COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Germie Bernard scored two touchdowns in the final 2 1/2 minutes, and No. 4 Alabama rallied to beat South Carolina 29-22 on Saturday for its seventh straight win.
Ty Simpson threw for 253 yards and two touchdowns and DeShawn Jones returned an interception 18 yards for a score for the Crimson Tide (7-1, 5-0 Southeastern Conference).
LaNorris Sellers threw for 222 yards and a touchdown and ran for 67 yards and another score for South Carolina (3-5, 1-5), but had a costly fumble late which led to the winning TD.
The Tide trailed 22-14 late in the fourth quarter, but drove 79 yards on 14 plays with Simpson finding Bernard for a 4-yard touchdown pass in the left corner of the end zone with 2:16 to play.
Simpson then connected with Josh Cuevas, who caught a TD pass earlier in the game, for the 2-point conversion to tie the game.
On the ensuing drive, linebacker Deontae Lawson stripped Sellers, giving Simpson and the offense the ball at the South Carolina 38.
On a third-and-10 play, Bernard took a direct snap and raced around right end and stayed inbounds for a 25-yard touchdown with 34 seconds left.
Alabama took a 7-3 lead in the second quarter after Sellers’ pass in the flat bounced off the hands of running back Rahsul Faison and into the arms of Jones, who raced down the left sideline for a score.
Mistakes haunted the Gamecocks in the first half.
Along with the mishandled catch by Faison, a holding penalty negated a 15-yard TD run by Sellers. Another holding call ended a potential touchdown drive and the Gamecocks also missed a field goal.
Despite the errors, South Carolina only trailed 14-6 at halftime.
The Gamecocks scored the next 16 points.
Nyck Harbor got behind the defense and hauled in a 54-yard touchdown strike.
Sellers then used a series of runs to get South Carolina into Alabama territory and William Joyce connected on a 47-yard field goal to give the Gamecocks a 15-14 lead late in the third quarter.
The Gamecocks gained full momentum when they recovered a punt that hit off an Alabama player at the Tide 30. Sellers cashed in a few plays later when he raced around left end for a 10-yard touchdown to give South Carolina a 22-14 lead with 10 minutes left.
The takeaway
Alabama: The Crimson Tide surprisingly struggled to run the ball against the Gamecocks, gaining 72 yards on 23 carries.
South Carolina: The Gamecocks had allowed 22 sacks coming into the game, the most in the country. Their offensive line had some costly penalties, but overall played better than in recent games.
Up next
Alabama: Hosts No. 20 LSU on Nov. 8.
South Carolina: At No. 8 Ole Miss on Saturday.
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Steve Reed, The Associated Press
