{"id":937322,"date":"2026-07-05T12:33:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T12:33:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/937322\/"},"modified":"2026-07-05T12:33:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T12:33:13","slug":"sec-summer-school-south-carolina-gamecocks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/937322\/","title":{"rendered":"SEC Summer School: South Carolina Gamecocks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Big Blue Nation has been locked in for every move\u00a0Will Stein<\/a>\u00a0has made during the Kentucky football offseason. But what about the rest of the SEC? Kentucky plays a Top 10 schedule in college football. The logos are daunting, but what\u2019s really going on with each program? Take a step into KSR\u2019s SEC Summer School to learn more about the Wildcats\u2019 2026 opponents. Up next, the South Carolina Gamecocks, who have been a thorn in the Wildcats\u2019 side under Shane Beamer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

SEC Summer School:\u00a0Tennessee Volunteers<\/a>,\u00a0Missouri Tigers<\/a>,\u00a0Texas A&M<\/a>,\u00a0Florida Gators<\/a>, LSU Tigers<\/a><\/p>\n

South Carolina: By the Numbers<\/p>\n

Returning<\/a>\u00a0Production: No. 5 (68%)
SP+<\/a>\u00a0Ranking: No. 24
ESPN<\/a>\u00a0Post-Spring Top 25: N\/A
On3<\/a>\u00a0SEC Power Rankings: No. 10<\/p>\n

How Much Does Returning Production Matter?<\/p>\n

South Carolina has four of their top six tacklers returning. The Gamecocks also have the second-highest returning production of any FBS offense in the country. It was an offense that ranked second-to-last in the SEC in scoring and No. 104 nationally with 22.7 points per game. Do you really want all of that back? <\/p>\n

Shula Out, Briles In<\/p>\n

What\u2019s most important is the offensive cog that is missing. South Carolina fans were ready to fire Mike Shula in September. All the momentum LaNorris Sellers<\/a> built in 2024 with Dowell Loggains<\/a> was seemingly wiped away. Could Beamer find the right guy to salvage the investment into his superstar quarterback? <\/p>\n

The addition of Kendal Briles<\/a> (TCU-Arkansas-Florida State-Baylor) was universally praised, even if those recent stops didn\u2019t produce the most eye-popping numbers. The mix of quick game out of RPOs, along with sprinkles of deep shots, should fit what Sellers brings to the table. <\/p>\n

South Carolina Super Star Talent<\/p>\n

South Carolina fans can aspire to have four Top-15 NFL Draft picks, and that\u2019s not actually that crazy. As Kentucky fans are well aware, Sellers can be a superhero on offense, just not on every single down. Nyck Harbor<\/a> is a former five-star pass-catcher who is a dangerous downfield weapon. Another former five-star, Dylan Stewart<\/a>, was a Second Team All-SEC selection who had 12 TFLs and 4.5 sacks last season. They also just added the top-ranked OT in the transfer portal, Jacarrius Peak<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The potential is there, but can they reach their ceiling? Peak suffered a knee injury during a spring basketball tournament that was organized by the coaching staff. When he\u2019ll return and how effective he will be is uncertain. Harbor is great at catching go-balls, but can his game evolve? Dylan Stewart has had great pass-rushing counterparts, but can he consistently tilt the scales in the Gamecocks favor? <\/p>\n

But Shane Beamer is on the Hot Seat<\/p>\n

A handful of coaches are pre-fired. Shane Beamer<\/a>\u2018s seat isn\u2019t that hot, but it might be the hottest in the SEC. To his credit, he was in this spot just a few years ago. South Carolina only won five games in his third season. The following year, they went 9-3 and lost in the Citrus Bowl. After dipping down to 4-8, the Gamecocks have pumped money into this roster to turn things around, but can Beamer get the train back on the tracks?<\/p>\n

Kentucky is a Must-Win for South Carolina <\/p>\n

To get where Beamer wants to go, the Gamecocks must get off to a fast start. South Carolina fans are counting on a 5-1 start before the bye week hits, and the schedule cranks up a notch or ten. They host Kentucky and Mississippi State at home during that stretch, a pair of games that are more challenging than they appear. <\/p>\n

DateOpponentLocationSept. 5Kent StateColumbia, SCSept. 12TowsonColumbia, SCSept. 19Mississippi StateColumbia, SCSept. 26at AlabamaTuscaloosa, ALOct. 3KentuckyColumbia, SCOct. 10at FloridaGainesville, FLOct. 17Bye Week\u2014Oct. 24TennesseeColumbia, SCOct. 31at OklahomaNorman, OKNov. 7Texas A&MColumbia, SCNov. 14at ArkansasFayetteville, ARNov. 21GeorgiaColumbia, SCNov. 28at ClemsonClemson, SC<\/p>\n

Sign up for the KSR Newsletter to receive Kentucky Wildcats news in the most ridiculous manner possible.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Big Blue Nation has been locked in for every move\u00a0Will Stein\u00a0has made during the Kentucky football offseason. But…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":748742,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[5984,7,40582,5801,49,48,11878],"class_list":["post-937322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ncaa-football","tag-dylan-stewart-24-friendship-collegiate-academy","tag-football","tag-jacarrius-peak-22-valdosta","tag-lanorris-sellers-23-south-florence","tag-ncaa","tag-ncaa-football","tag-nyck-harbor-23-archbishop-carroll"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116867393399296236","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=937322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937322\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/748742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=937322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=937322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=937322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}