ESPN.com · Jan 3, 2017
Despite bowl loss, South Carolina has momentum heading into 2017
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Is there such a thing as a good loss?
There was obvious disappointment in the locker room following South Carolina’s 46-39 overtime loss to South Florida in the Birmingham Bowl. The players were crushed. But there was also a sense of optimism.
Sure, head coach Will Muschamp was not happy. His postgame press conference only lasted five minutes. But his South Carolina team rallied back from an 18-point second-half deficit, tying the score with just over a minute left in regulation. The Gamecocks set a Birmingham Bowl record with 481 yards of total offense, and true freshman quarterback Jake Bentley finished 32-of-43 for a career-high 390 yards and three touchdowns.