The shift in the SEC's scheduling to a nine-game conference line up started next year was inevitable. Now it's official and the countdown has begun. With the permanent opponents in place for the next four years, every athletic department in the conference just got more complicated. And South Carolina is no exeception.
How do you juggle non-conference dates when you are guaranteed nine SEC matchups plus Clemson every single year? That's ten heavyweight fights locked in, which means the Gamecocks will only have two other slots to fill.
And then South Carolina AD Jeremiah Donati drops this little nugget:
“We’ve even received a lot of interest in playing some games overseas, in multiple destinations. We’re trying to be open-minded, keep our eyes wide open.” A very interesting idea for the Gamecocks to be one of the teams opening the season with an overseas matchup.
The schedule needs to be finalized soon for the 2026 season, and then the 2027 will be on its heels. South Carolina has four non-conference games for the 2027 season including Furman, App State, Miami, and Clemson, which means one has to be cut. And spoiler alert, it's not the Tigers. “We are always going to play Clemson. That’s a huge part of our tradition, our culture, our rivalry,” Donati said. “We’re passionate about that series and that matchup.”
The goal for Shane Beamer's program is to balance tradition with opportunity and give the Gamecocks the best shot at the expanded College Football Playoff. And right now, everything is on the table, even a Gamecock kickoff across the pond.