South Carolina zooms past win-loss projections ... especially this one

ESPN host Booger McFarland called South Carolina “very very good football team” a day after the Gamecocks earned their eighth win of the season with a 31-10 win over Wofford.

Yes, that’s the same McFarland who three months ago predicted a much less successful season for the Gamecocks.

“Overall I think they’re going to be 4-8. A lot of promise,” McFarland said in August. “People in South Carolina don’t really look negatively at this. I know coming off Jake Bentley last year, everyone is saying this is the year. They still have a long way to go to improve this roster.”

McFarland said USC’s four wins would come over Kentucky, Louisiana Tech, Arkansas and Wofford. He got three of those correct.

In addition to Louisiana Tech, Arkansas and Wofford, the Gamecocks got victories over N.C. State, Missouri, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Florida.

Fellow SEC Network personality Greg McElroy predicted a significant step forward for USC in 2018 or 2019. McElroy said six or seven wins were in the cards for this season, which was in line with most pundits’ predictions.

The State’s Josh Kendall predicted a 6-6 season for South Carolina.

One Las Vegas sports book in the spring set the Gamecocks’ over/under for wins at 5.5.

Today the Gamecocks are 8-3 with a chance to upset No. 2 Clemson when the Tigers come to Williams-Brice Stadium next weekend. South Carolina has won five of its past six games and has the most wins since the 2013 season, when it finished 11-2.

And McFarland’s projection, as you might imagine, has been the target of some Twitter fun.

This story was originally published November 19, 2017 at 12:00 PM with the headline "South Carolina zooms past win-loss projections ... especially this one."