COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Stephen Garcia threw three touchdown passes and South Carolina's defense slowed down Clemson star C.J. Spiller in a 34-17 victory over the No. 15 Tigers on Saturday.
Spiller opened the game with an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, an NCAA record- setting seventh of his career. But the Gamecocks (7-5) bottled up Spiller and Clemson's high-scoring offense after that to end the Tigers' six-game win streak -- and their dominance in the rivalry.
Clemson (8-4) had won two straight, six out of seven and 10 of 12 against the Gamecocks, who had only one victory over the Tigers in the last 10 games at Williams-Brice Stadium.
That changed against a South Carolina defense ranked third in the SEC and fresh from a week off.
Clemson had just 260 yards of offense, well off the more than 415 it averaged the past six games. Spiller finished with 18 yards rushing and 19 receiving.
South Carolina fans chanted "S-E-C" as the outcome became clear. The ACC's Atlantic Division champs head into next week's conference title game against Georgia Tech with several questions to answer. No. 1 among them: What happened to the offense?
No. 14 Virginia Tech 42, Virginia 13
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Ryan Williams ran for 182 yards and four touchdowns and No. 14 Virginia Tech beat Virginia in what likely was Al Groh's last game as Virginia's coach.
The Hokies (9-3, 6-2 ACC) won their sixth straight in the series and for the 10th time 11 meetings with the Cavs (3-9, 2-6). It was their eighth victory in nine games against Groh, and ended Virginia's worst season since it finished 2-9 in 1982.
No. 19 Miami 31, South Florida 10
TAMPA, Fla. -- Javarris James rushed for two touchdowns, Jacory Harris threw for two more, and Miami took a big early lead on the way to beating South Florida.
Dedrick Epps and Leonard Hankerson caught touchdown passes for Miami (9-3), which ran out to a 21-3 halftime lead and capped its first nine-win regular season since 2005. A bowl victory would give Miami its first 10-win season since 2003.
Damien Berry rushed for 114 yards and Graig Cooper added 83 more for Miami.
Boston College 19, Maryland 17
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Montel Harris ran for 142 yards, Dave Shinskie threw a 66-yard touchdown pass, and Boston College beat Maryland to seal the Terrapins' first 10-loss season.
Steve Aponavicius kicked four field goals for Boston College (8-4, 5-3 ACC). But the standout senior was wide right on a 31-yarder, ruining what had been a perfect season. Aponavicius made 37 straight conversions and was 12-for-12 on field goal tries before the third-quarter miss.
