2020 Team Preview: Can South Carolina Crack The SEC East’s Top Four?

Fans of the South Carolina Gamecocks can’t expect too much this year. The top four in the SEC East is expected to consist of Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, and Tennessee, in one order or another. The ceiling is very low for South Carolina, which is young and has a lot of roster churn to deal with. If South Carolina could finish fourth in the SEC East this year, it wouldn’t be a bad result. A third-place finish would be fantastic and a sign of real hope heading into 2021.

Offseason Changes

The Gamecocks brought in a new offensive coordinator, Mike Bobo, who was most recently the head coach at Colorado State but who had previously worked in the SEC as Georgia’s offensive coordinator. Bobo’s knowledge of the SEC in general and the SEC East in particular could come in handy at South Carolina.

The Gamecocks lost receiver Bryan Edwards, who shouldered a large portion of the workload last season. Three of the top four pass catchers (in terms of receptions) from 2019 are gone. The Gamecocks also lost defensive end Javon Kinlaw, who went in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft to the San Francisco 49ers.

South Carolina’s two biggest new faces in 2020 are freshman running back MarShawn Lloyd and freshman defensive end Jordan Burch. If these players can perform up to the huge expectations fans have for them, South Carolina could make a lot more noise than many people think.

The Gamecocks Will Succeed If…

Ryan Hilinski puts the pieces together at quarterback. Hilinski didn’t perform well under pressure, and the Gamecocks’ passing game simply didn’t generate enough big plays. To be fair to Hilinski, he was also injured for portions of the 2019 season. However, when he did play, the results were not especially strong. Hilinski comes back for another season with a chance to get it right. If he brings along his young core of receivers and sets a positive example in the huddle, the Gamecocks’ currently low ceiling could rise a few feet if not more.

The Gamecocks Will Fail If…

Their pass rush can’t become a major force. Losing Javon Kinlaw, a first-round-caliber pass rusher, is a major blow for a defense which stunned Georgia last season and kept the Gamecocks in a lot of games. The offense on this team is wobbly. The defense is expected to be good but has enough uncertainties that one should not automatically assume it will be excellent. Those uncertainties mostly show up on the front four and specifically in connection with the pass rush. If South Carolina’s defense plays to expectations, this season won’t be a disaster. If the defense craters, however, the offense will not be able to compensate, and the Gamecocks could plummet to the bottom of the standings.

Prediction

The Gamecocks will be okay on defense, but being okay on defense is not the same as being especially strong on defense. This team needs an incredible year from the defense to crack the top four of the SEC East, because the offense is not ready to succeed. Hilinski looks overmatched, and he won’t have an elite crop of skill-position players to surround him and make him better. With an offense likely to struggle, anything less than an outstanding defensive season will push South Carolina below the SEC East’s top four.

Prediction: 5th in SEC East