KNOXVILLE, Tennessee - A big day from Travis Stephens
helped ninth-ranked Tennessee continue its home dominance of
14th-ranked South Carolina.
Stephens rushed for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns as
Tennessee remained unbeaten at Neyland Stadium against the
Gamecocks with a 17-10 victory in a key Southeastern Conference
clash.
Tennessee, which has won eight straight overall against South
Carolina, improved to 11-0 all-time versus the Gamecocks in
Knoxville. The Volunteers (5-4, 4-1 SEC) moved into a
first-place tie with Florida atop the SEC East while South
Carolina fell into third place.
"We are awful proud for the win," Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer
said. "The defense was really good, especially in the first
half. It was a good effort aginst a talented South Carolina
team."
The game was tied, 10-10, when Tennessee used a 12-play, 70-yard
drive to take the lead, highlighted by a 32-yard pass from Casey
Clausen to Bobby Graham that gave the Volunteers a 1st-and-goal
at the South Carolina 4. Stephens, who has turned in five
straight 100-yard rushing efforts, scored two plays later on a
one-yard plunge.
"This was a big win for us," Stephens said. "It's the next step
to the SEC championship. I take my hat off to the defense. We
knew we had it in us. Conditioning carried us in the fourth
quarter."
"It was a big drive by the offensive team," Fulmer added. "Casey
is tough under the clutch. He stuck some throws in there when he
had to."
On South Carolina's final possession, a pass interference
penalty on Tennessee defensive back Teddy Gaines gave the
Gamecocks (6-2, 5-2) a first down on the Volunteers' 43 with
just over a minute left. After a short gain, Phil Petty threw
three incompletions and Tennessee ran out the final 59 seconds.
"I'm sorry I couldn't do more to help them win," Gamecocks coach
Lou Holtz said. "It was well-played, physical and bitterly
contested. We weren't intimidated and played our hearts out."
The Volunteers struck first on an eight-yard TD run by Stephens
for a 7-0 lead with 2:53 left before halftime. A 29-yard run by
by Derek Watson set up his seven-yard touchdown run that tied
the game at the half.
Tennessee took the second-half kickoff and drove 67 yards for a
1st-and-goal at the Gamecocks 5. But Stephens failed to punch it
in on three tries and the Volunteers settled for a 10-7 lead on
a 20-yard field goal from Alex Wills.
The Gamecocks took advantage of a 24-yard punt by Dustin
Colquitt to start at the Tennessee 47 with 2:41 left in the
third quarter. South Carolina moved to the 2-yard-line but
Andre Pinnock was stopped twice and Daniel Weaver's 24-yard
field goal tied the game with 13:21 to go.
"I thought about going for it," Holtz said. "We were one play
short. They made a great play on third down (to stop Pinnock)."
Clausen, last week's SEC Offensive Player of the Week, completed
14-of-23 passes for 211 yards and one interception. He improved
to 9-1 as a starter in SEC play and is 6-1 when throwing for at
least 200 yards.
Kelly Washington caught five passes for 89 yards for the
Volunteers while Graham added three receptions for a season-high
53 yards.
Petty threw for just 108 yards, completing 14-of-28 passes, and
Watson gained 75 yards rushing but only three in the second
half. The Gamecocks were forced into six punts.
"We did some good things out there, especially in the first half
when we were able to run the ball," Petty said. "You take a play
out here or there, we win the game."
"We knew they were going to try and run the ball," Volunteers
defensive end Constantin Ritzmann said. "In the end, we won and
that's what it takes. The Mustang (defense) prevailed."
South Carolina's defense also had a big game as it sacked
Clausen five times for losses totalling 31 yards. Linebacker
Kenny Harney added an interception.
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