Tennessee's fourth-and-1 gamble at the South Carolina 39 opens the door to a 27-24 loss

Tennessee had South Carolina beat on Saturday, and then it went for it. Leading 24-17 with 3:35 left, the No. 11 Vols tried a fourth-and-1 at the South Carolina 39, George MacIntyre was stuffed, and the Gamecocks scored the last 10 points to win 27-24 at Williams-Brice Stadium.

A punt there would have left South Carolina a long field with three and a half minutes to play. Instead LaNorris Sellers started at his own 39 and needed 61 yards. He got them, finishing with a third-and-goal run where two Tennessee defenders hit him and he still reached the pylon. Replay upheld the touchdown with 1:17 left.

Then Tennessee's offense gave it away again. Dylan Stewart sacked MacIntyre and stripped him, and defensive tackle Tomiwa Durojaiye recovered at the Tennessee 34 with 33 seconds to go. South Carolina ran the clock to 3 seconds, and Malik Orsan made a 48-yard field goal as time expired. Fans rushed the field.

The loss had been building for a while. Tennessee committed 12 penalties for 90 yards. MacIntyre threw for 136 yards on 23 attempts, and his longest completion went for 27. The Vols leaned on DeSean Bishop, who carried 32 times for 120 yards and a touchdown, and they won time of possession by more than eight minutes, but they scored only three points after halftime.

They also spotted South Carolina two early touchdowns. Sellers hit Mazeo Bennett Jr. for 17 yards and ran 31 for another score, and it was 14-0 after one quarter. Tennessee scored three touchdowns in the second quarter to lead 21-17 at the half, and the AP said the Vols never fully took control after that.

Sellers was the best player on the field. He went 18 of 32 for 210 yards and a touchdown and ran for 96 yards and two scores.

This is a week after Tennessee beat Alabama 26-10 at home. The AP wrote that the Vols have work to do, including mentally, after coming out flat. They are 6-2, have a week off and host No. 12 Kentucky on Nov. 7. South Carolina, 4-3, has now beaten two ranked teams in a row and heads to Oklahoma next Saturday.