout the first half and into the third quarter, but when Bentley was called upon to open up the passing game, he delivered the best performance of his career, leading the Gamecocks to an Outback Bowl victory. Bentley received the MVP trophy of the 2018 Outback Bowl, but said in his post-game press conference that the trophy would live on Campus because “the win was a complete team effort.”
It truly was a team effort for USC head coach Will Muschamp’s group, as the defense lived up to the hype in difficult circumstances. Muschamp spoke about the defensive performance and how key they were saying, “The key of the game, to me, was obviously the turnovers in the second half, but in the first half holding [Michigan’s offense] to field goals.” The play of the defense throughout the game kept the Gamecocks in the game and solidified the victory once the offense got going in the second-half.
The USC defense held Michigan quarterback Brandon Peters to completing less than 50% of his passes, and kept up great pressure on the young quarterback, sacking him twice. The Michigan offense as a whole was stifled, as they totaled under 280-yards of total offense for the game. The Wolverines had several opportunities in the first half, pouncing on two USC fumbles in the first half, but the stout defense of South Carolina would hold them to only six points off of the turnovers, keeping the Gamecocks in the game.
Muschamp spoke on how big of a game this is for his program and the what the future holds saying, “I think [this win] says we’ve made progress. It’s easy to point at tangible things and say this is good.” He continued, “It helps recruiting, obviously, it helps your fan base, and we’ve got to continue to move forward.”
Coach Muschamp then went on to speak on the offseason going forward saying, “70% of our roster is Freshman and Sophomore’s, we have a bunch of really good players coming back next year, we need to have a great offseason.” He continued, “I told the underclassmen when you come back in January it’s all gas no breaks, let’s get ready to roll.”
The South Carolina will look to build on their 9-4 season next year, competing for a South-Eastern Conference East Division Championship.