Spurrier Ends Gator Streak

COLUMBIA, S.C. —  Steve Spurrier had spent nearly a year downplaying his first meeting with Florida and what it might mean to beat his alma mater.

With Mike Davis and Daccus Turman both running for two touchdowns, South Carolina defeated the 12th-ranked Gators, 30-22, on Saturday, the first time Spurrier had played the school where he won a Heisman Trophy in 1966 as a quarterback and a national championship in 1996 as a coach.

It wasn’t the kind of blowout Spurrier’s Gators perfected during his 12 seasons as their leader from 1990 to 2001. But it broke Florida’s 14-game winning streak in the series -- Spurrier was 10-0 vs. South Carolina -- that had dated to 1939.

“It’s more fun when your team is not a dominating team,” Spurrier said.

The loss by Florida (7-3, 5-3 in Southeastern Conference) ended any chance it had of playing for the conference title.

With their fifth straight SEC victory -- a school first -- the Gamecocks (7-3, 5-3), have an outside shot of reaching the Georgia Dome as SEC East champs. South Carolina needs East front-runner Georgia to lose its final game against Kentucky.