Alabama vs. South Carolina score, takeaways: Crimson Tide avoid disaster, survive last gasp by Gamecocks

A week after it was shocked by Vanderbilt, No. 7 Alabama avoided another disastrous upset loss Saturday afternoon, as the Crimson Tide rode a late surge to secure a 27-25 win against South Carolina. Alabama scored 13 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, after blowing an early 14-0 lead, to avoid consecutive losses and advance to 2-1 in SEC play under first-year coach Kalen DeBoer. 

South Carolina had a chance to tie it late, following a beautiful 31-yard touchdown catch from wide receiver Nyck Harbor. But on the ensuing 2-point conversion, quarterback LaNorris Sellers overthrew an open Vandrevius Jacobs in the back of the end zone. 

That wasn’t the end. South Carolina tried an onside kick after its late touchdown and hopped on the ball after it bounced out of the hands of two Alabama players. Instead of playing for the field goal, Sellers tossed a ball deep downfield that was intercepted by Alabama cornerback Domani Jackson — who exited the game earlier with an apparent abdominal injury, and who got beat on Harbor’s touchdown catch — to finally slam the door on South Carolina’s hopes. 

Alabama’s defense was far from perfect, but — as evidenced by Jackson’s interception — it did a good job of answering the bell and coming up with timely stops. After Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe threw an end-zone interception in near the start of the fourth quarter, the Crimson Tide’s defense jumped on a Sellers fumble deep in South Carolina territory. 

Four plays later, Milroe scored a seven-yard rushing touchdown to give the Crimson Tide a 20-19 lead. Alabama then forced South Carolina into a hopeless 51-yard field goal on the next drive, and the Crimson Tide took advantage of that by scoring a second consecutive touchdown. Prior to the Harbor touchdown, Alabama held South Carolina scoreless for over 20 minutes.

• Alabama has now won 80 straight home games against unranked teams, the longest such streak in 30 years. 
• Alabama avoided losing consecutive regular season games for the first time since 2007, and also avoided becoming the first team since 1997 Texas Tech to lose twice as a 20-plus point favorite in the same season.
• South Carolina had three opportunities to either re-take the lead or tie the game in the last 10 minutes. Those drives ended in: a missed field goal, a failed two-point conversion and an interception.