Greg McElroy claims South Carolina's preseason AP poll ranking is 'really high'

The first AP Top 25 of the 2025 campaign is officially out, and South Carolina is ranked No. 13. On Monday, ESPN’s Greg McElroy questioned the Gamecocks’ high preseason ranking.

“This one is too high for me,” McElroy said. “I love LaNorris Sellers. I think, offensively, they’re going to be great. I think they’re going to run the football really well. I think the receivers have a chance to be much better. But there are so many new faces on defense. There are so many new pieces.

“Yes, Dylan Stewart still there, the great All-American defensive end. He will take over games. There’s no doubt about that. But the other pieces that were lost along the defensive line, how are they going to adequately replace those guys? Thirteen to me for South Carolina is really high, and I think that that team, there’s too many question marks right now on defense to feel great about them going into the season.”

If it were up to McElroy, South Carolina wouldn’t be included in the preseason Top 25 whatsoever. After all, he excluded the Gamecocks from his preseason Top 25 that he released last week.

In McElroy’s defense, South Carolina is returning just four defensive starters from last season. Three of them are pieces in the Gamecocks’ secondary. Thus, South Carolina’s front seven will be nearly unrecognizable this fall.

As McElroy mentioned, Dylan Stewart’s talent will negate some of South Carolina’s roster turnover. Stewart had a breakout freshman year last season, tallying 23 tackles with 10.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks.

For his efforts, Stewart was a unanimous Freshman All-American, Freshman All-SEC selection and a finalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award. Alas, Stewart won’t be able to single-handedly stop opposing offenses.

South Carolina will need it transfer additions to step up. In total, the Gamecocks reeled in 10 defensive players from the transfer portal this offseason. The group is headlined by former Texas A&M defensive lineman Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy and former Missouri EDGE Jaylen Brown.

While South Carolina will undoubtedly face challenges in the upcoming season, the program has earned AP voters’ respect. Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer believes in the direction his team is heading.

“A lot of expectations for 2025, and there should be. We’re built for years to come and are going to continue to be good at South Carolina,” Beamer said. “We are not going anywhere. There is a lot of young talent and there is more coming.”