1. The new situation
The Gamecocks’ first SEC loss of the season came via a 41-17 score. In a showdown that had been hyped through most of the offseason, USC absorbed a bad start, closed back in and let things slip away at the start of the second half. It puts USC behind the eight ball in the SEC East with Georgia as the prohibitive favorite.
2. The quarterback
Jake Bentley had a day that was more down than up. He led a trio of long drives in the first half, but USC only got 10 points of them.