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South Carolina

Where ESPN ranks South Carolina in the SEC heading into 2025 season

Screenshotby: Kevin Miller08/08/25kevinmillerGC
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Vandrevius Jacobs (Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)

South Carolina football is less than three weeks away from its season opener, a trip to Atlanta to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies in the Aflac Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Shane Beamer’s team is the favorite in the non-conference matchup, and a win would kick-start a 2025 season that some believe could culminate with a College Football Playoff berth.

This week, ESPN released its SEC preseason preview, and the “worldwide leader” believes that is a possibility for the Gamecocks, though not a likely one. According to the ESPN team of Mark Schlabach, Chris Low, Max Olson, Tom Luginbill, Billy Tucker, and the ESPN Research department, South Carolina is one of eleven teams in the CFP mix. However, they label USC as a long shot. That “long shot” chance, based on ESPN’s FPI, is 20.3%.

This is what Schlabach, Low, Olson, Luginbill, and Tucker had to say about Carolina:

“The Gamecocks might have a bona fide star in Sellers, but they’re having to replace many of the key pieces around him, as well as several difference-makers on defense. South Carolina plays a five-game stretch against LSU (road), Oklahoma (home), Alabama (home), Ole Miss (road), and Texas A&M (road) in October and November.”

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In the power rankings portion of the preview, South Carolina slotted in at No. 10 in the Southeastern Conference. The entire power rankings standings can be seen below.

  1. Texas Longhorns
  2. Georgia Bulldogs
  3. Alabama Crimson Tide
  4. LSU Tigers
  5. Texas A&M Aggies
  6. Ole Miss Rebels
  7. Tennessee Volunteers
  8. Oklahoma Sooners
  9. Florida Gators
  10. South Carolina Gamecocks
  11. Missouri Tigers
  12. Auburn Tigers
  13. Arkansas Razorbacks
  14. Vanderbilt Commodores
  15. Kentucky Wildcats
  16. Mississippi State Bulldogs

LaNorris Sellers, unsurprisingly, also picked up recognition as “one of the league’s best players.” South Carolina’s October 25th home contest was included as one of the most important games on the overall 2025 SEC schedule.

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