South Carolina is in the middle of its spring practices, and looking to drastically improve from last season's 4-8 finish. One way the Gamecocks are looking to do that is hiring new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles.
Briles, who joined South Carolina's staff last December, spent the last three seasons at TCU. Last season, he coached the likes of Josh Hoover at quarterback. The Horned Frog signal-caller finished last season fourth nationally in pass yards per game, averaging 289.3 per contest.
On Monday afternoon, Briles met with the media to update how spring practice is going with his new offense so far. The Gamecocks' unquestioned star is quarterback LaNorris Sellers. Sellers, a redshirt junior, is returning for 2026 despite being eligible for this year's NFL Draft. Brils has been impressed with what he's seen from his quarterback so far
"A lot of work to do, not just him, but everybody," Briles said via On3Sports. But I was pleased with him and the other quarterbacks; they look sharp. You know, I’m really impressed with his mental capacity, really sharp. You know, obviously, he’s gifted athletically, but matters a lot to him. Cares a lot. He works really hard, and I really appreciate that.”
Sellers had a breakout season in 2024, throwing for 2,534 yards with 18 touchdowns and 17 interceptions, adding 674 yards with seven scores on the ground. But he regressed last season, throwing for just 2,437 yards with 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions, completing just 60.8 percent of his passes.
Briles told reporters that the two have been focusing on the present, rather than re-hashing what went wrong last season.
Briles and Sellers didn't talk at all about last year.
— David Cloninger (@DCPandC) March 16, 2026
All about moving forward. https://t.co/uSKqBaqMWu
Briles also added that unlike his previous quarterback in Hoover, the playbook will rely on Sellers' legs in 2026. Despite not throwing the ball as well last season, Sellers still rushed for 270 yards with five scores in 2025.
“We [TCU] were probably more throw-happy than we’ll be here. That just fit Josh and his skill set," Briles added via On3. "He’s really a pure thrower. And, you know, we didn’t want to run him much. And I think with LaNorris durability, we’ll be able to do some more of that and use his legs at times. So, you know, we’re still learning right now as well. And you know, on the third day of practice, and really all three, but LaNorris is throwing the ball really well."
Briles also described his playbook as "diverse," which should excite Gamecock fans.
Briles: Playbook is diverse. He has some stuff in there he ran in high school.
— David Cloninger (@DCPandC) March 16, 2026
He also added that he plans to utilize five or six running backs in the backfield.
Briles: Expects to have a room of five RBs, probably six. And got to have four per game.
— David Cloninger (@DCPandC) March 16, 2026
Some of the big names heading into 2026 at tailback include redshirt sophomore Matt Fuller, redshirt junior Jawarn Howell, former Colorado transfer Isaiah Augustave and transfers such as Christian Clark from Texas, Jabree Coleman from Penn State and former Ohio State running back Sam Dixon.
South Carolina's offense finished 104th in scoring offense last season, averaging just 22.7 points per game. But Briles admitted that he isn't too worried about how many points South Carolina scores this season, just if the Gamecocks get wins:
“We need to be productive enough for us to win football games," Briles said. I don’t care if we average 12 points per game if we’re winning every single game. That’s what it’s all about, and that’s how we’re judged is go win games. Can’t answer that question. We’ll see the kind of team we got. We’ve been through three spring practices, so a lot of water under the bridge before that.”
Briles also pointed out that he has just had three practices with South Carolina so far. But despite the small sample size, he sounds excited about where the Gamecocks are headed.
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