Gamecocks and Sooners Set for First Gridiron Meeting
The South Carolina Gamecocks (3-3, 1-3 SEC) begin the second half of the 2024 regular season with the back end of a two-game road swing as they travel to Norman, Okla. for the first time in school history to face the Oklahoma Sooners (4-2, 1-2 SEC) in an SEC showdown on Saturday, Oct. 19. Game time is set for 12:45 ET (11:45 am CT) at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium (80,126).
OVER THE AIRWAVES: This week’s contest will be televised on SEC Network. Tom Hart will handle the play-by-play with Cole Cubelic providing the color commentary. Alyssa Lang will patrol the sidelines. Compass Media has a national radio audience as well with Gregg Daniels serving as the play-by-play voice and Chad Brown adding the analysis. The Gamecock Sports Radio Network features a pair of Gamecock Great quarterbacks in play-by-play voice Todd Ellis (33rd season) and analyst Tommy Suggs (52nd season). Chet Tucker returns for his second year as the sideline reporter.
REACHING THE HALFWAY POINT: The South Carolina Gamecocks have navigated the first half of the 2024 season to a 3-3 record overall and a 1-3 mark in SEC play. All three of Carolina’s losses have come to ranked opponents with two of setbacks decided on the game’s final play. They opened the campaign with a hard-fought 23-19 win over Old Dominion, then dominated Kentucky in the SEC opener, winning by a 31-6 count in Lexington, the largest road win in the Shane Beamer Era at South Carolina. The Gamecocks were unable to hold onto a 17-0 first half lead in a heartbreaking 36-33 setback to No. 16/17 LSU, then bounced back with a convincing 50-7 rout of Akron to improve to 3-1. The Gamecocks have dropped their last two contests to highly-ranked opponents, coming up on the short end of a 27-3 decision to No. 12/11 Ole Miss in Columbia, then suffering another gut wretching defeat in a 27-25 loss at No. 7/7 Alabama last Saturday afternoon in Tuscaloosa.
A LITTLE HISTORY: 2024 marks year four of the Shane Beamer Era and the 131st season of intercollegiate football at the University of South Carolina, dating back to 1892. It is the 118th-consecutive year in which South Carolina has competed on the gridiron. The University did not field a team in either 1893 or 1906. Carolina owns an all-time record of 637-616-44, a .508 winning percentage. Since the start of the 21st century, the Gamecocks are 171-134, a .561 winning clip. In four seasons under Coach Beamer, the Gamecocks are 23-21, a .523 winning percentage.
IT JUST MEANS MORE: The 2024 season is South Carolina’s 33rd year in the Southeastern Conference. South Carolina and Arkansas joined the SEC prior to the 1992 campaign. The Gamecocks earned the SEC Eastern Division title in the 2010 season. The Gamecocks are 110-151-1 (.422) all-time in SEC regular season play but posted a 42-38 (.525) record in conference action from 2010-19. Under Coach Beamer, the Gamecocks are 11-17 in SEC play, a .393 winning clip.
TOUGH SLATE: South Carolina again has one of the nation’s toughest schedules, as seven of its 12 opponents were ranked in the nation’s preseason top-20. The Gamecocks’ 2024 slate includes contests against preseason top-20 teams Alabama (5/5), Ole Miss (6/6), Missouri (11/11), LSU (13/12), Clemson (14/14), Oklahoma (16/16) and Texas A&M (20/20). Six of those seven teams remain the top-25 through the first seven weeks, with three of those opponents still remaining on the schedule.
FEELS LIKE THE FIRST TIME: The South Carolina Gamecocks and Oklahoma Sooners are meeting for the first time ever on the gridiron. The teams are slated to meet again next season in Columbia.
WELL, WE’VE NEVER BEEN TO SPAIN: But we’ve been to Oklahoma. The Gamecocks traveled to Tulsa in 1948 for a contest with the Golden Hurricane. Led by Steve “The Cadillac” Wadiak, Carolina defeated Tulsa, 27-7. It’s the only time South Carolina has ventured into the Sooner State for a football game.
SHANE, COME BACK!: South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer makes his return to Norman. He served as the assistant head coach/tight ends and H-backs coach on Lincoln Riley’s staff at OU from 2018-2020. The Sooners went 33-6 during that three-year stint, including back-to-back 12-2 campaigns and appearances in the College Football Playoffs in 2018 and ‘19.
THE BEVILLE IS IN THE DETAILS: South Carolina third-string quarterback Davis Beville is in his first season with the Gamecocks. The “Super Senior” logged three seasons as a member of the Pitt Panthers before matriculating to Norman, where he spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons on the Sooners’ roster. He played in seven contests for OU, completing 15-of-30 passes for 102 yards. He made one start, getting the call in the 2022 Red River Rivalry game against Texas. He has appeared in one game for South Carolina, completing 4-of-6 passes for 33 yards and a touchdown against Akron, his first TD pass since 2021.
PARKS’ PLACE: South Carolina redshirt senior offensive lineman Aaryn Parks was a member of the Oklahoma Sooners from 2020-2023, appearing in eight games over those four seasons. Parks was injured in fall camp and has not appeared in a game for the Gamecocks this season.
SPENCER FOR HIRE: It’s notable that former OU and South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler made his first NFL start last Sunday as a rookie for the New Orleans Saints. Rattler finished his Gamecock career ranked fifth all-time in passing with 6,212 career yards. He also ranked first in Carolina history in career completion percentage (67.5), fifth in career completions (523) and ninth in career passing touchdowns (37) despite playing just two seasons in the Garnet & Black. A two-time team captain and Steve Wadiak Team MVP recipient, Rattler set the school’s single-season record for completions (275) and completion percentage (68.9) in 2023.
