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Ryan Mallett threw for 303 yards, Knile Davis tied a career high with three touchdowns and No. 17 Arkansas handed 18th-ranked South Carolina its worst home loss in five years, 41-20, on Saturday night.
Davis rushed for 110 yards, including scoring runs of two, 21 and one yard for the Razorbacks (7-2, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) who won for the fourth time in five games. Mallett was 21 for 30, tossed a TD pass and ran for a score.
The Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3) hadn't been beaten this badly at Williams-Brice Stadium since a 48-7 win by Auburn in coach Steve Spurrier's debut season of 2005. Yet, they can still take the SEC East title and reach their first league title game by beating Florida at The Swamp next Saturday.
South Carolina is 0-12 in Gainesville, Fla.
Arkansas brought the country's second-best air attack and the league's top passer in Mallett into Williams-Brice. The Razorbacks were missing injured receiver Greg Childs, out of the season with a knee injury, but it didn't slow down Mallett. He got things started with a 4-yard TD pass to Cobi Hamilton, who moved into Childs' spot and caught seven passes for 111 yards.
But it was Davis who continually eluded defenders and tied his career high for touchdowns set last month against Ole Miss.
Davis went over 100 yards on the ground against the SEC's best defense vs. the run. And kicker Zach Hocker hit a career-long 51 yard field goal, the Razorbacks longest since 1992.
Spurrier said when Mallett saw the way Gamecocks defensive backs played the past month - this was the fourth time in five games they allowed 300 passing yards - he'd lick his chops.
South Carolina's head ball coach wasn't too far off.
Mallett wasted little time torching the Gamecocks secondary. He went 3 of 4 for 50 yards on the Razorbacks opening drive, ending with Hamilton's touchdown.
In the second quarter, Mallett launched a 57-yard throw to a falling Jarius Wright - he easily got behind cornerback C.C. Whitlock - to set up Davis' first rushing TD from 2 yards out.
When the Gamecocks didn't come close on a fake punt try after snapping to upback Dalton Wilson, Mallett and the 'Hogs were at it again. Mallett used passes of 6 yards to Hamilton and 11 yards to tight end D.J. Williams to set up a 21-yard scoring run along the sidelines by Davis for a 24-7 lead.
It didn't help that South Carolina's defense played without starting cornerback Chris Culliver, who hurt his shoulder last week against Tennessee and is out for the year. Spurrier had hoped his secondary would show more fire in disrupting receivers, but it didn't happen in the opening half as Mallett had 213 yards passing by the break.
South Carolina freshman runner Marcus Lattimore was held to 31 yards on 11 carries. However, he was used sparingly after bruising his knee in the first half.
