South Carolina ended with a 2-8 record, fired coach Will Muschamp in the middle of the season and is in transition to first year coach Shane Beamer. Despite all this, the Gamecocks won a bid for the Gasparilla Bowl to face the champion of Conference USA UAB. This trip will not happen, however, because Gamecocks will not be able to play due to positive COVID-19 tests and contact tracking within the program.
“The team was excited to hear on Sunday that they would play at the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on Saturday,” said sports director Ray Tanner. “However, between members of the coaching staff and student-athletes, COVID and contact tracking charged a very high price to overcome. I notified the bowl and the SEC office that we cannot play on Saturday. I am proud of this team . Their commitment to represent their program and University, themselves, their families and their coaches, is unparalleled. “
The technical team is particularly affected, according to 247Sports. At least one member of the technical team had a positive test, which resulted in the entire team being quarantined. But it is not the only reason. The report also states that several players simply did not want to play in Saturday’s game, which was to be the last of offensive coordinator Mike Bobo as interim Gamecocks coach. These issues, along with opt out, injuries and initial statements for the NFL draft, left the program below the minimum of 53 players to participate.
“Our football team has been on campus since the summer preparing for a football season in which changes are the only constant,” said Tanner. “They had to go through strict COVID test protocols that were as varied and numerous as any group of young people had to go through. We had a season that was interrupted, but we had to play more games from the Southeast Conference than in any year in history. players, who thrive on the energy of a full Williams-Brice stadium, played in front of just 20 percent of the stadium, as dictated by state regulations. Our team competed a lot throughout the season despite injuries, positive COVID tests and tests contact, and several dropouts at the end of the year. “
Although South Carolina does not participate, the Conference USA UAB champion still has some hope of competing in a bowl game. Right after the Gamecocks’ withdrawal, the Gasparilla Bowl Committee did not completely cancel its annual festivities, instead informed everyone that it will provide an update as soon as it explores the next steps.
This ended a disappointing season for Gamecocks. His only two wins of the season were over Vanderbilt, with no win, and a surprise surprise for Auburn at the Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia. They lost their last six games, including a 41-18 loss in Kentucky to end the regular season.
South Carolina is the second SEC team to be eliminated from the bowl season due to COVID-19. Tennessee canceled his trip to Memphis to face West Virginia at the Liberty Bowl, and the Volunteers were replaced by the Army.