COLUMBIA — There was silence in Williams-Brice Stadium, not long after celebration felt seconds away.

South Carolina football had fans hovered over the hedges that lined the end zone, ready to see the best win the coach Shane Beamer era. No. 4 Alabama was down eight to the Gamecocks with 10 minutes left.

This felt like a fresher, more consistent version of South Carolina, even though the Gamecocks had lost four of their last five games. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers had just run in a 10-yard score, but slowly, then rapidly, the longest seven minutes of the season ended in pure heartbreak.

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