What South Carolina football records could be broken in 2025?
——This is part of a summer series. Leading up to the start of South Carolina’s 2025 season, The State is answering 25 of the most interesting questions surrounding the Gamecocks football team. This is No. 15 ——
This endeavor feels straightforward … until you actually look at South Carolina’s record book. Perhaps it’s simply a product of college football in 2025, where guys who start four years feel like dinosaurs, and guys who start four years for the same team feel like unicorns.
But there are plenty of records — real and cherry-picked — that could go down in 2025. Here are the top five marks we think could be broken this season.
5. Single-season receiving yards by a freshman
It has been 20 years since a redshirt freshman from Gaffney broke out for South Carolina, setting basically every freshman receiving record. And, still, two decades later, almost all of Sidney Rice’s records stand.
But could this be the year one — or more — go down?
The Gamecocks are bringing in a half-dozen highly touted wideouts, headlined by Brian Rowe Jr., Malik Clark and Donovan Murph, and it seems possible that one of them could break out and challenge Rice’s freshman records for catches (70) or receiving yards (1,143).
4. Quarterback rushing touchdowns
This is what we mean by cherry-picked. This is not an actual category in South Carolina’s record book, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a record.
It does not seem impossible to think that Jeff Grantz’s record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback (12, set in 1975) could be surpassed by LaNorris Sellers, who ran into the end zone seven times last season. Or Grantz’s mark for rushing yards in a season (806 in 1973) — Sellers had 674 yards rushing in 2024.
The logical records for Sellers to break would be QB rushing records, but some might be long shots:
▪ most rushing yards in a game (260 by Grantz, 1973);
▪ most rushing yards in career (1,683 Connor Shaw).
3. Career completion percentage
This assumes that 2025 will be the final year for Sellers at Carolina, which is certainly not a guarantee.
Regardless, he’s in within range of a record held by his predecessor, Spencer Rattler, who is USC’s career leader in completion percentage (67.5%).
Heading into his redshirt sophomore campaign, Sellers currently holds a career 66% completion percentage (200 for 303). Knowing that new offensive coordinator Mike Shula has been adamant that he wants Sellers to make quicker decisions and focus on being timely with the football, there’s no reason to think that the quarterback doesn’t complete more than two-thirds of his attempts.
2. Single-season sacks
Finding defensive records at South Carolina ripe to be broken is almost impossible. Some of them are just silly.
Like tackles in a game (James Seawright, 29, 1984). Or interceptions in a season (Bryant Gillard, 9, 1984). Or tackles in a season (Mike Durrah, 179, 1983) — which, um, might need an investigation.
One of the few that seems attainable is, surprisingly, Jadeveon Clowney’s single-season record of 13.5 sacks, which was nearly broken by Kyle Kennard last year. (He finished with 11.5.)
But right behind Kennard was freshman Dylan Stewart, who comes into the 2025 season as one of the best defensive returners in the sport.
A season after notching 6.5 last season, it seems possible that Stewart could more than double that number in 2025 — as long as he’s not getting triple-teamed or held on every play.
1. Total offense
This one feels like a lock.
Total offense is just passing yards plus rushing yards and, because passing yards come easiest, the Top 10 is all quarterbacks. The record holder is Dylan Thompson, who racked up 3,492 yards of total offense despite rushing for minus 72 yards.
In 2024, Sellers came just short of that, finishing with 3,208 yards of total offense — 2,534 through the air and 674 on the ground — despite missing a game and a half with injuries. If he stays healthy, it would be shocking if Sellers doesn’t grab this record.
25 QUESTIONS FOR THE 2025 SEASON:
No. 25 — What South Carolina positions have the most question marks heading into season?
No. 24 — A Gamecocks victory over Va. Tech would be biggest season-opening win since when?
No. 23 — How will South Carolina’s QB room shake out in 2025 and beyond?
No. 22 — If USC beat Bama or LSU in ’24, would national conversation be different right now?
No. 21 — Can the Gamecocks’ offensive line take a step forward in 2025?
No. 20 — What former South Carolina football player will get his jersey retired next?
No. 19 — Can South Carolina get to the LSU game undefeated?
No. 18 — Will Fred Johnson be South Carolina’s next great LB?
No. 17 — What’s the most important stretch in USC’s 2025 schedule?
No. 16 — Can South Carolina’s defense stay elite despite all its roster turnover?
No. 15 — What South Carolina school records could be broken in 2025?
No. 14 — What’s the ceiling for USC’s running backs, with or without Rahsul Faison?
No. 13 — Can South Carolina’s special teams get back to Beamer Ball standard?
No. 12 — Have Gamecocks found right balance of high school football talent, transfers?
No. 11 — How will Shane Beamer go viral this year with South Carolina?
No. 10 — Is South Carolina too young at wide receiver?
No. 9 — Is this South Carolina’s easiest schedule in the Shane Beamer era?
No. 8 — Will there be noticeable changes in Mike Shula’s offense at South Carolina?
No. 7 — Can South Carolina football stay relatively healthy again in 2025?
No. 6 — Is this the last year for Williams-Brice Stadium as we know it?
No. 5 — What does a path to the playoff look like for South Carolina?
No. 4 — What happens if South Carolina football is no longer an underdog?
No. 3 — How would a 10-win season in 2025 shape Shane Beamer’s legacy in Columbia?
No. 2 — Can Dylan Stewart have a better season than Jadeveon Clowney did in 2012?
No. 1 — Can LaNorris Sellers become the best QB in South Carolina history?
This story was originally published July 7, 2025 at 7:00 AM.
