South Carolina football in top five nationally in Phil Steele's preseason strength of schedule rankings
South Carolina football is a program accustomed to playing a tough schedule every year. 2025 will be no different. In his 2025 preseason preview, long-time college football analyst Phil Steele ranked the Gamecocks among the national leaders in overall strength of schedule.
According to Steele, South Carolina will play the No. 4 slate in the country and No. 3 schedule in the SEC this fall. Nationally, that trails just the Wisconsin Badgers (No. 1), Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 2), and Arkansas Razorbacks (No. 3). As is unsurprising in the Southeastern Conference, the top ten schedules in the SEC rank inside the top 17 overall.
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With expectations high for another good year (and potentially a great one) in Columbia, South Carolina is also a reason why some of the other teams in the conference hold high places in Steele’s strength of schedule rankings.
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On the 2025 schedule, the Gamecocks play the LSU Tigers (Steele’s No. 4 SOS in the SEC and No. 6 overall), Oklahoma Sooners (5/7), Kentucky Wildcats (6/9), Texas A&M Aggies (8/14), Alabama Crimson Tide (11/21), and Vanderbilt Commodores (12/28). The Ole Miss Rebels (15/48) and Missouri Tigers (16/50) round out the team’s SEC slate. Even the Clemson Tigers have the fourth-ranked SOS in the ACC, good for 29th overall. Carolina’s other power conference opponent, the Virginia Tech Hokies, slots in at No. 11 in the ACC and 55 overall. The Gamecocks have an argument as the toughest game on the team’s schedule.
Steele projects South Carolina to finish tied for 10th in the SEC in 2025. That number is lower than the national consensus. Clearly, his take on the Gamecocks’ schedule is a big reason for that prediction.
