COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Shane Beamer and the 13th-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks are hoping to parlay momentum from last season's strong finish into a breakthrough 2025 campaign.
The Gamecocks won their final six games last year before losing to Illinois 21-17 in the Citrus Bowl to finish 9-4 after barely missing out on the College Football Playoff. This year marks the first time South Carolina has been ranked in preseason AP Top 25 since 2014, when they debuted at No. 9.
That brings added pressure to the Gamecocks, who'll look to navigate a brutal schedule that includes six games against Top 25 teams: Clemson (No. 4), Alabama (8), LSU (9), Oklahoma (18), Texas A&M (19) and Ole Miss (21).
Beamer, who is 29-22 in four years at South Carolina and 15-17 against conference foes, said it is a welcome change.
“Yeah, I’d rather be ranked high and have those expectations than not," Beamer said,. “As a coach, when you’re not ranked high, like we were last year, it’s great because you can use that as fuel and motivation. But we want to be a team that’s consistently ranked high in the top 10, top 15, going into every single season."
Senior defensive lineman Nick Barrett arrived in Columbia three years ago when the Gamecocks were coming off a 2-8 season, so he's seen the steady rise of the program.
“We just continue to come in with a chip on our shoulder, the team, to get better," Barrett said. "That last season was last season. We understand that’s a whole different story; it’s a whole new team. We gotta do something different this year. We can’t just live off last year.”
Much of the optimism surrounding the Gamecocks revolves around returning starting quarterback LaNorris Sellers, who threw for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns with seven interceptions in 2024. The versatile Sellers also ran for 674 yards and seven scores, including a 75-yard scamper against LSU.
“If you had a good season the year before and your quarterback returns, you’re probably going to be ranked pretty high," Beamer said. “And that’s what we are.”
ESPN projected Sellers as a mid-first round draft pick in 2026 in its recent mock draft. But the QB said he's not worried about playing at the next level right now, insisting his focus is on “keeping my head down” and getting better on a daily basis.
“I know how much work I had to put in to get there, but I could also lose it quick,” Sellers said.
Adde Beamer: “I think we’re going to be better around LaNorris as well on the offense — more depth and competition at pretty much every position. That’s going to help him. He doesn’t have to be Superman for us. Just continue to be the person he is, the leader that he is, and the player that he is.”
Sellers said he is “super excited” to play with his freshman brother, Jayden Sellers, who joined the school in the spring after enrolling early.
Jayden Sellers led South Florence High School to a state championship last season after catching 59 passes for 1,016 yards and 14 touchdowns. He added 485 yards and 10 more TDs on the ground.
“Last time we played together with him was my senior, which was year three years ago," the elder Sellers said. "I was always quarterback. He played pretty much everywhere. And in rec league, he played running back, receiver, DB. He played that up until last year, senior year. I think he’s fully receiver now. But that’s all we used to do, throw a deep field run and he’d catch it.”
The defense will be anchored by 6-foot-5, 245-pound sophomore linebacker Dylan Stewart, who had 6 1/2 sacks, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries last season. He has already been named to the watchlist for the Walter Camp Award and Bronko Nagurski Award given to the nation’s top defensive player.
South Carolina wide receiver Nyck Harbor was viewed as an Olympic hopeful after finishing as a second-team All-American last year in the 100 and 200 meters.
But Harbor has given up track to focus on football, where he was South Carolina's most targeted receiver last year.
“He’s not just your everyday, ‘I’m gonna go run the track team and have a good college career.’ Like he could have run in the Olympics,” Beamer said.
South Carolina will be challenged right away, opening against ACC foe Virginia Tech in Atlanta. The Gamecocks' schedule really begins to hit its stride in early October when they face five straight Top 25 teams including road games at LSU (Oct. 11), Ole Miss (Nov. 1) and Texas A&M (Nov. 15), and home games vs. Oklahoma (Oct. 18) and Alabama (Oct. 25). The Gamecocks close the season with their traditional rivalry game against Clemson at home on Nov. 28.
AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25
FILE - South Carolina edge Dylan Stewart (6) plays against Vanderbilt during an NCAA football game on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
