Everyone in the SEC has suffered at least one conference loss.
A week after taking over first place in the SEC on its own, No. 10 Texas A&M suffered its first SEC loss of the season in a 44-20 loss at South Carolina. The Gamecocks jumped out to a 14-0 lead early and then scored 10 in a row in the third quarter to put the Aggies aside.
Texas A&M briefly took a 20-17 lead in the second quarter after back-to-back touchdowns. But the Gamecocks tied the game with a field goal at halftime and then took the lead in the third quarter on a 52-yard run by Rocket Sanders.
South Carolina (5-3, 3-3 SEC) never trailed again.
The Aggies (7-2, 5-1, SEC) came into the game as favorites by just 2.5 points and started Marcel Reed at QB. Reed took over for Conner Weigman in A&M’s win over LSU in Week 9 and the Aggies scored TDs on Reed’s first four possessions.
Although A&M coach Mike Elko didn’t officially name him a starter prior to the game, that spark made it pretty clear that Reed would be the man against South Carolina. However, the offense wasn’t nearly as good with Reed on the field Saturday night as it was against LSU, and the team suffered a big loss when running back Le’Veon Moss left the game in the first half with a knee injury.
Moss, the team’s leading rusher, was injured when he was hit in the leg while racing down the sideline after a reception. He was immediately taken to the injury tent and then driven to the locker room.
The A&M defense, meanwhile, couldn’t stop South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers. He consistently escaped pressure from Aggies defenders and was able to turn almost certain losses into positive plays.
Three of South Carolina’s four touchdowns were of more than 20 yards. Sellers opened the scoring with a 23-yard touchdown and the game was sealed by a 57-yard pass to Joshua Simon, putting the Gamecocks up three scores.
South Carolina finished the game with 530 total yards rushing 43 times for 286 yards. Sanders had 20 carries for 144 yards, while Sellers had 15 carries for 106 yards, while also throwing for 244 yards.
A cluster on top of the SEC
A&M’s loss means there are now five teams with one loss in the SEC: Texas A&M (5-1), Georgia (5-1), Texas (3-1), Tennessee (4-1) and LSU (3 -1). .
The Aggies and Bulldogs have the early advantage to get to the SEC title game simply because they have fewer games to play, but not including Tennessee and LSU. And Ole Miss and Alabama at 3-2 could even still be in the game.
The swamp at the top makes for a fascinating stretch run. Georgia visits Ole Miss next week while LSU hosts Alabama. A week later, Tennessee visits Georgia and Texas and Texas A&M play against each other in the last week of the season.
At most, only three teams will finish the season with one loss in the conference, and it’s entirely possible that a team with two losses could sneak into the title game. However, it is anyone’s guess who those teams will be.
