South Carolina football: Brett McMurphy projects bowl matchups
By Jacob Elsey
Where will South Carolina football end up this bowl season?
South Carolina football has had a disappointing year, having fired its head coach midseason in the midst of a two-win campaign. Still, the team could find itself in a bowl game come late December. In fact, with the SEC’s bowl tie-ins and the recent opt outs of Power Five programs around the country, it’s looking like a guarantee that the Gamecocks will be in action this postseason.
College football insider Brett McMuprhy certainly thinks so, as South Carolina has landed in his most recent bowl projections. McMurphy presents a rather interesting opponent for the Gamecocks, as he pairs the program with Liberty in a Gasparilla Bowl matchup.
Liberty is led by Hugh Freeze, a head coach that many believed was the leading candidate for the South Carolina job when it originally opened up. For one reason or another, the Gamecocks passed on Freeze in favor of Shane Beamer, who was hired on December 7th.
The game could present a bit of a “revenge game” for Freeze, who may have an extra motivation to make the Gamecocks sorry that they passed on him during the hiring process. Or, he could be more focused on an opening at Auburn, who knows?
If the matchup does come to fruition, the Flames would present a solid matchup for South Carolina this postseason. Liberty went 9-1 this season, taking down two ACC members along the way (Va. Tech, Syracuse). Their only defeat was a one-point loss on the road at North Carolina State, with the Wolfpack blocking Liberty’s game winning field goal attempt in the final minutes of a 15-14 win.
The Flames have had one of the nation’s top offenses under Freeze’s leadership, ranking 17th in scoring at more than 38 points a game. The group also ranks 18th nationally in scoring defense, providing a stiff test on both sides of the ball should they meet up with the Gamecocks.
South Carolina seems more than willing to accept a bowl bid, no matter the location, as they look to get more reps for a group full of youth and inexperience. The Gamecocks will likely know their fate in the coming days as conference championships wrap up. This projected matchup with Liberty would attract the attention of Gamecock fans, giving them a glimpse of what might have been had they gone a different direction with the head coaching hire.