| Year: | 2018 |
| Team: | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Southeastern Conference |
| Division: | Eastern Division |
| Short Conf: | SEC |
| Record: | 7–6 |
| Conf Record: | 4–4 |
| Head Coach: | Will Muschamp |
| Hc Year: | 3rd |
| Off Coach: | Bryan McClendon |
| Oc Year: | 3rd |
| Def Coach: | Travaris Robinson |
| Dc Year: | 3rd |
| Off Scheme: | Hurry-up, no-huddle spread |
| Def Scheme: | Multiple 4–3 |
| Stadium: | Williams–Brice Stadium |
| Bowl: | Belk Bowl |
| Bowl Result: | L 0–28 vs. Virginia |
The 2018 South Carolina Gamecocks football team (variously USC, SC, South Carolina, or The Gamecocks) represented the University of South Carolina in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. This season marked the Gamecocks 125th overall season, 27th as a member of the SEC, and 3rd under head coach Will Muschamp. The Gamecocks played their home games at Williams–Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina and compiled an overall record of 7–6, and 4–4 in SEC play.[1]
Muschamp became the first coach in school history to win 22 games and reach three bowl games in his first three seasons.[2] [3] However, this would be Muschamp's final winning season; it would also be South Carolina's final winning season until 2021.[4] Gamecock fan Marcus Washington's trap remix of "Sandstorm" also made its debut at Williams–Brice, and has since become a "staple" at home football games.[5] [6] [7]
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | 6'5 | 253 | Junior | Declared for NFL Draft[8] | |||
| LB | 6'2 | 221 | RS Senior | Graduated | |||
| Jamarcus King |
| CB | 6'1 | 186 | Senior | Graduated | ||
| Dante Sawyer |
| DE | 6'3 | 265 | Senior | Graduated | ||
| S | 5'9 | 188 | Senior | Graduated | |||
| Alan Knott |
| C | 6'4 | 274 | RS Senior | Graduated | ||
| DT | 6'3 | 308 | Senior | Graduated | |||
| Ulric Jones |
| DT | 6'6 | 309 | RS Senior | Graduated | ||
| D.J. Smith |
| S | 5'9 | 188 | Senior | Graduated | ||
| Corey Helms |
| OG | 6'5 | 308 | RS Senior | Alpharetta, GA | Graduated | |
| D.J. Park |
| RT | 6'5 | 332 | RS Senior | Graduated | ||
| Kaleb Chalmers |
| CB | 5'10 | 181 | RS Sophomore | Transferred[9] | ||
| C.J. Freeman |
| RB | 5'11 | 204 | RS Sophomore | Transferred[10] | ||
| Jerad Washington |
| WR | 5'8 | 171 | RS Sophomore | Transferred | ||
| Antoine Wilder |
| LB | 5'10 | 198 | RS Junior | Transferred[11] | ||
| Aaron Thompson |
| DT | 6'3 | 300 | RS Sophomore | Transferred | ||
| Terry Googer |
| WR | 6'4 | 217 | RS Junior | Retired[12] | ||
| Davonne Bowen |
| LB | 6'1 | 218 | RS Freshman | Retired[13] |
South Carolina will have sixteen returning players on offense, nine on defense and two on special teams that started games in 2017.[14]
| Player | Class | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jake Bentley | Junior | Quarterback | |
| Deebo Samuel | RS Senior | Wide receiver | |
| Bryan Edwards | Junior | Wide receiver | |
| Zack Bailey | Senior | Offensive tackle | |
| Rico Dowdle | Junior | Running back | |
| Shi Smith | Sophomore | Wide receiver | |
| OrTre Smith | Sophomore | Wide receiver | |
| A.J. Turner | RS Junior | Running back | |
| Ty'Son Williams | RS Junior | Running back | |
| Jacob August | RS Senior | Tight end | |
| Kevin Crosby | RS Senior | Tight end | |
| Malik Young | RS Senior | Offensive tackle | |
| Donell Stanley | RS Senior | Center | |
| Blake Camper | Senior | Offensive tackle | |
| Sadarius Hutcherson | Sophomore | Offensive guard | |
| Randrecous Davis | Sophomore | Wide receiver | |
| Reference: | |||
| Player | Class | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bryson Allen-Williams | RS Senior | Linebacker | |
| D. J. Wonnum | Junior | Defensive end | |
| T. J. Brunson | Junior | Linebacker | |
| Rashad Fenton | Senior | Cornerback | |
| Javon Kinlaw | Junior | Defensive tackle | |
| Jamyest Williams | Sophomore | Safety | |
| Sherrod Greene | Junior | Linebacker | |
| Keir Thomas | Junior | Defensive end | |
| Steven Montac | Senior | Defensive back | |
| Reference: | |||
| Player | Class | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parker White | RS Sophomore | Kicker | |
| Joseph Charlton | RS Junior | Punter | |
| Reference: | |||
Listed in the order that they were released
| Rimington Trophy[15] | Donell Stanley | C | JR | |
| Chuck Bednarik Award[16] | D. J. Wonnum | DE | JR | |
| Maxwell Award | Jake Bentley | QB | JR | |
| Deebo Samuel | WR | SR | ||
| Davey O'Brien Award[17] | Jake Bentley | QB | JR | |
| Doak Walker Award[18] | Rico Dowdle | RB | JR | |
| Fred Biletnikoff Award[19] | Deebo Samuel | WR | SR | |
| John Mackey Award[20] | K.C. Crosby | TE | SR | |
| Paul Hornung Award[21] | Deebo Samuel | WR | SR | |
| Wuerffel Trophy[22] | T. J. Brunson | LB | JR | |
| Walter Camp Award[23] | Jake Bentley | QB | JR | |
| Ted Hendricks Award[24] | D. J. Wonnum | DE | JR | |
| Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award[25] | Jake Bentley | QB | JR | |
| Manning Award[26] | Jake Bentley | QB | JR |
The SEC media poll was released on July 20, 2018, with the Gamecocks predicted to finish in second place in the East Division.[27]
| Media poll (East) | |||
| 1 | Georgia | 1,977 (271) | |
| 2 | South Carolina | 1,535 (8) | |
| 3 | Florida | 1,441 (2) | |
| 4 | Missouri | 1,057 | |
| 5 | Kentucky | 874 (1) | |
| 6 | Tennessee | 704 (1) | |
| 7 | Vanderbilt | 392 | |
The Gamecocks had three players at five positions selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.
