Through three quarters of its game against Florida on Saturday, South Carolina had no points, 44 yards of total offense and thousands of fans filing out of Williams-Brice Stadium. The Gamecocks rallied in the fourth quarter to pull within a field goal but ultimately ran out of steam in a 24-14 loss.

5 TAKEAWAYS

Wrong kind of record: The Gamecocks’ 1-7 league record is the worst since an 0-8 mark in 1999. It will also be the first non-bowl season since 2007.

Running on empty: South Carolina had 23 rushes for just 21 yards in this game. That’s less than three feet per carry. It’s hard for any team to move the ball when running it simply isn’t an option.

Third-down woes: Florida converted 11 of its 19 third-down conversion attempts. That led to almost 40 minutes of possession for the Gators, and a tired defense late that allowed a back-breaking 53-yard run by Kelvin Taylor that set up a late Florida touchdown that put the game on ice.

Time to spin again: Interim coach Shawn Elliott stuck with quarterback Perry Orth for the entire game, and with mediocre results. Orth was 13 of 24 for 163 yards, a touchdown and a pair of interceptions. It might be time to see what the future at the position holds with either Connor Mitch or Lorenzo Nunez.

Missing a chance: A win in this game may have been the statement win Elliott needed to earn the job full-time. There’s always the Clemson game.

REPORT CARD

Offense: C- — The fourth-quarter outburst saved the unit from getting an F. Offensive coordinator G.A. Mangus also showed good imagination in the red zone with Pharoh Cooper hitting Orth on a throwback pass for a score.

Defense: C+ — Considering they spent most of the afternoon on the field, the Gamecocks defense wasn’t terrible. Chris Lammons had a ball go through his hands that wound up being a touchdown pass, and the unit couldn’t get one more stop near the end of the game.

Special Teams: B — Sean Kelly punted well, and South Carolina covered punts and kickoffs well. A pretty quiet day for this unit.

Coaching: D+ — It took three quarters to get anything going offensively, and the defense got caught out of position far too often on third downs. The adjustments didn’t come fast enough on Saturday.

Overall: C- — This wasn’t South Carolina’s best effort. For the first time since Steve Spurrier’s resignation, the coaching staff seemed a bit overmatched at times. And there just weren’t enough big plays to overcome that.

GAME PLAN

  • Getting consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks continues to be an issue as Treon Harris often had time to look off two or three different receivers.
  • The running game was non-existent. Why not put Nunez in a bit more for the read-option look?
  • Cooper touched the ball more in this game, which is a good sign from the last two ball games.

GAME BALLS

WR Pharoh Cooper: The junior receiver had a hand in both touchdowns, and he was the lone consistent threat for the South Carolina offense.

DE Gerald Dixon: He had a sack, 2 tackles for a loss and an interception for the Gamecocks.

LB T.J. Gurley: Picked up an interception and a pass breakup from his SPUR position.

INJURY UPDATE

CB Chris Lammons and DE Gerald Dixon left the game briefly with injuries, but both would return. T Mason Zandi limped off late and did not return.