Previewing South Carolina's First Big Test of the 2026 Season: The Alabama Crimson Tide

South Carolina will travel for the first time in the 2026 season to take on Alabama in what has been a hotly contested game each of the last two seasons. How will Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks fare in their first big test of the season?

Oct 25, 2025; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks quarterback Lanorris Sellers (16) scores a rushing touchdown against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the fourth quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

The 2026 season will tell us a lot about the future of the South Carolina program. Shane Beamer has made sweeping changes to his offensive staff in hopes to make a College Football Playoff push behind his star quarterback LaNorris Sellers. The first true test about where this team is comes in week five on the road against the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Alabama and South Carolina have played in classics each of the last two years. In 2024, South Carolina entered the fourth quarter with a 19-14 lead. After scoring 13 unanswered points, the Crimson Tide held an eight point lead in the waning moments of the game. With 43 seconds left on the clock, Sellers connects with Nyck Harbor for a 31-yard touchdown putting the Gamecocks one two-point conversion away from the tie. However the team fails to convert and Alabama wins 27-25 at home.

This past season the Gamecocks welcomed the Crimson Tide to Williams-Brice Stadium in hopes to pull off a top ten upset in front of a raucous crowd. This time it appeared the Gamecocks were going to pull off the upset as a rushing touchdown from LaNorris Sellers with 10 minutes left in the game put South Carolina up 22-14. However, South Carolina would go on to score 15 points in the last two and a half minutes of gametime to walk away with a 29-22 victory.

In back to back years, against a heavily favored Alabama squad, Shane Beamer has gotten his ready for the moment. 2026 could be the year the Gamecocks not only finish the drill against Alabama, but a win here could catapult the team towards a College Football Playoff berth.

Scouting the Crimson Tide

April 11, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell hands off to running back Daniel Hill at Bryant-Denny Stadium during the Alabama A Day scrimmage. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Playing at Bryant-Denny Stadium is no easy task as Alabama is 13-1 at home under Kalen DeBoer since 2024. However the team will be looking to replace several key starters off last years playoff team. DeBoer will be looking to replace stars at the game's most important positions in quarterback Ty Simpson (Rams) and offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor (Dolphins), who both went in the top 20 of the draft.

Veteran Austin Mack and former five star Keelon Russell appear to be the two front runners to replace Simpson in the Alabama offense. Russell may wind up being a star given time, but the Gamecocks should have the clear quarterback advantage come gametime this fall.

With DeBoer at the helm, Ryan Grubb calling plays, and the level of talent on that side of the ball, the offense should be in good hands. However Clayton White and the South Carolina defense have been able to frustrate the Tide each of the last two years. Can they do it again?

On the flip side, the hiring of Kendal Briles should make the offense easier from a schematics standpoint and help Sellers move the ball down field more effectively with the weapons at his disposal. How the offense plays out of the gate remains to be seen, but should South Carolina defeat Alabama on the road, they would have passed the first big test of the season and be eying an appearance in the playoff for the first time in program history.