South Carolina defeats Southern Miss 41-13

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO/AP) – In a fight under the lights at Williams Brice Stadium, the Gamecocks beat Southern Miss in a final score 41-13.

Quarterback Stephen Garcia and freshman tailback Marcus Lattimore each ran for two touchdowns and South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier won his 18th straight college opener on Thursday night.

The Thursday night season opener, nationally televised on ESPN, brought the crowd to its feet.

Garcia got things started with a 22-yard touchdown run and Lattimore followed with first-half scores of 3 and 7 yards to send the Gamecocks to a surprisingly easy win against the Golden Eagles.

And Lattimore wasn’t the only young star to excel for Spurrier.

Sophomore Alshon Jeffery had 106 receiving yards and freshman Ace Sanders had a 53-yard rush – the Gamecocks’ longest in four years – to set up Lattimore’s first score.

Even freshman backup passer Connor Shaw came through, connecting with D.L. Moore for a 15-yard touchdown pass for South Carolina’s final score.

Up next, South Carolina gets ready to face the Georgia Bulldogs in a noon game on September 11.
   
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)