Yes, the Cocks lost. Yes, they also lost in typical Gamecock fashion by not only losing but also tearing your heart into small pieces in the process. Do I feel like they played an awful game, though? No.
In my opinion, take away three (yes, only three) plays, and this game would have ended much differently. One of those plays is obviously the pick six because you should never give the opposing team free points. The other two are the back-to-back blown coverages in Tennessee’s last touchdown drive resulting in 65 yards being gained over two plays.
A close fourth place was Nick Muse’s drop with four minutes left in the game that made the Gamecocks have to settle for a field goal in a drive where the offense was moving.