South Carolina Holds Off Miami in Wet Independence Bowl 2014
Under less than desirable weather conditions at the December 27 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, LA, the South Carolina Gamecocks used the passing combination of Dylan Thompson and Pharoh Cooper to hold off the Miami Hurricanes by a 24-21 score. Cooper was on the receiving end of nine Thompson passes, gaining 170 of the quarterback's 284 yards on the day, while also snagging one of his two touchdown passes on the afternoon. For his exploits, he was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player, while his teammate, linebacker Skai Moore garnered Defensive MVP honors with his 11 tackles.
Miami held the early advantage in the contest, collecting a pair of field goals in each of the first two quarters for a 6-0 lead. Up to that time, the Gamecocks had been attempting to deal with the wet and chilly weather conditions by staying with their running game. The lack of offensive punch necessitated a change that came about dramatically with just under eight minutes remaining in the half. Cooper grabbed a pass near midfield and sprinted to the end zone for a 78-yard score that gave South Carolina the lead for good. The game did not favor fans who enjoy betting on Miami Hurricanes football, but it did serve up some impressive action, which is something that the top Florida college football teams are known for.
The Gamecocks would add another touchdown pass to Mike Davis less than three minutes later, then added a 32-yard Elliott Fry field goal with 1:39 to go before intermission to make it 17-6 in favor of South Carolina. The touchdown came on a broken play in which Thompson threw across to the field to a wide open Davis.
The lone score of the third quarter came on a 10-play, 93-yard drive by the Hurricanes that ended with Gus Edwards' three-yard run with 1:43 to go in the stanza. Edwards' run was the ninth on the ground, but the lone pass was the key play of the drive. Miami signal caller Brad Kaaya hooked up with Malcolm Lewis to get the ball down to the Gamecock nine-yard-line.
For the first portion of the final quarter, neither team was able to muster much offense. Symbolic of this was Miami's nine-play drive that garnered just 28 yards and concluded with a 51-yard field goal attempt that missed. The drive ate up 4:38 of the clock, time that the Hurricanes eventually ran out of in their comeback bid.
In their next possession, they had second-and-eight on their own 29 with under six minutes left in the contest. Disaster struck when Miami's Duke Johnson fumbled the ball, which was recovered by South Carolina. Taking just three plays to convert the turnover into a score, the Gamecocks took a 24-14 lead, and were able to withstand a score by the Hurricanes in their next drive to pick up their fourth consecutive bowl victory and finish the season with a 7-6 mark. Miami's bowl game loss was their fifth in a row, dating back to 2006, and saddled them with a 6-7 record on the season. They finished the year with a four-game losing streak under head coach Al Golden.