SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 4, 2014
Kentucky 45, South Carolina 38: Alvin Dupree returned an interception six yards for a touchdown with 2:29 remaining in the fourth quarter as the host Wildcats completed the comeback in the SEC thriller.
Jojo Kemp rushed for 131 yards and three touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter after Kentucky (4-1, 2-1 SEC) fell behind by two TDs. Patrick Towles completed 20-of-29 passes for 208 yards and a touchdown, hitting Ryan Timmons five times for 61 yards and the score.
Mike Davis rushed for 183 yards and three touchdowns for the Gamecocks (3-3, 2-3), who totaled 282 yards on the ground. Dylan Thompson completed 23-of-37 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown, connecting with Pharoh Cooper six times for 83 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted three times.
The Gamecocks scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to regain the lead at 38-24 with 11:45 left in the fourth quarter, but the Wildcats weren’t finished as Kemp took over and scored back-to-back short touchdowns, the second with 2:46 left to tie the score at 38. Dupree, a 6-4, 264-pound defensive end, then intercepted a pass by Thompson and rambled into the end zone before the Kentucky defense sealed the win with an interception by Ashely Lowery with 1:31 left.
South Carolina surged ahead 14-0 before Kentucky regrouped and scored 10 points in the final 3:39 of the first half to knot the contest at 17 heading to the locker room. Kentucky then took its first lead of the game on the opening drive of the second half as Towles found Timmons with a 48-yard scoring toss, giving the Wildcats a 24-17 advantage.
GAME NOTEBOOK: South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier dropped to 20-2 all-time against Kentucky but remains the only FBS coach with at least 20 wins against a school. He also has 20 versus Vanderbilt. … Kentucky was without RB Stanley Williams and WR Dorian Baker, who were suspended for their role in a BB gun incident near campus housing last weekend. … Play was stopped during the opening quarter so medics could attend to a South Carolina cheerleader who was injured during a stunt and had to be taken off the field on a stretcher.