Turnovers, red-zone struggles doom No. 20 South Carolina in 34-6 loss to Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- KJ Jackson threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns and Arkansas took advantage of four turnovers by South Carolina to beat the No. 17 Gamecocks 34-6 on Saturday night.

It was the Razorbacks’ first Southeastern Conference victory at home since Nov. 5, 2024 against Tennessee, which was also the last time Arkansas (4-6, 2-5) beat a ranked opponent. South Carolina’s loss snapped a four-game winning streak.

Arkansas fans rushed the field after the game.

“It’s been 770 days since the last SEC home win, which is too long, so we’re going to enjoy this one,” said first-year Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield.

Both of Jackson’s touchdown passes came in the second quarter as Arkansas built a 17-0 halftime lead. He found Chris Marshall for a 23-yard score for the team’s first touchdown and then connected with Antonio Jordan for a 28-yard score on the next drive.

South Carolina’s offense struggled without starting quarterback LaNorris Sellers, who did not play after injuring his ankle in the team’s win over Texas A&M on Nov. 7. Cutter Woods played the entire game, going 24 of 43 passing for 271 yards with three interceptions.

The Gamecocks (6-4, 4-4) still had chances, but went just 1 for 5 in the red zone with a lost fumble, a missed field goal and an interception ending three of those drives. The fumble came on the team’s second trip inside the Arkansas 20 when the Gamecocks attempted a reverse and lost the ball on the exchange. The Razorbacks recovered at the 18 then drove 82 yards on 11 plays for Marshall’s score.

Jabree Coleman’s 3-yard touchdown run put South Carolina on the board early in the second half. After forcing a punt, the Gamecocks entered Arkansas territory again, but Woods’ pass intended for Donovan Murph was intercepted by Joker Johnson, who ran 63 yards for a score.

Johnson intercepted Woods again early in the fourth quarter and Ben Bogle picked off the South Carolina quarterback on the next drive, as well. Johnson finished with two interceptions, a forced fumble and led the team with eight tackles.

Jackson went 15 of 24 through the air and added 46 yards rushing for Arkansas. Marshall caught four passes for 63 yards and a touchdown while Jordan caught four passes for 62 yards and a touchdown. Sutton Smith capped the Razorbacks’ scoring with a 7-yard touchdown run with 1:50 left.

“I appreciate where we come from and I also understand what’s occurred here in recent history,” Silverfield said. “I was brought here to change that. You talk 770 days, it’s not like it’s a week. We’re putting in the work. I’ve got so much faith, not only in this current roster, but in the future of this program.”

South Carolina, which entered the game ranked 20th in FBS averaging 205.4 yards per game, picked up a season-low 98 on the ground on 30 attempts. Sellers leads the team with 637 yards and seven touchdowns and starting running back Matt Fuller, who ran for 530 yards in the team’s first eight games, was lost for the season in the team’s Halloween win against Oklahoma.

The takeaway

After a miserable start to the season, the Razorbacks have looked better over most of the last month in Silverfield’s first season with two wins and a one-possession loss.

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer’s campaign to extricate himself from the hot seat took a serious turn for the worse with the loss. The Gamecocks have just No. 1 Georgia and rival Clemson remaining on their schedule. Losses in both would result in a disappointing .500 season.

Up next

Arkansas plays at No. 8 Texas next Saturday.

South Carolina hosts No. 1 Georgia next Saturday.

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