ESPN report predicts Kirby Smart as next Gamecocks coach

ESPN senior writer Mark Schlabach predicts that Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart will be the Gamecocks’ next head coach.

Schlabach said Smart “is exactly what the Gamecocks need in a new head coach. Smart, 39, knows the SEC inside and out after playing and coaching at Georgia, his alma mater, before coaching at LSU and Alabama” and that “few assistants have recruited the Southeast as well as Smart during the past nine seasons.”

Steve Spurrier resigned as USC coach on Oct. 12, with Shawn Elliott being named interim head coach. USC is in the middle of its open week this week, with a road trip to Texas A&M coming up on Oct. 31.

In addition to the perceived forefront of candidates that includes Smart, Houston coach Tom Herman and Memphis coach Justin Fuente, ESPN writer Travis Haney said Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez could also be someone that USC talks to about its coaching vacancy.

This story was originally published October 21, 2015 at 3:48 PM with the headline "ESPN report predicts Kirby Smart as next Gamecocks coach."