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Former South Carolina football stars to play in NFL Playoffs

by:Kevin Miller01/11/25

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Former South Carolina football star Stephon Gilmore with the Minnesota Vikings (Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
Former South Carolina football star Stephon Gilmore with the Minnesota Vikings (Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

On Saturday, the NFL Playoffs will begin. That means a group of South Carolina football alumni are getting ready for the postseason. Wildcard Weekend is officially here.

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The first game of the weekend begins on Saturday, January 11th at 4:30 p.m. on CBS and the Paramount+ app. Former Gamecock great Hayden Hurst and his Los Angeles Chargers will take on the Houston Texans in Houston.

The Steelers at Ravens game is the Saturday nightcap, but no Gamecocks are on the two rosters. For those interested, the two will play on Amazon Prime Video at 8:00 p.m.

On Sunday, January 12th at 1:00 p.m., the Buffalo Bills will host the Denver Broncos. Another former USC tight end, Nate Adkins, plays for Denver. The contest also will be on CBS and the Paramount+ app. Offensive lineman Nick Gargiulo is on the practice squad for the Broncos and likely will not be active.

The 4:30 p.m. Fox contest (also on the FoxSports app) will be between the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles. Former Gamecock defenders Keisean Nixon and Kingsley “JJ” Engabare will start for the Packers.

The Washington Commanders at Tampa Bay Buccaneers is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. on NBC. No South Carolina alums will play in the game.

On Monday night, January 13th, Stephon Gilmore and the Minnesota Vikings will play against the LA Rams in Arizona. (The game moved locations because of the wildfires in Los Angeles.) Kickoff will be at 8:00 p.m. on ABC, ESPN, and the ESPN app. Tight end Nick Muse is on the Vikings’ practice squad, so he is not expected to be active for the game.

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The Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions also are in the NFL Playoffs. However, both teams earned a bye through Wildcard Weekend and won’t play until next week’s Divisional Round. Cornerback Darius Rush is on the Chiefs’ practice squad.

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