Offense
1st team
Deebo Samuel – WR
3rd team
Zack Bailey – OL
Specialists
1st team
Deebo Samuel – RET
Deebo Samuel – all purpose player
2nd team
Joseph Charlton – P
See also: American football positions and College recruiting.
| Back | B | Center | C | Cornerback | CB | Defensive back | DB | |||
| Defensive end | DE | Defensive lineman | DL | Defensive tackle | DT | End | E | |||
| Fullback | FB | Guard | G | Halfback | HB | Kicker | K | |||
| Kickoff returner | KR | Offensive tackle | OT | Offensive lineman | OL | Linebacker | LB | |||
| Long snapper | LS | Punter | P | Punt returner | PR | Quarterback | QB | |||
| Running back | RB | Safety | S | Tight end | TE | Wide receiver | WR |
South Carolina added two grad transfers, and two regular transfers to the 2018 roster.[28] [29]
| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Prev. School | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Harvey | CB | 5'10" | 185 | Senior (Grad Transfer) | Texas A&M | ||
| J.T. Ibe | S | 6'0" | 190 | Senior (Grad Transfer) | Rice | ||
| Jamel Cook | S | 6'4" | 186 | RS Sophomore | Southern Cal | ||
| Josh Belk | DT | 6'3" | 359 | Freshman | Clemson |
The 2018 South Carolina Gamecocks Garnet and Black spring game took place in Columbia, South Carolina on March 31, at 12:00 p.m. EST. The game was broadcast live on the SEC Network.[30] [31] The Black team defeated the Garnet team by a score of 34–20, QB Jake Bentley completed 15 of 25 passes for 174 yards and 2 TD's.[32]
South Carolina announced its 2018 football schedule on September 19, 2017.[33] The schedule consists of 7 home games and 5 away games for the regular season. The Gamecocks hosted SEC opponents Georgia (rivalry) on September 8, Missouri on October 6, Texas A&M on October 13, and Tennessee, on October 27. South Carolina traveled to four SEC opponents: Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Florida.
South Carolina's out of conference opponents represent the ACC, MAC, SoCon and Sun Belt conferences. The Gamecocks hosted three non–conference games which are against Coastal Carolina of the Sun Belt, Akron of the MAC and Chattanooga of the SoCon. South Carolina traveled to archrival Clemson of the ACC for 116th annual Palmetto Bowl to finish the regular season. The Gamecocks were originally scheduled to face Conference USA opponent Marshall on September 15, but this game was cancelled due to Hurricane Florence. Akron was then scheduled as a replacement.
South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp entered his third-year in 2018. Muschamp led the Gamecocks to 15 wins and 11 losses over his first two years, tying Steve Spurrier, and Joe Morrison for most wins in the first two seasons as a Gamecock head coach. On December 6, Offensive Coordinator Kurt Roper was terminated after offensive struggles.[34] Co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Bryan McClendon served as the offensive coordinator for the Outback Bowl win against Michigan, and was promoted to permanent offensive coordinator to replace Roper.[35] On January 5, Dan Werner accepted the role of quarterbacks coach.[36] Werner has previously been on Ole Miss, Miami, and Alabama's coaching staff.[37]
On January 11, it was announced that former South Carolina star running back Marcus Lattimore would be joining the staff as the director of player development.[38] [39]
| Name | Position | Consecutive season |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd | ||
| Lance Thompson | Assistant head coach and defensive line coach | 3rd |
| Defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach | 3rd | |
| Offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach | 3rd (1st as OC) | |
| Running backs coach | 3rd | |
| Offensive line coach | 2nd | |
| Linebackers coach and special teams coordinator | 3rd | |
| Outside linebackers coach | 3rd | |
| Pat Washington | Tight ends coach | 3rd |
| Dan Werner | Quarterbacks coach | 1st |
| Kyle Krantz | Nickelbacks and strong side linebackers coach, assistant special teams coach | 1st |
| Jeff Dillman | Director of Player Strength and Conditioning | 3rd |
| Matthew Lindsey | Director of Player Personnel | 2nd |
| Director of Player Development | 1st | |
See also: 2018 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football team.
See also: Georgia–South Carolina football rivalry.
See also: 2018 Vanderbilt Commodores football team.
See also: 2018 Kentucky Wildcats football team.
See also: 2018 Missouri Tigers football team.
See also: 2018 Tennessee Volunteers football team.
See also: 2018 Ole Miss Rebels football team.
See also: 2018 Florida Gators football team.
See also: 2018 Chattanooga Mocs football team.
See also: 2018 Clemson Tigers football team.
See also: 2018 Akron Zips football team.
See also: 2018 Virginia Cavaliers football team and 2018 Belk Bowl.
See also: 2019 NFL draft.
| 2 | 36 | WR | San Francisco 49ers | ||
| 6 | 201 | CB | Kansas City Chiefs | ||
| 6 | 212 | OT | Carolina Panthers |