South Carolina falls completely out of AP top 25 following Vanderbilt thrashing

On Saturday night, South Carolina lost to Vanderbilt, 31-7. The disappointing effort dropped the Gamecocks to 2-1 on the 2025 season. Adding injury to insult, the game also saw both starting quarterback LaNorris Sellers and right tackle Cason Henry exit the contest in the first half and not return.

USC has dropped its SEC opener, and with seven more SEC contests coming in a row, the road doesn’t get easier.

Just two weeks after being ranked inside the AP poll’s top 10, when the Associated Press updated its rankings on Sunday, South Carolina had dropped all the way out of the rankings. When including the “also receiving votes” section, the Gamecocks are 12th in the SEC.

Next week’s opponent, the Missouri Tigers, moved up from No. 25 to No. 23 in the AP rankings.

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The entire updated AP top 25 is below (first-place overall votes in parentheses):

1. Ohio State Buckeyes (55)
2. Penn State Nittany Lions (5)
3. LSU Tigers (2)
4. Miami Hurricanes (3)
5. Georgia Bulldogs
6. Oregon Ducks (1)
7. Florida State Seminoles
8. Texas Longhorns
9. Illinois Fighting Illini
10. Texas A&M Aggies
11. Oklahoma Sooners
12. Iowa State Cyclones
13. Ole Miss Rebels
14. Alabama Crimson Tide
15. Tennessee Volunteers
16. Utah Utes
17. Texas Tech Red Raiders
18. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
19. Indiana Hoosiers
20. Vanderbilt Commodores
21. Michigan Wolverines
22. Auburn Tigers
23. Missouri Tigers
24. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
25. Southern Cal Trojans

Also receiving votes: BYU Cougars, South Florida Bulls, South Carolina Gamecocks, Mississippi State Bulldogs, TCU Horned Frogs, Arizona State Sun Devils, Tulane Green Wave, Louisville Cardinals, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Baylor Bears, Clemson Tigers, SMU Mustangs, NC State Wolfpack, UNLV Runnin’ Rebels, Navy Midshipmen

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The USA Today coaches poll also released its updated top 25 on Sunday. Following a No. 10 ranking last week, the Gamecocks stuck in the poll but just barely. However, Shane Beamer’s team dropped all the way to No. 24.

ESPN’s FPI (Football Power Index) updated to include the Gamecocks at No. 37 and 14th in the SEC. Only Kentucky (41) and Mississippi State (42) are below USC.

South Carolina and Missouri will kick off Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ESPN will broadcast the SEC contest, while the ESPN app makes it available via streaming.

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