The South Carolina Gamecocks got off to a shaky start on Saturday, turning the ball over 4 times and falling behind 24-14 at halftime, but they rallied in the second half of the game, going on to beat East Carolina by a final tally of 56-37.

South Carolina’s outstanding running back, Marcus Lattimore, took over the game in the 2nd half, running for 112 yards on 23 carries and scoring 3 touchdowns. Gamecock’s QB Stephen Garcia threw for one touchdown pass and ran for two more, after replacing an ineffective Connor Shaw in the 2nd quarter. Alshon Jeffery lead the receiving core with 5 catches for 96 yards.

Steve “the old ball coach” Spurrier guaranteed a special teams score this year and the Gamecocks wasted no time proving him right, as Ace Sanders ran a 69 yard punt return back for a touchdown.

This was an impressive opening win by the Gamecocks, who are favored to win the SEC east title again this year.

Carolina is in for a tough battle next week in their SEC opener, facing off against a ranked Georgia Bulldog team who is coming off a disappointing loss to Boise State. The game will be played between the hedges in Georgia.