Sweet Ending for Holtz, Brewer and Gamecocks

Ryan Brewer didn’t fit the mold of an Ohio State tailback, so he wound up at South Carolina.

The Buckeyes’ loss turned out to be the Gamecocks’ gain in Monday’s Outback Bowl.

Brewer gained 219 total yards and scored three touchdowns, pacing a 24-7 victory over Ohio State that capped a remarkable comeback for Lou Holtz and South Carolina. The Gamecocks, winless in 1999 and losers of 21 consecutive entering the season, finished the most dramatic one-year turnaround in Southeastern Conference history.

Brewer ran for 7,656 yards and scored 761 points as a prep star in Troy, Ohio, but wasn’t recruited by Ohio State. On Monday, he rushed for 109 yards in 19 carries and scored on runs of seven and two yards, as well as a 28-yard screen pass play.

“I never dreamed anything like this would happen,” Brewer, the unlikely most valuable player, said. “My only thought was to go out there and play the best that I can.”

A wide receiver most of the season, Brewer was part of a platoon of runners Holtz used in place of Derek Watson, a 1,000-yard rusher the coach suspended for the game for violating a team rule.

The 5-foot-10, 210-pound sophomore gained 66 yards rushing and caught 33 passes for 326 yards and one touchdown during the regular season.

Like Brewer, Holtz grew up in Ohio and got a lot of satisfaction out of the victory. He defeated Ohio State for the first time in five tries, improving his bowl record to 11-8-2 in a career that includes stops at William and Mary, North Carolina State, Arkansas, Minnesota and Notre Dame.

It was another frustrating day for Ohio State Coach John Cooper, who fell to 3-8 in bowl games at the Big Ten school. The Buckeyes (8-4), who avoided a shutout when offensive lineman Mike Gurr recovered Jonathan Wells’ fumble in the end zone for a third-quarter touchdown, haven’t defeated an SEC team (0-6) in the postseason.

“Obviously, I’m very disappointed in the way we played,” Cooper said. “I wish we could have been a little more competitive”

South Carolina entered the season on a 21-game losing streak and pulled off the biggest regular-season turnaround in the SEC by going 7-4 after finishing 0-11 in Holtz’s first season.

South Carolina (8-4) dropped its final three regular-season games to Tennessee, Florida and Clemson to tumble out of the top 25, but arrived in Tampa brimming with confidence.

“This was our day, and we were not going to be denied,” Holtz said.

South Carolina’s eight victories tied for the second-most in school history.