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Davis and Mallett lead Arkansas to win over South Carolina

Nov 7, 2010 - 3:58 AM Columbia, SC (Sports Network) - Knile Davis rushed for three touchdowns and 110 yards and Ryan Mallett had another big day through the air, as No. 17 Arkansas had its way with 18th-ranked South Carolina, 41-20, in SEC action.

Mallett, fresh off a school record 409-yard showing against Vanderbilt last week, passed for 303 yards with a touchdown and an interception and also rushed for a score for the Razorbacks (7-2, 4-2 SEC), winners of three in a row since losing to still-unbeaten Auburn.

"We put it all together tonight and we have to keep doing that," Mallett said. "To be successful at home and on the road you have to be able to run the ball and I think we did a great job of that."

Stephen Garcia had a rough day under center, throwing for 161 yards with two interceptions and a touchdown on 14-of-29 efficiency for the Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3), who saw a two-game winning streak come to an end but can still win the SEC East with a win over the Florida Gators in Gainesville next week.

Arkansas' Zach Hocker connected on a 41-yard field goal early in the second quarter, and his counterpart, Spencer Lanning, had a chance to tie the game, 10-10, but bounced a 29-yard chip shot off the left upright on the next drive.

Jarius Wright hauled in a 57-yard pass on the next play after the miss, and an interference penalty in the end zone set up Davis' two-yard plunge into the end zone with 6 1/2 minutes left in the half.

Three plays after the Gamecocks failed on a fake punt at their own 38-yard line, Davis ran down the right sideline, stayed in bounds and got across the goal line for a 21-yard TD.

The score came with 1:57 left before the break, enough time for Lanning to boot a 29-yarder for a 24-10 game. An offensive pass interference penalty on Alshon Jeffery negated a touchdown earlier in the drive.

Arkansas drove into the red zone on the opening touch of the third quarter, but a Mallett pass popped out of Wright's hands and into DeVonte Holloman's for an interception six minutes into the half.

The momentum shift didn't last long, as Tramain Thomas picked off a Garcia pass and returned it 11 yards to the Carolina 20. Davis carried the load from there and his one-yard dive with 5:39 showing gave the Razorbacks a comfortable 31-10 cushion.

Hocker got enough behind a 51-yard field goal late in the third quarter, and Mallett added a one-yard keeper early in the fourth following another Garcia interception in his own territory.

The final score was made somewhat respectable on a 31-yard field goal by Lanning and a one-yard recovery for a touchdown by Byron McKnight, who scooped up Tyler Wilson's fumble.

"We had a terrible night," South Carolina had coach Steve Spurrier said. "I apologize to the fans that we weren't even competitive tonight. The way we played, you wonder how we won six games this year but for some reason we didn't have much tonight."

A Mallett-to-Cobi Hamilton hookup of four yards gave Arkansas a 7-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.

South Carolina, which went three-and-out in its first touch, answered with its own four-yard connection between Garcia and Tori Gurley to cap a five-minute drive.

Game Notes

South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore played through a left ankle injury and rushed for 30 yards on 11 carries...Mallett, who has eclipsed the 300-yard passing mark in all but two of Arkansas' nine games this season, connected on 21-of-30 passes...Hamilton ended with 111 yards on seven catches, while Wright caught four balls for 88 yards...Jeffery caught seven passes for 99 yards for the Gamecocks, who had won six straight at home...Arkansas hosts UTEP next week.