South Carolina football debuts inside top 15 in preseason AP poll

After finishing the 2024 season inside the top 20 in the polls (and pushing right to the brink of the College Football Playoff cut line at the end of the regular season), South Carolina football has been a popular pick inside offseason and preseason top 25 rankings ever since.

Last week, the USA Today coaches poll saw the Gamecocks debut at No. 13 in its preseason top 25. Then, on Monday, the Associated Press followed suit with its preseason top 25. According to the AP, Shane Beamer’s team is a preseason top 15 squad. South Carolina debuted at No. 13 overall, matching the coaches poll.

The entire preseason AP poll is below (overall first-place votes in parentheses):

1. Texas Longhorns (25)
2. Penn State Nittany Lions (23)
3. Ohio State Buckeyes (11)
4. Clemson Tigers (4)
5. Georgia Bulldogs (1)
6. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
7. Oregon Ducks (1)
8. Alabama Crimson Tide
9. LSU Tigers
10. Miami Hurricanes
11. Arizona State Sun Devils
12. Illinois Fighting Illini
13. South Carolina Gamecocks
14. Michigan Wolverines
15. Florida Gators
16. SMU Mustangs
17. Kansas State Wildcats
18. Oklahoma Sooners
19. Texas A&M Aggies
20. Indiana Hoosiers
21. Ole Miss Rebels
22. Iowa State Cyclones
23. Texas Tech Red Raiders
24. Tennessee Volunteers
25. Boise State Broncos

Also receiving votes: BYU Cougars, Utah Utes, Baylor Bears, Louisville Cardinals, Southern Cal Trojans, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Missouri Tigers, Tulane Green Wave, Nebraska Cornhuskers, UNLV Runnin’ Rebels, Toledo Rockets, Auburn Tigers, James Madison Dukes, Memphis Tigers, Florida State Seminoles, Duke Blue Devils, Liberty Flames, Navy Midshipmen, Iowa Hawkeyes, TCU Horned Frogs, Pittsburgh Panthers, Army Black Knights, Colorado Buffaloes, Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns

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South Carolina’s 13th spot in the rankings is high, but the Gamecocks were not unanimously voted into the top 25. At No. 13, Carolina is also fifth in the SEC behind only Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and LSU.

Just three teams on South Carolina’s schedule own a higher preseason AP ranking than the Gamecocks. Six total teams on the schedule earned preseason AP recognition. This fall, USC will take on the Clemson Tigers (No. 4), Alabama Crimson Tide (No. 8), LSU Tigers (No. 9), Oklahoma Sooners (No. 18), Texas A&M Aggies (No. 19), and Ole Miss Rebels (No. 21); of those ranked contests, three (Clemson, Alabama, and Oklahoma) will be at Williams-Brice Stadium, while three (LSU, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M) will come on the road. The Missouri Tigers are on the schedule, too (on the road in “the other Columbia”), and Eli Drinkwitz’s team found themselves in the AP’s “also receiving votes” category (they would have been 32nd had the rankings extended that far).

South Carolina will open the 2025 season in less than three weeks. The Gamecocks will take on the Virginia Tech Hokies in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday, August 31st. ESPN will broadcast the 3:00 p.m. contest, while the ESPN app makes it available via streaming.

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