Gamecocks travel to Tuscaloosa on Saturday for the SEC Showdown – University of South Carolina Athletics

The South Carolina Gamecocks (3-2, 1-2 SEC) are back on the road for the second time this season, traveling to Tuscaloosa, Alabama for the first time since 2009 to take on the No. 7/7 Alabama Crimson Tide (4- 1, 1-1 SEC) in an SEC showdown on Saturday, October 12th. Game time is scheduled for noon ET (11 a.m. CT) at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium (100,077).

ABOUT THE AIRWAVES: This week's competition will be broadcast nationally on ABC. Joe Tessitore will provide play-by-play while Jesse Palmer provides color commentary. Katie George will patrol the sidelines. Gridiron Radio also has a national audience, with Noah Britt serving as the play-by-play voice, Jon Reynolds providing color commentary and Jason Crowder sitting courtside. The Gamecock Sports Radio Network features two Gamecock Great quarterbacks in play-by-play voice Todd Ellis (Season 33) and analyst Tommy Suggs (Season 52). Chet Tucker returns for the second time as a sideline reporter.

How we got here: The South Carolina Gamecocks are off to a 3-2 start overall and 1-2 in SEC play. They opened the campaign with a hard-fought 23-19 win over Old Dominion, then dominated Kentucky in the SEC opener and won 31-6 in Lexington, the biggest road win of the Shane Beamer era at South Carolina. The Gamecocks were unable to hold on to their 17-0 first-half lead in a heartbreaking 36-33 setback to No. 16/17 LSU despite rushing for 243 yards, forcing two turnovers and blocking a punt . They rebounded with a convincing 50-7 win over Akron to improve to 3-1. After The Gamecocks enjoyed a down week, falling to a 27-3 decision to No. 12/11 Ole Miss in Columbia last weekend. The Gamecocks are 3-2 after five games for the third time in the last four years.

A LITTLE STORY: 2024 marks the fourth year of the Shane Beamer era and the 131st season of intercollegiate football at the University of South Carolina, dating back to 1892. It will be South Carolina's 118th consecutive year competing on the gridiron. The university did not field a team in either 1893 or 1906. Carolina holds a record of 637-615-44, a winning percentage of .508. Since the start of the 21st century, the Gamecocks are 171-133, a winning percentage of .563. In four seasons under Coach Beamer, the Gamecocks are 23-20, with a winning percentage of .535, including wins in six of their last eight games.

IT JUST MEANS MORE: The 2024 season will be South Carolina's 33rd year in the Southeastern Conference. South Carolina and Arkansas joined the SEC before the 1992 campaign. The Gamecocks won the SEC Eastern Division title in the 2010 season. The Gamecocks have an all-time record of 110-150-1 (.423) in the SEC regular season, but posted a record of 42-38 (.525) during the 2010-19 conference season. Under Coach Beamer, the Gamecocks are 11-16 in SEC play, a winning percentage of .407.

Robust slate: South Carolina continues to have one of the toughest schedules in the country in 2024, as seven of its 12 regular-season opponents were ranked in the preseason top 20 in the country. The Gamecocks' 2024 slate includes contests against the preseason top-20 teams: Alabama (5/5), Ole Miss (6/6), Missouri (11/11), LSU (13/12), Clemson (14). /14) and Oklahoma (16/16) and Texas A&M (20/20). All seven of those teams remain in the top 25 through the first six weeks, with five of those opponents still on the schedule. Carolina's next three opponents, Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, have a combined record of 13-3.

THE SERIES AT A GLANCE: Alabama holds a 13-3 lead in the all-time series between the two programs, including wins in each of the first 10 meetings between the schools from 1937 to 2000, but the teams have split the last six meetings evenly. The Crimson Tide are 8-1 when played in Tuscaloosa and have won four of the six meetings in Columbia. Alabama also won the 1945 game played in Montgomery.

It's been a while: This is only the second meeting between South Carolina and Alabama since 2010 and the first in Tuscaloosa since 2009. The teams met six times between 2000 and 2010 but have only played once since then (2019).

When they last met: Tua Tagovailoa completed 28 of 36 passes for 444 yards and five touchdowns as the No. 2/2 Alabama Crimson Tide posted a 47-23 victory over South Carolina on September 14, 2019 in Columbia. True freshman Ryan Hilinski, making just the second start in his career, did his best to keep pace with Tagovailoa, completing 36 of 57 passes for 324 yards and two touchdowns. The Gamecocks played 86 plays and rolled for 459 yards against a Bama defense that had nine players named to the media's preseason All-SEC teams, compared to just one South Carolina offensive lineman (Bryan Edwards, third-team selection).

THE LAST GAMECOCK WIN: Stephen Garcia threw three touchdown passes, two to Alshon Jeffrey, and Marcus Lattimore scored three times as 19th-ranked South Carolina defeated No. 1 Alabama 35-21 in Columbia on Oct. 9, 2010. The Gamecocks had never beaten a No. 1 ranked team before — at least not in football. The reigning national champions had won 19 straight games since losing to Utah in the Sugar Bowl following the 2008 season. South Carolina crushed the top-rated scoring defense in the country and scored its most points against Alabama since a 41-34 loss to LSU in 2007. The Gamecocks scored four touchdowns when they entered the Bama 20 – twice as many as the Crimson Tide had allowed in. Garcia was a clean 17 of 20 for 201 yards and one interception. He also scored a crucial four-and-1 on the Gamecocks' final scoring drive. Jeffery had seven receptions for 127 yards, including TD catches of 26 and 15 yards.

THE LAST TIME IN T-TOWN: Mark Ingram rushed for a career-high 246 yards and a game-winning touchdown to help No. 2 Alabama to a 20-6 victory over No. 22 South Carolina in Tuscaloosa on Oct. 17, 2009. Ingram's tackle-breaking, defender-dragging runs and punishing defense helped the undefeated Crimson Tide overcome four turnovers. The game's only other touchdown came from a defense that sacked Stephen Garcia five times. Safety Mark Barron stepped in front of Garcia's first pass attempt down the middle of the field and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown. Garcia went 20 of 46 for 214 yards after completing just 4 of 18 passes in the first half. South Carolina managed just 64 yards rushing. Alabama's Greg McElroy was also shaky against the No. 6 pass defense in the country. His first pass — and two of his first four — were intercepted after he completed 135 straight passes without an interception.

SWEET HOME ALABAMA: Walk-on linebacker from South Carolina Colin Bryant began his career as a reserve at Alabama and spent his true freshman season in 2021 on the Tuscaloosa campus. Defensive tackle Monkell Goodwine He played three seasons with the Crimson Tide, where he saw limited action in five contests, before transferring to South Carolina in January. quarterback Robby Ashford and kicker Peyton Argent are both from Hoover, Ala.

OLD FRIEND ALERT: Alabama assistant head coach/running backs coach Robert Gillespie was on Steve Spurrier's staff at South Carolina as running backs coach from 2006-08. Gillespie and Shane Beamer worked together under the HBC during the 2007 and 2008 seasons.