Where will South Carolina go bowling? Here are the most likely options

South Carolina was left frustrated and confused when it learned it was ranked outside of the 12-team College Football Playoff, meaning the team won’t be playing for a national championship this year. While this outcome wasn’t ideal, the Gamecocks will still have a chance to finish out the season in strong fashion.

As something of a consolation prize, they’ll undoubtedly be rewarded with a trip to a great bowl game. Wherever they go, which they’ll find out sometime Sunday afternoon, they will be going for their 10th win of the year. That has only happened four times in program history with their last 10-plus win season coming back in 2013.

With bowl selections on the horizon, let’s look at four likely options for South Carolina.

Cheez-It Citrus Bowl (Dec. 31, Orlando, FL)

This would be as good of a bowl game that the Gamecocks could go to without making the playoff.

The selection process is pretty simple for this game: the Citrus Bowl gets the first choice of available SEC teams that are bowl-eligible. Usually, the highest-ranked non-playoff team goes to play in this game. Based on the current CFP rankings, that spot would go to No. 13 Ole Miss. But there’s a chance it could be South Carolina.

There’s a lot to consider for the Citrus Bowl in picking which team it would want to come to the Sunshine State. Outside of a ranking, it could come down to travel and what the bowl representatives think is best. The Gamecocks are much closer to Orlando than the Rebels would be coming all the way from Oxford.

In the same sense, wasn’t this year deemed as playoff or bust for Ole Miss? Would the team and fans even want to go to a meaningless bowl game after such high expectations? Meanwhile, South Carolina fans have proven many times before they will travel to see their team play in a bowl game. And with this being a great year for the program, it would be a smart decision for the Citrus Bowl to want the Gamecocks.

There are many folks who see South Carolina landing in this bowl game, including Brett McMurphy of the Action Network, Athlon Sports’ Steven Lassan, and ESPN’s Mark Schlabach. All three believe the Gamecocks would face No. 21 Illinois since this is an SEC vs. Big Ten matchup.

Of course, this could be all thrown out the window if No. 11 Alabama doesn’t make the playoff. The Crimson Tide are currently inside the projected field but that could change depending on how this weekend goes. But if you’re the Gamecocks, this would be the ideal location. Who wouldn’t love to go on a trip to Orlando and spend a day at Disney World or Universal along the way?

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ReliaQuest Bowl (Dec. 31, Tampa, FL)

If you’re a real Gamecock fan, you probably still call the ReliaQuest Bowl by its former name: the Outback Bowl. This is a site the program has been to five times since the turn of the century. But they haven’t been to Tampa since 2018.

In the past, South Carolina has always had great crowds at Raymond James Stadium, home of the Reliaquest Bowl. The same could be said for this year if the Gamecocks were sent here. If Alabama falls out of the playoff and the Citrus Bowl would rather take the Tide, the ReliaQuest Bowl would be a likely option.

CBS analyst Jerry Palm shared a different bowl projection than the others who had the team going to Orlando. Palm sees South Carolina facing Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Ironically, the Gamecocks and Hawkeyes faced off in the 2009 version of this bowl game, with Iowa winning 31-10.

Overall, this would be another solid game for the Gamecocks. It would be the furthest trip with Tampa being about a seven-and-a-half-hour drive from Columbia. But hey, another option to play in warm weather.

TaxSlayer Gator Bowl (Jan. 2, Jacksonville, FL)

You’re probably thinking to yourself, “Weren’t we just there?” You’d be correct. South Carolina played in the Gator Bowl two years ago against Notre Dame in a 45-38 shootout loss.

There are a lot of reasons this could be the potential bowl site for the team. First off, that crowd at the 2022 game was predominantly filled with garnet and black. If there were such thing as a Williams-Brice South, Jacksonville would be that place. Gamecock fans wouldn’t have a tough time getting here since Jacksonville is near the top of Florida and about a four-and-a-half-hour ride from Columbia.

Again, if the Citrus Bowl picks another team, expect to see South Carolina in this game or Tampa. It’s also the only bowl game taking place on Jan. 2. With a chance to match up against an ACC opponent (probably not Clemson), there would be a lot of people tuning in to watch some college football the day after New Years.

So while the team was just there a few years ago, it wouldn’t be a big surprise if this is where they are sent. If selected, it would be the sixth Gator Bowl trip in program history.

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TransPerfect Music City Bowl (Dec. 30, Nashville, TN)

It would be a bit surprising if the Gamecocks weren’t sent to Florida for their bowl game this year. But for the sake of discussion, let’s talk about why the Music City Bowl could be an option.

While this game is usually reserved for more middle of the pack or 6 to 8-win teams, it’s not impossible for a team in South Carolina’s position to be sent here. Back in 2017, Northwestern, who won nine regular season games, went to Nashville and finished 10-3 with a 24-23 win over Kentucky.

ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura predicts the Gamecocks will play the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Music City Bowl. This game would feature a lot of firsts since they’ve never played Minnesota and have never been to the Music City Bowl, even though they were just in Nashville a month ago to play Vanderbilt.

It might feel like a disappointment to be sent to this game with how great of a season it has been. But it could be much worse. After all, Gamecock fans showed up in droves to Nashville last month and packed out Broadway. Who wouldn’t want to go on another trip and spend their New Years Eve here?

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