ATHENS, Ga. - Thomas Brown scored on a 5-yard run with 111/2 minutes left, South Carolina failed to convert a two-point conversion and No.9 Georgia held on for a 17-15 win over Steve Spurrier's Gamecocks on Saturday.
Returning to the Bulldogs' home in his first season as South Carolina's coach, Spurrier came without the dynamic offense that symbolized his Florida heyday. But the Gamecocks gave Georgia all it could handle.
Clinging to a 10-9 lead, Georgia finally wore down the Gamecocks with its running game. Quarterback D.J. Shockley scampered 14 yards. Danny Ware broke off a 16-yarder, and Brown did the rest, carrying five times for 33 yards on the drive, capped by his touchdown with 11:24 left.
But the Gamecocks weren't done. On third and 18, Blake Mitchell spotted a safety blitz and connected with Syvelle Newton over the middle for 34 yards. Going down the middle again, Mitchell threw a 24-yarder to Sidney Rice. Finally, Mitchell found Rice for a 4-yard touchdown with 6:52 left to make it 17-15.
A missed extra point earlier in the game was crucial, forcing the Gamecocks to go for two, and Mitchell overthrew Rice.
South Carolina got the ball once more with just more than a minute left but went four-and-out.
"The effort was there. It was the little things here and there that made us a loser," Spurrier said. "We are not going to get discouraged. I knew coming into the season that there was a good chance we were not going to win them all."
VANDERBILT 28, ARKANSAS 24: Jay Cutler threw a 6-yard touchdown to Marlon White with 26 seconds left for the Commodores. Vanderbilt has consecutive road wins for the first time since beating Mississippi and Duke in 1999 and won its first SEC opener since 1990 (not including Alabama's 17-6 win that was later forfeited because of NCAA violations).
The Razorbacks kept a 24-21 lead after Bryant Hahnfeldt missed a 43-yard field goal with 2:46 left. But Vanderbilt used two timeouts and forced a punt after only 24 seconds. Vanderbilt then drove 76 yards, including Cutler's 19-yard pass to Erik Davis on fourth and 10, for the winning score.
ALABAMA 30, S. MISS 21: Brodie Croyle threw for two touchdowns and 330 yards for the host Crimson Tide. Down 21-10, Alabama started its rally just before halftime.
Croyle lofted a deep pass to Tyrone Prothro, who caught it behind Jasper Faulk's back at the 1. Croyle then hit Le'Ron McClain with 12 seconds left for the score.
The Tide went ahead for good on its first possession of the second half, capped by a 2-yard run by Tim Castille. Then an 85-yard, 12-play drive, capped by another 2-yard Castille run, sealed it.
AUBURN 28, MISS. ST. 0: Brandon Cox passed for 202 yards and two first-half touchdowns for the host Tigers, their first shutout since 9-0 against Alabama in 2000.
The Bulldogs have lost 16 in a row to SEC West opponents. And Jerious Norwood, who had 123 yards on 16 carries last week against Murray State, had just 39 on 10 carries before leaving with an injured left shoulder. His status is unknown. The status of fellow tailback Tre Smith also is unknown after he hurt his right knee.
Up 14-0 midway through the third, two Bulldog mistakes helped the Tigers seal it. Jonathan Lowe called for a fair catch on a punt at his 6. Two plays later, Tee Milons bobbled a screen pass. After he gained control and started to run, the ball popped loose and bounced into the end zone, where Will Herring recovered for a touchdown.
KENTUCKY 41, IDAHO ST. 29: Rafael Little rushed for a career-high 104 yards and scored the winning touchdown for the host Wildcats. The I-AA Bengals took a 29-28 lead with 5:06 left after Sterling Mennear returned a blocked punt 26 yards for a score. But Little, with only three previous kickoff returns, took the ensuing one 99 yards for a score. Shomari Moore's interception with 3:44 left sealed it.
