Tenth in a series previewing the 2019 SEC football season.
HOOVER, Ala. -- The coach who has won the most SEC games in his first three seasons at South Carolina probably will surprise you.
It's not Steve Spurrier, who was 11-13 in SEC play during his first three seasons leading the Gamecocks.
SOUTH CAROLINA 2019 SCHEDULE
Aug. 31 vs. North Carolina (Charlotte, N.C.)
Sept. 7 Charleston Southern
Sept. 14 Alabama*
Sept. 21 at Missouri*
Sept. 28 Kentucky*
Oct. 12 at Georgia*
Oct. 19 Florida*
Oct. 26 at Tennessee*
Nov. 2 Vanderbilt*
Nov. 9 Appalachian State
Nov. 16 at Texas A&M*
Nov. 30 Clemson
*SEC game
SOUTH CAROLINA GLANCE
LAST SEASON 7-6, 4-4 (Tied 4th) in SEC East
COACH Will Muschamp (22-17 in three seasons at South Carolina, 50-38 overall in seven seasons)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR Bryan McClendon (4th year)
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR Travaris Robinson (4th year)
RETURNING STARTERS (12): Offense 7, Defense 5
KEY PLAYERS QB Jake Bentley, WR Bryan Edwards, OT Sadarius Hutcherson, LB T.J. Brunson, DT Javon Kinlaw, DE D.J. Wonnum.
SEC TITLE SCENARIO The Gamecocks have a lot of seniors with plenty of experience, notably quarterback Jake Bentley, but they likely need to improve their running game to challenge for the SEC East title. Last season, they averaged 158.2 rushing yards per game to rank 12th in the SEC and 92nd nationally.
Lou Holtz, who like Spurrier is a College Football Hall of Fame inductee, isn't the answer, either. His first three South Carolina teams combined for a 10-14 SEC record.
Will Muschamp, going into his fourth season at South Carolina, is the guy.
The Gamecocks went 12-12 in SEC games the previous three seasons under Muschamp with records of 3-5, 5-3 and 4-4.
That may not sound overly impressive, but prior to Muschamp's hiring, South Carolina had won four or more SEC games in 10 of 24 seasons since joining the conference.
Muschamp also is the first South Carolina coach to lead each of his first three teams to bowl games.
Not bad for someone in his second SEC coaching stint after being fired at Florida with a 17-15 conference record.
The Gamecocks were 3-9 the season before Muschamp's hiring. It was so bad that Spurrier resigned six games into the season.
"Coach Muschamp has done an unbelievable job of steering the ship in the right direction after the way it was going and getting it turned around," South Carolina senior quarterback Jake Bentley said at SEC media days last week. "I believe in Coach Muschamp wholeheartedly. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't.
"I'm proud that I was one of the quarterbacks he brought in to be his guys."
Bentley, who has a 19-13 record as a starter since Muschamp decided to take his redshirt off midway through the 2016 season, is among 11 seniors projected to be on the first-team offense and defense for the Gamecocks.
"We have a great opportunity to step forward as a program to be in the limelight in the Southeastern Conference," Muschamp said. "In my opinion, we have our best team coming back at South Carolina since I've been here."
The three seniors Muschamp brought to media days agree this will be the best South Carolina team of their careers.
"The amount of competitive depth we have at each position is a lot better than what it's been in past years," said wide receiver Bryan Edwards, who has career totals of 163 catches for 2,229 yards and 16 touchdowns in 37 starts. "That's really going to help us."
Linebacker T.J. Brunson has 206 career tackles in 37 games, including 26 starts.
"I definitely think this is the best team I've been on," Brunson said. "I say that because of the guys I've been able to grow with the last three years in my class, as well as the guys we've brought in afterwards.
"You see the work ethic and the cultural change. You have guys that want to contribute and they want to win. When you have that in every room in the building, it makes you feel a lot more confident about the games."
Bentley, who has passed for 7,385 yards and 54 touchdowns in his South Carolina career, said it's meaningful the Gamecocks are now comprised of four recruiting classes signed by Muschamp.
"Senior through freshmen, it's all guys that are fully invested in our program and what we want to do," Bentley said.
Muschamp said this year's senior class is special to him.
"A bunch of quality people No. 1, but really good football players that came to South Carolina in a coaching transition, taking over a team that won three games," Muschamp said. "They took a leap of faith, so to speak, with us, and we appreciate them."
While the Gamecocks have been good under Muschamp -- including a 9-4 record in 2017 capped by a 26-19 Outback Bowl victory over Michigan -- he said they have to get better.
"As far as where our program is, it's not where we want to be," Muschamp said. "I can assure you of that."
Muschamp said the Gamecocks' goal every season is to win the SEC East, which gives them a chance to play in the conference title game in Atlanta.
"If you win in Atlanta, it gives you an opportunity to play in the College Football Playoff, in my opinion, and to win our state," Muschamp said. "And we haven't done either one in three years."
By winning the state, Muschamp means beating Clemson, which has made the playoffs four consecutive years and won national championships in 2016 and 2018. The Tigers have beaten the Gamecocks five consecutive years, including 58-35 last season.
South Carolina not only has to play Clemson and SEC East powerhouse Georgia as usual this season, but Alabama is on the Gamecocks' schedule for the first time since 2010.
"I know people are going to ask me about the schedule," Muschamp said. "Hell, schedule's hard every year. That's the way I look at it."
Sports on 07/25/2019