Recapping a hectic day of South Carolina news

Wednesday was one of the busiest days for South Carolina athletics news in recent memory, as there were impactful headlines for football, baseball, and softball — so many that it could be difficult to keep up.

Below is a look at what you might have missed if you blinked on Wednesday.

South Carolina-Clemson kickoff set, other broadcast windows announced

By Kevin Miller

Fans won’t have to wait long on Rivalry Saturday for this year’s Palmetto Bowl. According to afternoon announcements from both teams, the annual rivalry game between South Carolina and Clemson will kick off at Noon on Saturday, November 29th. 

This year’s rivalry game will be at Williams-Brice Stadium. Either ESPN or ABC will broadcast the contest, while the ESPN app makes it available via streaming.

Though with less specificity, several other South Carolina football games’ broadcast windows were revealed on Wednesday, as well. The SEC revealed broadcast windows for each conference game on the 2025 slate, designating them “early,” “afternoon,” “night,” or “flex.” The conference will announce networks and exact times at another time.

Following Wednesday’s announcements, every game on the 2025 schedule has been given at least a broadcast window. (Hint: there’s a lot of flexing.) Fans can check out the entire slate below.

August 31st vs. Virginia Tech (in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium): 3:00 p.m., ESPN
September 6th vs. South Carolina State: 7:00 p.m., SEC Network+ or ESPN+
September 13th vs. Vanderbilt: 7:00 p.m. or 7:45 p.m., ESPN or SEC Network
September 20th @ Missouri: Flex Window (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)
September 27th vs. Kentucky: Flex Window (3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)
October 11th @ LSU: Flex Window (3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)
October 18th vs. Oklahoma: Early Window (Noon – 1:00 p.m.)
October 25th vs. Alabama: Flex Window (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)
November 1st @ Ole Miss: Flex Window (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)
November 15th at Texas A&M: Early Window (Noon – 1:00 p.m.)
November 22nd vs. Coastal Carolina: Afternoon Window (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
November 29th vs. Clemson: Noon, ABC or ESPN

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South Carolina baseball lands two transfers

(Jack Veltri contributed here)

South Carolina added its ninth and 10th baseball pledges of this transfer portal cycle on Wednesday.

Wofford transfer Tyler Bak went official with his commitment early in the day, while outfielder Ethan Lizama committed to the Gamecocks late Wednesday night.

Bak spent the last two seasons at Wofford, where he hit .311 with a .402 slugging and .429 on-base percentage (.831 OPS). He’ll have two years of eligibility remaining.

As a sophomore in 2025, he batted .311 with two homers and 20 RBI and also stole 15 bases in 17 attempts. He struck out 29 times and walked 23 in 189 plate appearances and 157 at-bats.

Lizama spent the last two seasons at Western Kentucky and will have one year of eligibility remaining. He’s also draft-eligible. With the Hilltoppers, he hit .323 lifetime with 24 homers and 102 RBI in 116 career games.

He had a huge season in 2025, finishing with a .336 average, 15 homers, 18 doubles and 60 RBI. He also had a .646 slugging and .407 on-base percentage (1.053 OPS).

Top quarterback target sets final two

(Kevin Miller contributed)

South Carolina priority target Landon Duckworth is down to just two schools in his recruitment. 

The class of 2026 four-star quarterback told On3’s Hayes Fawcett late on Wednesday night that his decision-making process is nearing its end and that he will commit either to the South Carolina Gamecocks or Auburn Tigers.

Duckworth is fresh off an official visit to South Carolina and was at Auburn the week before. But according to On3’s Steve Wiltfong, he’ll take another visit to the Plains before making a decision.

Softball lands transfer commit

Kennesaw State transfer pitcher Emma Friedel went public with her commitment to South Carolina on Wednesday evening, giving the Gamecocks two pitcher pledges from the portal.

As a sophomore with the Owls, Friedel had a 3.42 ERA and struck out 132 batters in 127 innings.

Friedel is the Gamecocks’ fifth overall commitment from the portal.

Read more on Friedel here.

Football adds running back transfer

(Chris Clark contributed)

As the staff continues to wait for word from the NCAA on whether running back Rahsul Faison can play this season, the Gamecocks added some much-needed insurance, depth, and competition to the RB room.

Former Colorado running back Isaiah Augustave committed to South Carolina on Wednesday night and then signed with the school on Thursday.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pounder led Colorado in rushing last season, tallying 394 rushing yards on 85 carries and scoring 4 touchdowns.

After leaving Boulder this spring, Augustave was originally committed as a transfer to Virginia, but he reopened his recruitment back in May.

GamecockCentral subscribers can learn more info on Augustave here.

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