Rattler, Legette keep South Carolina bowl hopes alive with 17-14 win over Kentucky

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- , Spencer Rattler completed 19 of 27 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns and Xavier Legette caught nine of those passes for 94 yards as South Carolina beat Kentucky 17-14 on Saturday night. When the Gamecocks (5-6, 3-5 Southeastern Conference) needed something after six straight drives that went nowhere, the senior quarterback found the senior receiver on 3rd-and-15 deep in their territory early in the fourth quarter to keep alive what turned out to be the winning drive. “That was huge, just to get us going,” South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said. “We hit a big play. Spencer to Xay.” The Gamecocks started November in a big hole, but three straight wins have left them on the cusp of a bowl bid if they can beat bitter rival Clemson next week. “Right now it's like the playoffs,” said South Carolina defensive back Nick Emmanwori who had an end zone interception.