Naming Gamecock MVPs: Here’s who shined for South Carolina football in 2025
It was a rough year for South Carolina football. The Gamecocks entered 2025 ready to build on a 9-3 season from 2024 and potentially solidify themselves as a College Football Playoff dark horse. Instead, USC went 4-8, won just one SEC game and simply fell well short of expectations .
Even in disappointing seasons, there are still players who stand out above the rest and represent a bright spot among the doom and gloom. This USC roster was no exception. That being said, here are the Gamecocks’ Most Valuable Players from each unit in 2025:
Offense: LaNorris Sellers, quarterback
Sellers threw for 2,437 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 2025, and added 270 yards and five touchdowns with his legs. That’s a regression from his 2024 season, but the Gamecock QB is this year’s MVP for everything he had to put up with around him.
He lost his offensive coordinator with three games left in the year. He was sacked 42 times, the second-most in all of Division I FBS. He played alongside the SEC’s second-worst rushing offense for average yards and behind the second-worst-graded pass blocking unit in SEC, per Pro Football Focus.
Was Sellers perfect? No. He missed throws, held onto the ball for too long at times and took more sacks than he needed.
Was he, in some games, drives and moments, the only player keeping USC’s offense afloat? Absolutely. For that, he is this year’s offensive MVP.
Defense: Bryan Thomas Jr., edge rusher
From media members and opposing teams alike, much of the attention to USC’s defense was focused on edge rusher Dylan Stewart, and what he might accomplish in his sophomore season.
All that attention opened gaps for senior pass rusher Bryan Thomas Jr. to dominate in 2025 and earn an All-SEC third-team nomination.
Thomas finished the season with a team- and career-high seven sacks and three forced fumbles, with 40 tackles overall. He also broke up a pass for the first time since his freshman season. All three stats put him in the top 10 among SEC defenders this season.
Without Thomas, teams could’ve isolated Stewart without a worry. Instead, USC got the best season out Thomas in four years at USC. He’ll turn to the next chapter as the Gamecocks’ 2025 defensive MVP.
Special teams: Vicari Swain, punt returner
An All-SEC third teamer this season, Swain wasn’t just one of the best special teams players in his conference — he was arguably the most electric punt returner in the nation.
Swain returned three punts for touchdowns this season, a school record, and tied for No. 1 in Division I FBS this season. His 302 punt return yards and 15.1 average yards per return are both No. 8 in the nation. He returned two punts for touchdowns Sept. 6 against South Carolina State.
His return touchdowns helped beat the Bulldogs and seal a season-opening win Aug. 31 against Virginia Tech. Without Swain fielding punts, USC might’ve been even worse off this season, and that’s more than enough to give him the special teams MVP award.
