South-Carolina
Scouting report: South Carolina
The Missouri Tigers (7-2, 3-2 SEC) played a thrilling game, coming back late to beat Oklahoma on a scoop-and-score with 30 seconds left, keeping the hopes of a College Football Playoff appearance alive.
Now to keep the dream alive, they’ll have to face off with South Carolina.
The Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3 SEC) comes in hot on a three-game win streak, beating Oklahoma 35-9, now-No. __ Texas A&M 44-20 and Vanderbilt 28-7.
The Gamecock’s three losses have come to LSU (36-33), Ole Miss (27-3) and Alabama (27-25).
South Carolina opened as a 10-point favorite according to Circa Sports.
Here’s a glance at South Carolina and what Missouri will face at 3:15 p.m. central time Saturday as the Tigers vie for the Mayor’s Cup.
When: 3:15 p.m. CT, Saturday.
Where: Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, S.C.
TV: SEC Network
Radio: Tiger Radio Network
Missouri leads the all-time series 9-5 and has won the past five matchups by an average of 13 points.
All but two of the games in the series have come since Missouri joined the SEC. The first two battles were Missouri bowl wins in 1979 (24-14 in the Hall of Fame classic) and 2005 (38-31 in the Independence Bowl).
South Carolina’s last win in the series was a 37-35 win in South Carolina in 2018.
Scoring offense: 30.22 (No. 53)
Scoring defense: 17.56 (No. 12)
Rushing offense: 180.7 (No. 45)
Rushing defense: 107.2 (No. 14)
Passing offense: 198.2 (No. 98)
Passing defense: 194.1 (No. 32)
OFFENSE
LaNorris Sellers, QB
The redshirt freshman has shined in his first season at the helm of the Gamecock offense. He stands at 6-foot, 3-inches, 242-pounds and has completed 115-of-187 (61.5 percent) of his passes for 1,450 yards and nine touchdowns with four interceptions. He has also rushed for 391 yards and four touchdowns on 112 carries.
He’s played in eight of the team’s nine games this season, missing the Gamecocks’ 50-7 win against Akron in Week 4 because of an ankle sprain he suffered against LSU.
His best passing game came against Alabama when he completed 23-of-31 (74.2 percent) of his passes for 238 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.
But against Texas A&M, he completed 13-of-27 (48.1 percent) of his passes for 244 yards and two touchdowns to go with 106 rushing yards and a touchdown. He also reached 50+ rushing yards against Old Dominion, LSU and Ole Miss.
He has passed for more than 200 yards three of the past four games, only failing to reach the mark against Oklahoma.
Raheim Sanders, RB
After spending three years as one of the SEC’s best running backs at Arkansas, the 6-0, 230-pound senior transferred to South Carolina, where he has amassed 696 rushing yards on 131 carries with 10 touchdowns to go with 208 receiving yards on 16 catches with one score through the air.
His average of 77.3 rushing yards per game has him fifth in the SEC, while his 10 rushing scores ties him for third in the conference.
After taking one carry for one yard against Akron, Sanders exited the game and did not return, but he has played in all nine games this season.
He returned the following week and took only eight carries for 29 yards, but since then he has had performances of 16-for-78 and one touchdown (vs. Alabama), 15-for-33 and one touchdown (vs. Oklahoma), 20-for-144 and two touchdowns (vs. Texas A&M) and 15-for-126 and two touchdowns (vs. Vanderbilt).
The game against Texas A&M was by far his best this year as he added five catches for 92 yards through the air.
His receiving touchdown came last week when he added two catches for 52 yards against Vanderbilt.
So he has 394 total yards the past two games.
Joshua Simon, Mazeo Bennett Jr., PASS CATCHERS
Simon, a 6-4, 259-pound sixth-year tight end is the Gamecocks’ leading receiver at 39.7 yards per game. He has 27 catches for 357 yards (13.2 per catch) and five touchdowns.
His best performance by far was against Texas A&M when he had four catches for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
Otherwise, he hasn’t reached 50 yards in a game this season.
Bennett, a 5-11, 185-pound freshman receiver has 21 catches for 289 yards and three touchdowns. He averages 13.8 yards per catch and 32.1 yards per game.
His best game was against Akron when he caught five passes for 71 yards and a touchdown.
He also had a three-catch, 63-yard performance with a touchdown against Kentucky.
The past two weeks, he has caught four total passes for 32 total yards.
DEFENSE
Nick Emmanwori, DB
The 6-3, 227-pound junior defensive back leads the Gamecocks with 60 total tackles to go with four interceptions, two passes batted down and two tackles for loss.
His interception total leads the SEC and he has scored on two of the four.
