South Carolina Gamecocks fans prove themselves to be among the best in the nation

South Carolina Gamecocks fans have gotten a lot of love over the past 24 hours. The Cockpit was rowdy on Tuesday night in Colonial Life Arena as Lamont Paris' South Carolina basketball team dominated the 6th-ranked Kentucky Wildcats, and the environment played a role in the lopsided win.

For years, many have claimed that the South Carolina Gamecocks have a collective fanbase that is among the best groups in the country, regardless of sport. As it turns out, the numbers support that claim.

According to figures compiled by South Carolina Executive Associate Athletics Director Charles Bloom, USC is one of just five athletic departments in the country to rank in the top-50 in attendance in football, men's basketball, women's basketball, volleyball, men's soccer, and women's soccer. When adding in baseball and softball, the Gamecocks are the only team in the nation to be in the top-50 in all eight of those sports from the 2023 athletic year.

South Carolina Gamecocks men's soccer, women's soccer, and women's basketball all led the nation in attendance last year, football finished 2023 16th, men's basketball completed the 2022-2023 year ranked 29th in attendance, and volleyball ended the year in 43rd. South Carolina baseball was 6th nationally in attendance in 2023, and the resurgent softball team drew the 13th most fans last year.

Perhaps the most impressive part of those attendance figures is that the Gamecocks had bad years in football, men's basketball, men's soccer, and volleyball. None of those teams had a winning season, but the Carolina Faithful showed up to support their teams anyway.

As the garnet and black-clad fanbase showed on Tuesday night, they are capable of even better attendance numbers when the on-field product is good. As men's basketball has gotten better, so have the crowds. No one should be surprised to see USC rank even higher in some of these attendance numbers next year.