Sizing up South Carolina’s four most likely bowl destinations
In the wake of South Carolina’s disappointment over being ranked on the outside of the 12-team College Football Playoff, Shane Beamer emphasized that his team wasn’t going to just throw their hands up and give up on the season.
“I will say this: The players on this team are extremely motivated to try and go get a 10th win,” Beamer said. “That’s really important to a lot of guys.”
Now the question is where the Gamecocks will play for their chance to win 10 games for just the fifth time in program history. The answer becomes official sometime Sunday afternoon when bowl selections are made.
Here are the four most likely options.
CITRUS BOWL
DEC. 31 // ORLANDO, FLA. // vs. BIG TEN
This is technically the top non-playoff bowl an SEC team can play in.
Unlike some conferences, where there’s a clear pecking order among bowls, the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl gets the first choice, and then it’s a little wonky. The SEC, working with the bowls and schools, make assignments for the rest of the conference-affiliated games.
In most years, the top-ranked non-playoff team would participate in the Citrus Bowl — which seemingly means it’ll be either No. 13 Ole Miss or No. 14 South Carolina.
Would the Citrus Bowl pick Ole Miss just because it’s a higher-ranked squad? Or would it perhaps choose the Gamecocks considering Columbia is almost five hours closer to Orlando than Oxford, Mississippi? Would it take into consideration that USC is on a six-game winning streak with its fans on cloud nine?
It may not matter, though, if Alabama gets knocked out of the playoff. At that point, the Citrus Bowl might think the Crimson Tide is more desirable for its game.
South Carolina has not played in Orlando since 2014. For what it’s worth, a majority of the bowl projections have USC facing No. 21 Illinois in the Citrus Bowl. And, well, imagine how glorious the images of Beamer getting drenched in Cheez-Its would be.
GATOR BOWL
JAN. 2 // JACKSONVILLE, FLA // vs. ACC
This is probably the most likely destination for the Gamecocks if the Citrus Bowl chooses Ole Miss or Alabama.
Yes, USC played in the Gator Bowl just two years ago, but the Gamecocks sold 40,000 tickets. To the Gator Bowl, South Carolina must feel like a cash cow — especially after it just beat Clemson. Why would it not want USC back?
For South Carolina fans, it’s the closest possible bowl game — just a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Columbia to Jacksonville. And if anyone cares about these things, it’s the only bowl game on Thursday, Jan 2 so people will be watching.
CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm projected the Gamecocks to play in the Gator Bowl against Syracuse (9-3).
RELIAQUEST BOWL
DEC. 31 // TAMPA, FLA. // vs. BIG TEN
This is the old Outback Bowl, the same site where Jadeveon Clowney took a man’s soul on the first day of 2013.
The Gamecocks have played in Tampa one time since (Jan. 1, 2018 also against Michigan), and it feels like that could be a good landing spot for South Carolina if the Citrus Bowl passes on it. But no national projections have USC going there.
A possible reason: 247Sports’ Brad Crawford reported that there are already “behind-the-scenes discussions” about Florida and Michigan playing each other in Tampa.
MUSIC CITY BOWL
DEC. 30 // NASHVILLE, Tenn. // vs. BIG TEN
Yes, this feels a bit random. South Carolina has never played in the Music City Bowl. And it always seems to be rewarded with a Florida bowl following a great season.
But ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura projected the Gamecocks to play in Nashville against Minnesota (7-5).
A few things:
1. South Carolina would be favored by double-digits against the Gophers — which, depending on your perspective, is good or bad.
2. South Carolina just played in Nashville (vs. Vanderbilt) in November. Broadway was packed with Gamecocks fans — but would they travel to the Music City twice in two months?
3. There are worse things in this world than spending New Year’s Eve (for those who stay) in Nashville.
The Music City seems only a possibility if Alabama doesn’t make the playoff and everyone gets knocked down the bowl rungs, but perhaps it would be cool for South Carolina to play in an NFL stadium in a destination city.
This story was originally published December 6, 2024 at 7:11 AM.
