South Carolina's latest bowl projections after another lopsided SEC victory
Another week, another blowout SEC victory for the South Carolina Gamecocks. On Saturday, the Gamecocks moved to 6-3 on the season (and into bowl eligibility) with a 28-7 domination of the then-No. 24 Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville.
Some national college football voices had been a bit hesitant about consistently including Shane Beamer’s team in their weekly bowl projections, but with a sixth win in the books, that has changed.
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ESPN analysts Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura released their updated bowl predictions on Sunday. Both Schlabach and Bonagura included South Carolina in a familiar bowl game. The Reliaquest Bowl—formerly known as the Outback Bowl—will play host to the Gamecocks if the projections hold. Schlabach wrote in a game against a first-time foe, the Illinois Fighting Illini. According to Bonagura, Carolina will meet up with the Iowa Hawkeyes. Following the 2008 season, the two teams faced off for the only time ever in what became an Iowa victory in the Outback Bowl.
Jerry Palm of CBS Sports, who was a little late to the Gamecock postseason bandwagon, picked differently than ESPN. According to Palm, South Carolina will make its first appearance in the Texas Bowl this December. If Palm’s prediction is correct, the Gamecocks will play the Kansas State Wildcats. The ‘Cocks and ‘Cats haven’t met on the gridiron since 1984, but Carolina owns the series lead, 2-1.
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Just like Bonagura, the Action Network’s Brett McMurphy projected a trip to Tampa and the Reliaquest Bowl against Iowa. The prognostication marked no change for McMurphy from last week. However, South Carolina football fans might be interested to know that McMurphy was one of just a small group of voters who left the Gamecocks out of his AP top-25 poll.
Steve Lassan of The Athletic stuck with the same Gamecock destination from last week’s prediction. Lassan has South Carolina making their Music City Bowl debut. However, this week, he switched up the team’s opponent, and the new matchup is an intriguing one for USC fans. According to Lassan, there will be a December 30th contest against the Nebraska Cornhuskers on the docket. Former Gamecock offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield holds the same role for the ‘Huskers, though, many expect him to be relieved of duties before bowl season (if Nebraska even makes it there). South Carolina won the previous matchup, a comfortable victory in the Capital One Bowl after the 2011 campaign.
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With six wins, the Gamecocks will be bowling this winter. However, there is room for upward mobility, potentially even to the College Football Playoff.
The road to a better postseason position continues this Saturday with a home contest against the Missouri Tigers. The game will be South Carolina’s first ranked vs. ranked matchup since the 2022 Gator Bowl. The Gamecocks and Tigers will take the field for a 4:15 p.m. contest that will be broadcast on SEC Network and streamed on the ESPN app.
