South Carolina Football: College GameDay officially chooses Battle of the Carolinas in Week 1

South Carolina football is taking on their border rivals to the north in the season opener. The Gamecocks and Tar Heels will open a season against each other for the 4th time in 11 seasons with this matchup also being the 4th time in a row that the Battle of the Carolinas will be played in Charlotte. This one will be a little extra special, however, as College GameDay will be in town.

College GameDay will be in Charlotte on September 2nd to party with Gamecock and Tar Heel fans to kick off the 2023 college football season. College GameDay and the University of South Carolina have confirmed the news.

The College GameDay broadcast will take place live from Romare Bearden Park in downtown Charlotte and will air on ESPN from 9 AM to 12 PM. The game itself will begin at 7:30 and will be broadcast on ABC and the ESPN App.

Aside from just opening the season, the Battle of the Carolinas will be a huge game for both teams. The Gamecocks and Tar Heels each have some schedule volatility due to difficult but still winnable tests on the schedule.

The Gamecocks have been projected anywhere from 6 wins to 9 wins by national outlets, and the Tar Heels have an even bigger margin as UNC has been picked to win anywhere from 6 games to 11 by various college football analysts.

While a win would be big, a loss does not necessarily mean doom and gloom. In 2015, South Carolina football beat the Larry Fedora-led North Carolina Tar Heels in Charlotte to open the season, but USC went on to just win 2 more games, while UNC was an onside kick conversion against Clemson in the ACC Championship Game away from a College Football Playoff appearance.

After the Gamecocks won just seven times in the first forty meetings between USC and UNC, the rivalry matchup has flipped on its head. South Carolina football has knocked off North Carolina 13 times in the 19 games played in the last 60 seasons including 4 of the 5 contests that have taken place in the last 30 years.

The quarterback showdown between Gamecock football’s Spencer Rattler and UNC’s Drake Maye could be one of the best of the season. Both signal callers have been projected as highly as 1st round picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Buckle up, college football fans: we are 40 days from kickoff.