The plan is out for Florida this season.
What if Jon Sumrall he had a stomach ache After last week’s loss at Missouri, Saturday’s stunning 38-19 loss to South Carolina should make the first-year coach vomit in the midst of a horrible stretch for the Gators.
Since he entered the top 10 and the College Football Playoff conversation last month with an upset over then-No. 4 Ole Miss, the Gators have failed to compete with back-to-back losses and will likely disappear from the rankings entirely – this one inexcusably coming at home as a double-digit favorite.
The Gamecocks’ victory was just their third all-time at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and ended an eight-game SEC losing streak under coach Shane Beamer, who said this week he thinks his team is close to reach the milestone after blowing leads against Mississippi State and Kentucky this fall.
On a day when the Gators honored Steve Spurrier and the program’s 1966 team with throwback uniforms and a massive pregame celebration, the former South Carolina head coach and winningest in school history watched from the box as his alma mater got pushed around by the Gamecocks.
It was South Carolina’s first true road win under Beamer since eliminating Clemson in November 2024 and the Gamecocks’ first SEC victory in 378 days.
After Bailey Stockton opened the scoring for Florida with a 59-yard touchdown run four minutes into the contest, the Gators looked mostly flat the rest of the way, lacking the sense of urgency they showed a few weeks ago at home when they demolished Ole Miss.
South Carolina was the sharper team and executed the passing game well after LaNorris Sellers finished with 279 yards and four touchdowns (five total). The Gamecocks never let Florida’s rushing attack get going and forced three takeaways after entering the contest with just two all season, the fewest in the SEC.
Beamer gets a supporting vocal
Before kickoff, South Carolina athletic director Jeremiah Donati broke his silence on the angst surrounding the football program and vouched for the players.
“The guys are playing hard. I’m disappointed too,” Donati said in a radio interview. “I share the same frustration. When we win, we all win. When we lose, we all lose. I see a lot of good things in this football team. We didn’t put everything together. We didn’t see the turnovers like we’re used to.
“All of these things can be fixed. This team is ready for a breakthrough. I hope we see it here today.”
Donati’s words dovetailed with what Beamer said publicly throughout this difficult time to start the season heading into Week 6 — that based on everything he was told behind the scenes, he still had the full support of his administration, his boosters and others.
CBS Sports reported this week that Beamer’s future with the Gamecocks was not as precarious as it seemed.
Gamecocks crush third-quarter fade
Entering the locker room with a 17-10 halftime lead, Beamer knew the question would arise, given his schedule. had advantages in conference several times in recent matches.
“We have a long way to go. We’ve held leads in the second half in a lot of games recently, and we need to play a lot better in the second half than in previous SEC games,” Beamer told SEC Network. “We’re running the ball, they didn’t stop us, their defense. We’re getting takeaways, we’re stopping the run – there’s a lot to like right now, but we need to play a better second half.”
“We’re not going to hide from it. (Florida) is in his locker room right now telling his players, ‘Hey, they didn’t play well in the third quarter, let’s go get them.’ It’s our job to answer them.”
The Gamecocks hadn’t scored a single point in the third quarter in the previous three SEC games this season before Sellers found Donovan Murph in single coverage over the middle for a 26-yard score early in the game.
That happened after Sellers bought time with his legs on 3rd-and-14 and hit Nyck Harbor near the sideline on a 35-yard completion extending the drive.
Sellers scored late on a 1-yard plunge to give South Carolina two touchdowns in the deciding quarter as the program notched its first win against a nationally ranked opponent since the 2024 season.
Gn sports