One of his pick-6s came against Kentucky and the other came against Oklahoma when he had two of his four interceptions.
Demetrius Knight Jr., LB
The sixth-year transfer from Charlotte after starting his career at Georgia Tech, stands 6-2 and 245 pounds.
He is second on the Gamecocks with 54 tackles, while co-leading the team with six tackles for loss for 32 combined yards of loss. He also has two sacks and two forced fumbles.
Bam Martin-Scott, LB
The 6-2, 241-pound, sixth-year linebacker has totaled 49 tackles this season, while co-leading the team with six for loss. He also has 1.5 sacks, two passes batted down, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Kyle Kennard, edge
The 6-5, 254-pound fifth-year edge rusher has tortured offensive linemen and quarterbacks all season, amassing 9.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss this season. He has eight more quarterback hits, three forced fumbles, two fumbles recoveries and a pass batted down.
Drew Pyne vs. South Carolina pass rush
Brady Cook is likely out again this week, so Drew Pyne will have a chance to follow up his performance against Oklahoma.
With at least a backup center, and possibly a backup left guard, in front of him, South Carolina’s pass rush that has 33 sacks this season is going to be coming after him.
Along with Kennard, Knight and Martin-Scott, South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart has 5.5 sacks, Tonka Hemingway has four, T.J. Sanders has three and Bryan Thomas Jr. has 2.5.
That’s a lot of rushers coming.
Pyne did a great job stepping up in the pocket against Oklahoma and escaping extra pressure, he’ll have to do that again this week.
Missouri’s offense and giving the ball away
Along with that successful pass rush has come a lot of turnovers and extra possessions for the Gamecocks this season. South Carolina has 11 interceptions, 17 forced fumbles and eight fumble recoveries this season.
Missouri can’t afford to give the ball away, which it did a good job of handling against Oklahoma, winning the turnover battle 4-1, without Cook.
So making sure Pyne and co. don’t give up more extra possessions will be key.
Missouri’s defensive line vs. SC’s run game
The Gamecocks don’t throw a lot unless they have to. That’s because Sellers and Sanders have been a fantastic rushing combo this season. If the Tigers are able to contain the duo and make the Gamecocks through, that sets Missouri up for a lot of success.
South-Carolina
South Carolina’s Alicia Tournebize may be shy, but don’t doubt her drive, ex-teammate says
COLUMBIA — Alicia Tournebize, 18, is South Carolina women’s basketball’s youngest player.
But that’s nothing new. The 6-foot-7 forward was on the younger side of Tango Bourges Basket’s roster, the professional French club she played for before moving to Columbia.
With four-game sample size, Tournebize has shown glimpses of promise in a situation that doesn’t demand excellence anytime soon but greatly benefits from whatever she’s able to give.
“Alicia learns very quickly, over the year she joined the first team of Bourges, she has proven that she has her place among us,” said Tournebize’s former teammate Kariata Diaby in an email to The Greenville News.
Now Tournebize is starting to find her place for the No. 3 Gamecocks (20-2, 6-1 SEC).
Diaby, 30, played 13 games for the Connecticut Sun in the WNBA in 2025 before returning to France to play for Bourges. She is averaging 11.6 points, the second most on the team.
The 6-4 center watched as Tournebize navigated the jump to the professional level.
“For her first season, she was observant, given her age, which is quite normal, but over time she will become a great player and very complete on all levels,” Diaby wrote.
Tournebize arrived in Columbia Jan. 1 but didn’t play until Jan. 15, with practices beginning a week before she took the floor. She watched three games from the bench before checking in during the first quarter in the top-5 game vs Texas.
She scored no points in five minutes then scored eight points in 13 minutes against Coppin State on Jan. 18. In the loss to Oklahoma on Jan. 22, she scored nine points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field and had three rebounds in 14 minutes, one of two players to finish with a positive plus/minus.
Against the Sooners she cut to the basket to catch an easy pass from Raven Johnson by the rim, hit a 3-point shot and nailed a short stop-and-pop jumper.
She can jump and elevate in ways most 6-7 players can’t. Diaby confirmed the ability to drive and shoot from both midrange and 3-point territory will stick around as a core part to Tournebize’s game. She had zero points vs. Vanderbilt on Jan. 25.
“She is able to counter and outsmart the opponent on defense,” Diaby wrote. “It’s complicated to score against her. She is a player who manages to do everything on the court whether it is near or far from the rim.”
Tournebize is averaging 4.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 11.5 minutes ahead of Auburn (13-8, 2-5) on Jan. 29 (9 p.m. ET, SEC Network).
South Carolina has not made Tournebize available for interviews so far.
