No spring game? USC should consider these fan-friendly alternatives
Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer confirmed it recently: South Carolina will not hold a spring game at Williams-Brice Stadium this year.
With the ongoing construction at Willy-B, and a tight timeline to have the renovations finished in time for the 2026 football season, it’s not a surprise the normal spring game was affected. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be some sort of alternative.
Heck, Beamer alluded to the fact that USC is planning some sort of event.
“We’ve got to do what’s best for construction,” Beamer said. “We’ve got to do what’s best for our fans. We’ve got to do what’s best for our team in regard to spring practice. But we should have some more information on that as we go forward.”
What could that look like? Well, The State thought up three fan-friendly ideas that South Carolina could implement in place of its traditional spring game.
1. Sell tickets to spring practices
In a time when every college program is searching for new and creative ways to generate revenue, here’s the perfect opportunity. Why not designate a few practices this spring that fans can attend and USC can make some money in the process?
Here’s the thought: Make it available to 1,500 people (or however many can safely attend). Half of those spots go to paying customers, who each donate some amount — $500, $1,000, whatever the market dictates — to South Carolina’s NIL fund. As for the other half? Put every season-ticket holder in a lottery and pick names. Those chosen can come for free.
Using this method, South Carolina can still earn money for its athletic department while also rewarding some fans who already renewed their season tickets.
And the Gamecocks have already done something similar. For the on-campus Pro Day last year, South Carolina invited boosters who donated a certain amount into a VIP area on the field for an up-close view as former players showcased their skills in front of NFL scouts.
2. Hold smaller ‘spring games’ around Columbia, or SC
If South Carolina wanted to go all out and try to appeal to fans all across the Palmetto State, it could maybe hold one open scrimmage in Greenville, another in Charleston and create a unique opportunity for Upstate and Lowcountry residents to watch the Gamecocks in their neck of the woods.
That, though, would be tough to pull off. It also sort of goes against the idea that a spring game brings fans and alumni back to campus, allowing them to experience a game weekend in the spring.
Knowing that, could South Carolina find another place in Columbia to hold it? An obvious choice would be at Spring Valley High School, which has a 12,000-seat football stadium. Now, the Gamecocks have drawn over 32,000 fans to their spring game in each of the last three years, so Spring Valley would certainly restrict capacity.
Perhaps the Gamecocks could hold two different practices or scrimmages there. Maybe they could hold one spring game there, charge $20 for tickets and create a wild, overflowing venue for an exhibition game. Both would be massive hits.
3. Put on a massive fan fest at Gamecock Park
This is probably the most likely event, simply because it would be the easiest to pull off.
If South Carolina — like other schools doing stadium renovations have done — just temporarily does away with a spring game, there’s no reason the Gamecocks couldn’t hold a fan fest inside Gamecock Park and bring out every player to sign autographs and take pictures.
Maybe there’s a station where Nyck Harbor races kids in a 40-yard dash. Maybe LaNorris Sellers hikes to the top of Willy-B and has receivers stationed in Gamecock Park to catch passes. Perhaps the entire offensive line sits on a stage and has to devour an entire hog in under two hours for fans to win a free chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A. The opportunities are endless.
South Carolina does a superb job at turning Gamecock Park into a fun, family-friendly place before football games. There’s often a band playing on a stage, projectors showing college football, food trucks, beer carts, companies handing out free merch, and so on.
USC could do something very similar in the spring and almost turn it into a pep rally. There could be a Gamecock Walk to start off the event. Beamer could get up on stage and fire up the crowd. And, more than anything, fans could tailgate outside Williams-Brice Stadium in the spring — just as they have for years and years.
This story was originally published February 12, 2026 at 7:57 AM.
