New head coach Will Muschamp has plenty of doubters, and to be honest, he deserves a bit of skepticism. In four years at the helm in Gainesville, Florida, Muschamp underachieved greatly in three of them, including a 4-8 campaign in 2013 that included a loss to Division I-AA's Georgia Southern. Florida had a great deal of NFL-caliber talent, particularly on the defensive end, but Muschamp could never seem to get the right offensive schemes together to be competitive. Even in the team's 11-2 2012 season, where the Gators were humiliated by Louisville in the Sugar Bowl, the offense was relatively stagnant, relying on phenomenal defense to eek out victories.
Now after a year as the defensive coordinator for Auburn, Muschamp has the opportunity to spark a turnaround here in Columbia. Coach Boom is inheriting a less talented team than he did in 2011, but the Gamecocks have plenty of talent as well. After assembling a strong coaching staff and pulling together an impressive recruiting class, Muschamp now must focus on wins on the field, having racked up plenty in the offseason already.
Muschamp's biggest task will be to fix the defense, which finished last in the SEC in 2015 and gave up just a shade under 430 yards per game. However, while that task may be the most daunting on Muschamp's list, it is also the one he is best equipped to accomplish. Skai Moore and T.J. Holloman return as anchors for the defense, while the team still has some capable pass rushers up front in Marquavius Lewis, Darius English and Boosie Whitlow. It's no secret that Muschamp excels on the defensive side of the ball, and he will do away with the 4-2-5 scheme that made life easy for South Carolina's opponents in 2015.
Muschamp isn't the only defensive guru responsible for turning the Gamecocks around this season, as defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson has an exceptional reputation for working with defensive backs. Robinson was the defensive backs coach at Florida during all four of Muschamp's years in "The Swamp," and he developed talent such as Vernon Hargreaves III and Jalen Tabor, both of whom are deserving of being selected in the first round. He also prepared lesser-known players like Marcus Maye and Keanu Neal to play on Sundays while giving Florida one of the more formidable secondaries in the nation.
While the issues on defense should be remedied fairly quickly, a lot of fans have concerns about the offense, which are more than justified. As I mentioned earlier, Muschamp's Gator offenses left plenty to be desired, and he brought in Kurt Roper to work with the offense, even though in Roper's one previous year with Muschamp in 2014, Florida had the second-worst offense in the SEC. Roper got the job of co-offensive coordinator — along with Bryan McClendon, who will also serve as the wide receivers coach — by making promises to change up the offense he ran at Florida, particularly by adding more spread option elements. With four-star recruit Brandon McIlwain or sophomore Lorenzo Nunez, the Gamecocks have the personnel to run more option looks to mix up opposing defenses. South Carolina also has two potential breakout wide receivers in Deebo Samuel and Bryan Edwards, who have both received plenty of praise from the coaching staff. While fans shouldn't expect a dominant offense, the team should field a unit that can consistently move the ball, which would be an improvement from last season.
In terms of special teams, South Carolina retains punter Sean Kelly, who excelled last season in pinning opponents deep in their own territory. The team also brings back place kicker Elliott Fry, who did struggle at times last year, but has plenty of experience as a three-year starter. For a team that may not be reaching the end zone with great regularity, sound special teams will be key to pulling out victories.
Finally, and maybe most important, the Gamecocks have a somewhat favorable schedule compared to recent years. The SEC may be weaker than normal, and the East shouldn't be much stronger than it has been over the last few seasons. Georgia, Texas A&M and Tennessee will come to Williams-Brice Stadium in the fall, and the team's rotational opponent from the West is Mississippi State, who could struggle while attempting to move on from star quarterback Dak Prescott. The Gamecocks host East Carolina, UMass and Western Carolina in three winnable non-conference games, and they also begin the season on the road against Vanderbilt, one of the perennial bottom-dwellers of the conference. Road games against Florida and Clemson are tough, but not insurmountable, as both will come in November, and the Gamecocks will have the opportunity to come together as a team and establish a true identity as the season progresses.
While the team isn't likely to immediately go back to winning 11 games a year, bowl eligibility is certainly in the cards in Muschamp's first season in garnet and black. With a good start to the season, expect Coach Boom to quickly put memories of last year's 3-9 campaign to bed.