COLUMBIA, S.C. _ One season came to a merciful end at Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday, while another truly began in earnest.
Clemson's 38-3 demolition of South Carolina sends the No. 3 Tigers into the postseason with a perfect 12-0 record and the Gamecocks into the offseason with a 4-8 mark and plenty of questions for coach Will Muschamp to answer about the trajectory of the program.
"A frustrating day to end a frustrating year," Muschamp said afterward. " ... I don't think we're far off. I think we've got a good, young talented roster. We got some good players in our program. I'm extremely frustrated for them."
With South Carolina entering the game as a 27.5-point underdog to Clemson, the annual rivalry game was never expected to be close. And while Carolina managed to briefly excite the home crowd with an early goal-line stand, the vast gap between the two teams became apparent in short order, leading to the Tigers' sixth consecutive victory in the series.
South Carolina's offense, playing without top receiver Bryan Edwards and backup QB Dakereon Joyner due to injury, crossed midfield just once all game. Freshman quarterback Ryan Hilinski, who finished the day 16-for-27 passing for 105 yards, negated that first-quarter goal line stand with an interception that set up Clemson at South Carolina's 23-yard line.
From there, Clemson went to work. Sophomore quarterback Trevor Lawrence (26 for 36, 295 yards, 3 TDs) hit junior Tee Higgins on a 10-yard fade route for a touchdown off that interception, then found Higgins again on the next drive for a 65-yard pass to make it 14-0 to end the first quarter.
"They got good receivers, one of the top (units) in the country, but it was nothing they did that was special," South Carolina sophomore cornerback said of Clemson's passing attack.
South Carolina had its longest drive of the game in the second quarter, mixing in a variety of looks with Hilinski, Jay Urich and Rico Dowdle all getting snaps at quarterback. Play-action on third-and-short allowed senior tight end Kyle Markway to slip through the defense wide open for a 30-yard gain, setting up a 39-yard field goal for junior Parker White.
The Tigers quickly responded, with Lawrence connecting on passes of 26 and 37 yards to Higgins and sophomore Justyn Ross on the next drive, setting up a 16-yard strike to Ross to score again. Two video reviews went Clemson's way on that drive as well.
A last-second field goal put Clemson up 24-3 at halftime, and after the break the Tigers picked right back up, driving 69 yards with the help of two costly USC penalties, capped by a two-yard touchdown run for junior Travis Etienne (15 carries, 51 yards, 2 TDs).
After that, it was just a matter of what historic markers the blowout might hit. Lawrence stayed in the game into the fourth quarter, helping lead one more touchdown drive where Etienne scored from three yards out, before heading to the bench.
The Gamecocks finished with 174 yards, averaging just 3.3 per play, and went three-and-out six times. A large chunk of their yardage came on that 76-yard drive that ended in a field goal, and they finished the season scoring just one touchdown in the final 12 quarters. Their three points marks their lowest total in the Clemson-USC rivalry since 1989.
"We needed to hit more shots and be more stable in the run game, stay on the field on third down," Muschamp said. "But that's what I've been saying for a while now."
