South Carolina had a preseason win total of just 5.5.

With a 28-7 thrashing of Vanderbilt on the road, the Gamecocks picked up win No. 6 on the season. And Shane Beamer’s bunch will likely find itself ranked when the new AP poll drops on Sunday. The Gamecocks were that good.

LaNorris Sellers completed 14 of his 20 passes for 238 yards and 2 scores without an interception. Rocket Sanders ran for 126 yards and 2 scores on 15 carries. The defense created 2 sacks and 6 tackles for loss while limiting the Vandy offense to just 274 yards. South Carolina outgained the Commodores 452-274 in the game and 7.2 to 4.6 on a per-play basis.

South Carolina dominated on first down, where it averaged 7.8 yards per play, and converted 9 of its 12 third downs. Sellers was money all throughout the night.

The Gamecocks moved the ball right from their first snap, but they weren’t particularly clean early on. A missed field goal ended the opening drive without points after South Carolina moved 62 yards in 15 plays and bled more than 6 minutes off the clock. The second drive ended after 11 seconds because of a fumble.

South Carolina scored on a 12-play, 81-yard drive its next time out to take an early 7-0 lead.

When the second half started, South Carolina put its foot on the accelerator. The Gamecocks scored in 3 plays and 75 yards on the opening drive of the third quarter. When they got the ball back, they went 75 yards in 8 plays to go up 21-7.

Sanders caught a 43-yard touchdown from Sellers in the fourth to put the game to bed.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia completed just 52% of his passes for 166 yards. He didn’t throw a touchdown, but he ran for one. South Carolina effectively limited everyone else.

South Carolina closes out SEC play next weekend with a home game against Missouri. A win would give the Gamecocks their best record in league play since 2017.