ECAROLINA 0 0 3 7 10
SCAROLINA 14 7 14 13 48
Date of game: 9/8/2012

Recap: So Carolina vs. East Carolina

Columbia, SC (Sports Network) - No Connor Shaw, no problem.

The South Carolina junior quarterback sat with a bruised right shoulder and backup Dylan Thompson threw for 330 yards with three touchdowns to lead the ninth-ranked Gamecocks to a 48-10 rout of East Carolina.

Thompson completed 21-of-37 passes and was not intercepted in place of Shaw, who was hurt in last week's season-opener against Vanderbilt. Third- string senior Seth Strickland also threw a touchdown pass, as did wide receiver Ace Sanders in the lopsided victory.

"My job as the backup is to always be ready," Thompson said. "All week I just had my mind focused on it's my week to show what I can do. We got off to a great start."

Marcus Lattimore ran for 40 yards and the opening touchdown of the contest for the Gamecocks (2-0). South Carolina racked up 528 yards of total offense.

Rio Johnson and Shane Carden combined for 333 yards through the air for East Carolina (1-1), which was coming off a 35-13 win over Appalachian State to open the season. Johnson finished with 193 yards, but was picked off three times.

"It is very hard to lose a game like this, but this doesn't change our goal of winning our conference," Carden said. "We just have to be ready to go next week."

South Carolina opened the scoring just over a minute into the contest, as a 53-yard pass from Thompson to Damiere Byrd set up Lattimore's 6-yard touchdown run.

After Warren Harvey missed a 46-yard field goal try for East Carolina, the Gamecocks quickly marched 71 yards the other way. Four plays of at least 12 yards each set up Thompson's 7-yard TD pass to Rory Anderson for a 14-0 lead with just under six minutes left in the first quarter.

Thompson hit DeAngelo Smith with a 30-yard scoring strike just over two minutes into the second quarter before East Carolina's next possession ended with a Brison Williams interception of Johnson inside the South Carolina 10.

ECU's Jabril Solomon fumbled inside South Carolina territory a few minutes later to thwart another drive and Johnson was picked off by D.J. Swearinger with just over a minute to play in the half.

Carden started the second half under center for East Carolina and he was picked off by Shaq Wilson on his first pass attempt. Thompson then needed three plays to put the Gamecocks back in the end zone, throwing a 29-yard TD pass to D.L. Moore for a 28-0 cushion.

Johnson was back in the lineup for ECU's next series and he was intercepted immediately by Jimmy Legree, who raced 34 yards the other way for a score.

The Pirates finally got on the board late in the third on a 23-yard Harvey field goal, but the Gamecocks used a gadget play early in the fourth to add to their lead as Sanders hit Moore with a 16-yard scoring strike to make it 41-3.

Carden put ECU into the end zone a few minutes later with a 34-yard pass to Justin Hardy, who finished the contest with eight catches for 111 yards.

Thompson fumbled away South Carolina's next possession, but Strickland finished the rout with a 51-yard TD strike to Anderson in the final minute.

Game Notes

Anderson had four catches for 90 yards in the victory ... East Carolina has now lost 12 straight games when scoring 20 points or fewer ... South Carolina leads the all-time series, 12-5, including a 56-37 win last year in Charlotte ... South Carolina hosts UAB next Saturday ... East Carolina will open Conference USA play next Saturday at Southern Miss.

Buffs hoping to stampede way back to respectability

It's been more than two decades since the football team at the University of Colorado hoisted its one and only national championship trophy, and the program has struggled to remain relevant ever since.

NASCAR News
Edwards claims all-star pole, Johnson qualifies 18th

Carl Edwards will start on the pole for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race after posting the quickest time in Friday's qualifying at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Pettitte heads to DL

Andy Pettitte will be sidelined for at least the next two weeks after the New York Yankees placed the veteran hurler on the 15- day disabled list prior to Friday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Latest Sports Photos
Latest Sports Photos
0 Votes
SEC Champions Alabama created by artist Ben Teeter S/N C.O.A. available for the dedicated Alabama fan!

1 Vote
first catch of the season looks like a good year

0 Votes
Gina McLeroy Spring City, TN

0 Votes
Our Son Brandon McLeroy MTSU Football 2011 Gina McLeroy Spring City TN

1 Vote
this is James Howard telling Gracie what to do.

0 Votes
Riverbend fun!

0 Votes
I nees a four letter word for the outside layer of a tree.

0 Votes
Cameron is a rising athlete. He has a God given talent for the game of football. This picture is of him stopping the ball carrier in our game in the ...

1 Vote
Our Lookout Valley 9/10 year old team went to a tournament in Knoxville called The Battle of the Rocky Top. They went throught the tournament undefeated and won the championship ...

1 Vote
The Lookout Valley 9-10 year old team traveled to Knoxville, playing in a national youth football tournament. They defeated a team from Chicago to win the championship. These young men ...
LOCAL Deals
www.mortgage-south.com
Click here to learn more about the worry-free mortgage!
www.firstvolunteer.com
Meet the bank with personality to help with your home, car or business dreams today!
Stay Connected with WDEF News 12
 
Inergize Digital This site is hosted and managed by Inergize Digital.