“I think she is someone who will quickly evolve in the world of basketball because she wants to learn and progress,” Diaby wrote.
Alicia Tournebize is South Carolina’s new quiet competitor
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley called Tournebize “unafraid” after two games.
“She is very competitive, she wants to win especially and does not like to lose, even if her shyness does not show it,” Diaby wrote. “She puts all the chances on her side and fights on all aspects and gives energy to her team.”
This maturation process requires attention to detail as she follows the blueprint that South Carolina has already laid out this season.
“Alicia is very kind, easy to live with on and off the court, she listens to others, that’s what I loved about her,” Diaby wrote. “She really has talent and wants to succeed at the highest level simply, all I wish her success in her career and in her life. She is someone who wants to shine everywhere.”
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at LKesin@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
COLUMBIA, SC (WACH) — State lawmakers in South Carolina are proposing a major overhaul of the Department of Transportation (DOT) to address the state’s aging road system without increasing the gas tax.
The plan, outlined in Senate Bill 831, aims to improve management and efficiency within the DOT by creating a new Transportation Coordinating Council. This council would bring together several state agencies to enhance decision-making processes.
Sen. Larry Grooms highlighted the financial resources available, stating, “We have an unobligated surplus of $1.7 billion from last year. We’re having an increase in state revenues over last year of about 1 billion. We now have 2.7 billion more dollars than we had last year.”
The proposal comes shortly after Gov. Henry McMaster requested lawmakers to allocate over a billion dollars for roads and bridges in the state budget.
Sen. Rex Rice emphasized the need to improve DOT efficiency, saying, “I think we’ve got to do everything we can to improve the efficiency of DOT, figuring out how to do projects without putting so much red tape into them.”
Instead of raising the gas tax, the bill suggests exploring alternative funding options, such as public-private partnerships, user fees, and tolls.
State Rep. Seth Rose stressed the importance of pedestrian safety, stating, “When we get into the heart of our neighborhoods and our community, walk capability, bike ability, and a sense of community need to be prioritized.”
Rose also expressed openness to discussing tolls as a potential funding source with other lawmakers.
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The Senate proposal has been referred to the Transportation Committee for further review.
Here are some ways you can save on gas
Here are some ways you can save on gas. 12/26/25
South Carolina is seeing a significant increase in gas prices, but one expert explained the price hike is not uncommon for this time of year.
GasBuddy, a North America platform that analyses gas price trends, reported that the average cost of a gallon in South Carolina rose from $2.468 on Jan. 19 to $2.617 on Jan. 26 — a difference of just under 15 cents.
Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, said the cost of diesel gas and gasoline have seen price increases lately. The rise in diesel gas can be explained by a burst of wintery weather facing many U.S. states this week, while the spike in gasoline prices is a little more complex.
According to De Haan, diesel gas prices are on the rise because diesel gas and heating oil are essentially the same product, leading to a spike in diesel demand when temperatures get colder.
“Diesel and heating oil are essentially the same product,” De Haan said. “It’s temperatures that would then cause heating oil demand to go up.”
De Haan went on to say that the rise in gasoline prices may be caused by time of year and recent geopolitical events. According to the analyst, gas prices usually start trending upward later in the winter.
During this time, refineries start to make summer gasoline, which has a lower Reid vapor pressure and is often pricier. It also coincides with spring break vacations, when many people take to the road and drive up demand for gasoline.
“Maybe in a few weeks, we could see prices stabilize or decline slightly,” De Haan said. “But also, beyond that, we’re getting closer to the start of the annual rise in gas prices that happens every spring.
Another driver for higher gasoline prices is the supply market overseas. The analyst pointed to three situations overseas that could be driving up the cost of a barrel of gasoline, making American consumers feel more of an impact on their wallets at the pump.
He said the ongoing situation in Venezuela, U.S. sanctions on Iran, and an oil field fire in Kazakhstan could all cause the price of gasoline to rise. De Haan said any disruption to global oil supply can be felt by consumers almost immediately.
“Iran is a major oil producer,” De Haan said. “Those sanctions President Trump puts on Iran make it more difficult for them to supply oil to the market, meaning that global oil supply could be negatively impacted by new sanctions.”
De Haan anticipates that the price of diesel will stay higher so long as colder temperatures stick around, but he is hopeful that those prices will start to come down within a few weeks.
As for regular gasoline, those prices could stay high or even rise simply because of the time of year.
“Enjoy these lower prices, because they will start to inch up as we get closer to summer,” De Haan said. “That’s something that happens every year.”
Bella Carpentier covers the South Carolina legislature, state, and Greenville County politics. Contact her at bcarpentier@gannett.com
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