South Carolina football: Will Muschamp hot seat meter

South Carolina football coach Will Muschamp’s seat got a bit cooler with a big win over Auburn.

Coming into the season, Will Muschamp’s chances of being fired by the end of the year were pretty substantial. His 2-to-1 odds were tops in the conference, just ahead of Vanderbilt’s Derek Mason (9/4).

Things began to look even more bleak after the Gamecocks dropped their first two matchups of the season. Mental mistakes in the Tennessee game cost the team a chance to win, as the Volunteers escaped Williams-Brice Stadium with a 31-27 victory.

The heat really started to turn up following the Gamecocks’ lack of urgency on their final drive of the Florida game. Needing two touchdowns to tie the game with just under 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the South Carolina offense embarked on a near eight-minute drive that ended on the Florida goal line with just 50 seconds left on the clock.

The lack of hustle received some criticism, as South Carolina seemed to be playing to keep the score close rather than going for a win. The Gamecocks left the Swamp with a 38-24 defeat, and a sour taste in the mouths of the fanbase. It was the sixth loss in the Gamecocks’ last seven games, and folks were calling for Muschamp’s head.

My, how things can change in a couple of short weeks.

Going into a week three meeting with Vanderbilt, coach Muschamp’s seat was as hot as ever. A 41-7 shellacking of the Commodores paused the talks of firing for a week, but did little to improve the head coach’s position with the fanbase. He needed a big win.

Cue South Carolina’s upset of a 15th ranked Auburn team on Saturday. Muschamp’s defense was flying to the ball, the offense continued to control the flow of the game, and the team eventually beat the Tigers into submission.

It was Muschamp’s first signature win of the year, and his most recent since the Georgia game in 2019. The win was South Carolina’s first over Auburn since joining the SEC. Suddenly, things are looking up for the program heading into a meeting with LSU, who looks to be a shell of the team that won the national title a year ago.

Now, the season can go in one of two directions. We saw last year, that even big wins can’t save a season. The Gamecocks were 3-3 and coming off of a huge win in Athens, but followed up the top five victory by losing five of the next six games. The 4-8 final record is what started the Muschamp hot seat debate in the first place.

Most fans, though, are hoping that this will be the win that finally gets the program over the hump under their fifth-year head coach. Can the Gamecocks turn the corner and build upon this new momentum? Can Will Muschamp make this the norm in Columbia, or will the win be yet another enigma? The next test comes in Baton Rouge, but for now, the South Carolina head coach is safe.

CURRENT SEAT HEAT: LEVEL 5 (out of 10)

WEEK 4: LEVEL 8 (cooling, but not by much)

WEEK 3: LEVEL 10 (scorching)

WEEK 2: LEVEL 8 (heating up)

WEEK 1: LEVEL 7 (toasty)