"According to both my S&P+ estimates and Sports Reference's SRS ratings, the best South Carolina team of all time took the field in 1987. Joe Morrison's squad boasted a 3,000-yard passer in Todd Ellis, an all-world receiver by the name of Sterling Sharpe and a defense with two All-Americans -- defensive back Brad Edwards and defensive tackle Roy Hart -- and two more soon-to-be draftees in the secondary. The Gamecocks averaged 28.4 points per game (18th in what we now call FBS), and a defense they called Black Death allowed just 11.8 (fourth).
The best South Carolina team ever went just 8-4. The Gamecocks' schedule featured trips to Georgia (which finished the year ranked 13th), Nebraska (sixth) and national champion Miami, plus a visit from Clemson (12th) and a Gator Bowl matchup with LSU (fifth).
Outside of these five games, they went 7-0 and outscored opponents by an average of 41-7. They beat Clemson by two touchdowns, too. They scared the hell out of Miami but fell by four points after a late turnover on downs, blew a series of scoring chances in a seven-point loss to Georgia, and led by eight in Lincoln before a late Nebraska charge. This was an obviously good team, and with an easier schedule, they would have made a run at 10 wins and a top-10 finish.
The 2019 South Carolina team might wish it had the 1987 schedule.
Will Muschamp's fourth SC squad will face each of the projected top three teams in S&P+ (Alabama Sept. 14, at Georgia Oct. 12, and Clemson Nov. 30), plus four others projected 21st or higher. A majority of SC's schedule will come against top-25 caliber teams, and that's before we get to home games against Appalachian State and Kentucky and a neutral-field game against a mystery of a North Carolina team.
South Carolina is projected 18th, and there's at least a chance that S&P+ is underestimating the Gamecocks due to the "basically every single defender got hurt last year" factor. They have massive experience at quarterback (barring injury, Jake Bentley will finish his career as SC's all-time leading passer), in the skill corps (Rico Dowdle and Mon Denson combined for 1,086 rushing yards last year, and Bryan Edwards and Shi Smith had 100 catches for 1,519) and in the defensive front seven (11 of 13 players with at least three tackles for loss are back).
In areas in which the proven talent is minimal (offensive line, secondary), tons of players saw the field and got some level of experience. Quantity makes quality a bit more likely.
This could be a rock-solid team. It'll have to be to go even 6-6 or 7-5.
So here's the major question facing Muschamp and company this fall: How in the world do you define success? Muschamp, of course, will talk about wanting to compete and win every game and whatnot, and that's fine -- coaches say unrealistic things all the time. But it's hard for anyone to talk themselves into 7-5 being a truly successful year, even if it would be. And it's even harder when your in-state rival is winning national titles.
Muschamp's done a solid job in Columbia. He inherited a 3-9 mess from Steve Spurrier, and though the team improved to 6-7 in his first year, it was mainly because of narrow wins over bad teams. But the Gamecocks jumped to 41st in S&P+ in 2017 thanks to a resurgent defense, then improved to 20th last fall because of a drastically improved offense.
Muschamp offenses have been notoriously stultified through the years, but to his credit, he asked offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon to spread things out and increase the tempo last year, and it worked. SC ranked 11th in adjusted pace* and 34th in the percentage of solo tackles created** and improved overall.
The arrows haven't all been pointed in the same direction just yet, but the biggest driver of SC's record has been the schedule. It has gotten harder each year Muschamp has been in Columbia, and that will almost certainly continue. But on the bright side, it might not be possible to get any more difficult than this year's slate. All downhill from here!"
Pretty fair assessment, to be honest. Makes a good points about "how do you define success right now at USC?"
The best South Carolina team ever went just 8-4. The Gamecocks' schedule featured trips to Georgia (which finished the year ranked 13th), Nebraska (sixth) and national champion Miami, plus a visit from Clemson (12th) and a Gator Bowl matchup with LSU (fifth).
Outside of these five games, they went 7-0 and outscored opponents by an average of 41-7. They beat Clemson by two touchdowns, too. They scared the hell out of Miami but fell by four points after a late turnover on downs, blew a series of scoring chances in a seven-point loss to Georgia, and led by eight in Lincoln before a late Nebraska charge. This was an obviously good team, and with an easier schedule, they would have made a run at 10 wins and a top-10 finish.
The 2019 South Carolina team might wish it had the 1987 schedule.
Will Muschamp's fourth SC squad will face each of the projected top three teams in S&P+ (Alabama Sept. 14, at Georgia Oct. 12, and Clemson Nov. 30), plus four others projected 21st or higher. A majority of SC's schedule will come against top-25 caliber teams, and that's before we get to home games against Appalachian State and Kentucky and a neutral-field game against a mystery of a North Carolina team.
South Carolina is projected 18th, and there's at least a chance that S&P+ is underestimating the Gamecocks due to the "basically every single defender got hurt last year" factor. They have massive experience at quarterback (barring injury, Jake Bentley will finish his career as SC's all-time leading passer), in the skill corps (Rico Dowdle and Mon Denson combined for 1,086 rushing yards last year, and Bryan Edwards and Shi Smith had 100 catches for 1,519) and in the defensive front seven (11 of 13 players with at least three tackles for loss are back).
In areas in which the proven talent is minimal (offensive line, secondary), tons of players saw the field and got some level of experience. Quantity makes quality a bit more likely.
This could be a rock-solid team. It'll have to be to go even 6-6 or 7-5.
So here's the major question facing Muschamp and company this fall: How in the world do you define success? Muschamp, of course, will talk about wanting to compete and win every game and whatnot, and that's fine -- coaches say unrealistic things all the time. But it's hard for anyone to talk themselves into 7-5 being a truly successful year, even if it would be. And it's even harder when your in-state rival is winning national titles.
Muschamp's done a solid job in Columbia. He inherited a 3-9 mess from Steve Spurrier, and though the team improved to 6-7 in his first year, it was mainly because of narrow wins over bad teams. But the Gamecocks jumped to 41st in S&P+ in 2017 thanks to a resurgent defense, then improved to 20th last fall because of a drastically improved offense.
Muschamp offenses have been notoriously stultified through the years, but to his credit, he asked offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon to spread things out and increase the tempo last year, and it worked. SC ranked 11th in adjusted pace* and 34th in the percentage of solo tackles created** and improved overall.
The arrows haven't all been pointed in the same direction just yet, but the biggest driver of SC's record has been the schedule. It has gotten harder each year Muschamp has been in Columbia, and that will almost certainly continue. But on the bright side, it might not be possible to get any more difficult than this year's slate. All downhill from here!"
Pretty fair assessment, to be honest. Makes a good points about "how do you define success right now at USC?"
