Most observers weren’t expecting South Carolina to give Tennessee much of a game Saturday night.

That has not been the case, however, as the Gamecocks lead 35-24 at halftime.

While the Volunteers’ offense has been explosive, as usual, their defense has struggled big time in the opening half.

South Carolina moved the ball at will behind quarterback Spencer Rattler, and Tennessee’s defense was flagged for some key penalties in the 2nd quarter that kept a Gamecocks’ scoring drive alive.

In all, South Carolina piled up 355 yards of total offense in the 1st half, including 249 passing yards and 4 touchdown from Rattler.

Amazingly, the Gamecocks scored touchdowns on all 5 of their 1st-half possessions.

For a Tennessee team that needs a win to stay in contention for a College Football Playoff berth, it was a curious defensive performance, one that college football fans took notice of on social media: