Will USC be looking ahead to SEC championship game?

COLUMBIA -- Sixty-nine points or 690 points, South Carolina wasn't interested in talking much about Troy minutes after a 45-point blowout victory Saturday against the Trojans.

The Gamecocks' sights had already been fixed forward on Clemson and the SEC title game against Auburn. It didn't take long.

"It was a good win for us," USC coach Steve Spurrier said of the 69-24 victory, "but we're ready to move on for these last two big games of the year."

No. 18 South Carolina and Clemson learned early Sunday morning that the 108th meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Saturday in Death Valley. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

It's uncanny how similarly to 2009 the game is unfolding -- except in reverse.

A year ago, Clemson was the 8-3 team with a conference title game the following week. The Tigers were thumped in Columbia by the 6-5 Gamecocks.

This season, South Carolina is 8-3 team with a conference title game the following week. Can the Gamecocks avoid a similar fate against the 6-5 Tigers?

Clemson said the right things about being focused on the rivalry, but the actions didn't seem to correspond with the words. South Carolina, likewise, is already talking up how much the Clemson rivalry means.

It's impossible to know until Saturday if the Gamecocks back up what they're saying.

"It's still the biggest game of the year for us, unless we make it to the conference championship game," Spurrier said. "Even then, it's right there with it. I don't know how you'd rank them.

"We rank the biggest game of the year the one we're playing that week. This week it's the Clemson game. We'll try our best to go up there and beat them and give it everything we've got."

South Carolina didn't necessarily need all it had Saturday to beat a Troy team that seemed intent on beating itself.

The Trojans put the opening kickoff on the ground, and South Carolina recovered on the 17-yard line. Marcus Lattimore scored on the following play -- and had touchdowns on three of his first four carries, the fourth being a 58-yard run.

Lattimore, who ran a school-record 40 times at Florida the week before, had 102 yards on seven carries.

He ran just once after the first quarter -- a quarter that saw USC go up 28-0 on the Trojans. It was 56-7 at halftime, allowing for a second-half victory lap for the Gamecocks on Senior Day.

The 69 points were the fifth-most in school history. The Gamecocks also rolled up 461 total yards on the Trojans (5-5).

After the Alabama win, the offense came unglued in the second half at Kentucky -- although an injury to Lattimore played a big part in that. The Gamecocks were intent to follow up a strong showing at Florida with another one in the season's final home game.

"We're peaking at the right time, I think," said quarterback Stephen Garcia, who hit 9 of 12 passes and didn't have to take a snap in the second half. "We haven't played great two weeks in a row, especially after a big win, since I've been here. It was good to see us perform."

The defense likewise followed up its Florida outing by holding a potent passing offense to 183 yards through the air, and just 264 total yards.

One possible drawback: Already a relatively thin position, South Carolina's only two injuries sustained Saturday were at cornerback.

Stephon Gilmore suffered a mild concussion, but Spurrier said he expects the sophomore to return to practice midweek and play against the Tigers. Walk-on Marty Markett had an MRI exam Sunday on a sprained knee, and his status is unclear.

Spurrier said Markett was "able to finish the game, somewhat."

"Yeah, they're checking to see if he has any kind of injury to his knee," Spurrier said.

Earlier in the month, senior Chris Culliver was lost for the season after tearing a pectoral muscle.

Junior C.C. Whitlock has played the majority of snaps at field corner, despite Markett starting each of the past two games.

Extra points

Spurrier said DT Kenny Davis didn't play Saturday against Troy because of academic reasons. "Hopefully, he'll get to class on time and go every time and he'll be able to suit up," Spurrier said. … The Gamecocks will have their traditional Thanksgiving meal on Thursday before traveling to Clemson on Friday.