The South Carolina Gamecocks right now do not have any spare time to catch their breath. Shane Beamer’s boys are now one of the nastiest five-week slates in college football. Every opponent in that stretch sits in the AP Top 25, four of them in the top 10. No. 11 LSU, No.6 Oklahoma Sooners, No.8 Alabama Crimson Tide, No.4 Ole Miss, No.5 Texas A&M. Beamer and co.’s grind begins this weekend in Death Valley, where the Gamecocks face No. 11 LSU. And three of those battles? On the road. Reading it itself, panic starts to set in. Now think about Beamer’s program. But the head coach keeps his players on the edge, ensuring he has only the toughest ones on board to fight this battle.

Brad Crawford posted a clip of Beamer’s latest presser. The Gamecocks’ head coach kept it straightforward without any sugarcoating. “One at a time. But if you don’t want to play that schedule, I told our players, y’all chose the wrong conference to come play in. Like, you should have gone to play in another conference. If you don’t want to play that schedule, you chose the wrong school to come to. I mean, that’s just life in this league.” Plain and simple, in Beamer’s words, you either take the pressure or are free to choose an easier program. They don’t do that in South Carolina.

Before the season, ESPN’s Football Power Index rankings placed Beamer and co.’s schedule as the seventh-toughest in college football. The Gamecocks hold 6% odds to win conference titles. Their gauntlet begins on October 11, when the Gamecocks hit the road to face No. 13 LSU, a matchup ESPN gives them just a 29.8% chance to win. A week later, they’ll return home to host the 5th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners on October 18, where the FPI bumps their odds slightly to 41.3%. Does it get easier for Beamer’s boys after that?

No way. South Carolina opens the door to Alabama, which visits Columbia on October 25, with the Gamecocks holding only a 21.7% shot at pulling off the upset. Wondering which game will test Beamer and co.’s talents and patience? The toughest hill to climb comes on November 1, when the Gamecocks travel to Oxford to take on the No. 4 Ole Miss Rebels. They will then get a much-needed bye week rest, which will allow Beamer’s program to bounce back stronger for the Battle for the Bonham Trophy against Texas A&M. 

So, the South Carolina head coach is in no mood to listen to any excuse. He made himself very clear, “So, don’t tell me in recruiting and when we brought you in the portal that you want to compete and you want to play against the best in the SEC and all of a sudden shy away from it and look at our schedule and say, ‘Oh, shoot, look who we got to play, who we get to play.’ And again, if you don’t want to compete against the best, there’s plenty of other conferences that don’t play ranked teams every single week.” Talking about motivation? Before stepping into the season, Crawford had made a big projection. But where do they stand now?

Shane Beamer’s boys are walking on fire 

Back on July 12, the CBS Sports reporter dropped his sketch for Bemaer and co.’s 2025 graph. “My prediction for the #Gamecocks in 2025 Virginia Tech W SC State W Vandy W at Mizzou W Kentucky W at LSU L Oklahoma W Alabama L at Ole Miss W at Texas A&M L Coastal Carolina W Clemson L 8-4, 5-3 Mizzou, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ole Miss, A&M and Clemson are the toss-ups.” And how many did hit the mark?

Beamer’s boys sealed wins against Virginia Tech, SC State, as predicted by Crawford. But lost against Vanderbilt, Missouri, and again came up with a victory against Kentucky. A season ago, the Gamecocks caught fire late, winning six in a row en route to a 9-3 finish before falling in the Citrus Bowl. Fast forward to 2025, and the glow has dimmed. With LaNorris Sellers back under center but key losses on defense and special teams, the pressure’s squarely on the offense to keep this team afloat.

Beamer might not yet have gotten over the Mizzou heartbreak. South Carolina briefly found life in the second quarter, when Sellers hit a 49-yard touchdown pass to tie things up with Missouri. But the positives stopped there. Sellers was sacked five times, the run game completely vanished with minus-nine rushing yards, and the Gamecocks shot themselves in the foot with 14 penalties for 98 yards. On the other side, the defense couldn’t contain Ahmad Hardy, who tore through Columbia with ease.

Even so, Shane Beamer’s squad showed some fight, taking a lead into the fourth quarter. But two straight three-and-outs opened the door for Mizzou’s Robert Meyer to nail a 40-yard game-winner. With LaNorris Sellers missing key throws down the stretch, discipline slipped away. Beamer’s boys may have soothed the sting with a win over Kentucky, but the real trial lies ahead.