The concerns about Vanderbilt’s defense manifested themselves early as the Commodores gave up chunks of yardage.

South Carolina, meanwhile, got back on track after being off for two weeks following Hurricane Florence. The Gamecocks playmakers, from Rico Dowdle to Shi Smith, played like they’d been kept inside too long. The adjustments came, and South Carolina seemingly focused more on the passing game as Vanderbilt crawled back in the game.

After a weather delay, and despite two late turnovers, South Carolina outlasted Vanderbilt 37-14 on Saturday in Nashville.

The Gamecocks got off to a fast start as Dowdle crossed the 50-yard rushing mark with eight minutes left in the first quarter. They averaged 7.3 yards per rush on their first three possessions. And on defense, Javon Kinlaw disrupted the Vanderbilt offensive line with two tackles for a loss and a pass breakup on the same drive.

But a turning point came late in the third quarter when Kinlaw sacked Kyle Shurmur and forced a fumble inside the Vanderbilt 10-yard line. That setup a Mon Denson touchdown as South Carolina pulled ahead 30-14. Not long after that sequence, dark clouds entered the area and a weather delay began with 3:03 left in the third quarter. A lightning strike reportedly happened within eight miles of Vanderbilt Stadium. Fans were evacuated and the delay lasted for 40 minutes.

The Gamecocks win wasn’t without a struggle, though. The offensive line had four of the first five penalties. And early in the fourth quarter as South Carolina looked to go ahead by three scores, Dowdle fumbled near the goal line. Then on the next Gamecocks possession, A.J. Turner fumbled. Also late in the game, Kinlaw suffered a leg injury and was helped off the field by medical staff.

But Vanderbilt, which was 2-for-11 on third down conversions into the fourth quarter, struggled to make the Gamecocks pay. A week after Vanderbilt yielded 245 rushing yards to Notre Dame, improvement was difficult to find as South Carolina had more than 200 yards early in the fourth quarter.

After a pass interference flag on South Carolina, Vanderbilt lost 32 yards on third down, and an incomplete pass on fourth down appeared to be its last chance.

Early on, though, it looked like a South Carolina rout.

On the same drive wide receiver Deebo Samuel picked up his 100th career reception on the second play from scrimmage, Shi Smith scored a 38-yard touchdown less than a minute in the game. Smith later had a 52-yarder in the first half that setup a Dowdle touchdown from the 2-yard line.

At one point, South Carolina had 136 yards to Vanderbilt’s 12.

But by the end of the first quarter, South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley was intercepted by defensive lineman Dare Odeyingbo. The Commodores then answered with a Ke’Shawn Vaughn touchdown to cap a six-play scoring drive with 11:40 left in the second quarter, to trim the deficit to 10-7.

Vanderbilt bounced back again after trailing 17-7 when Shurmur threw a fade pass to the edge of the end zone to Kalija Lipscomb on third and goal. It was initially called incomplete but was reversed on replay review with 5:23 left in first half and Vandy trailed 17-14.

South Carolina grabbed the momentum again on a drive where Vanderbilt fans booed because officials ruled Edwards inbounds while replay appeared to show Edwards was out of bounds on reception. The Gamecocks marched about 30 more yards, and with one second left, kicked a field goal to lead 20-14 at halftime.

South Carolina will travel to Kentucky next week, while Vanderbilt will play host to Tennessee State.