Shane Beamer made sure he, his quarterback and his offensive coordinator were on the same page in the final seconds of South Carolina’s 29-22 defeat to No. 4 Alabama. The Gamecocks coach said his defenders were told to let Alabama score if it got the first down, so they did.

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Beamer logged two winning seasons in his first three years at South Carolina and peaked last year when he won nine games and knocked on the door of the CFP. The Gamecocks entered this year at No. 13 in the preseason AP Top 25, but they are now on pace to finish under .500 after losing four of five games to start SEC play.

“We’re behind him 100 percent, and that’s just been my message to him,” Donati continued. “’Keep fighting the good fight every day.’ He’s a tremendous leader of young men. He’s got a great message, great energy. And we need that.”

The Gamecocks experienced a drastic offensive turnaround against Tennessee in 2022. Can South Carolina replicate that against Alabama?

The Crimson Tide trailed most of the second half before tying the game with 2:16 to play on Ty Simpson's two-point conversion toss to Josh Cuevas following a scoring reception from Bernard. On South Carolina's ensuring possession with the score knotted at 22,