It’s finally here. After months of quarantine and legitimate fears of its future, college football is back.

University of South Carolina fans are eager to see their team on the field after a disappointing 4-8 campaign in 2019.

It’s a unique season and the conferenceonly schedule ramps up the intensity on a coaching staff that, in a normal year, would be coaching for their jobs.

The 2020 season kicks off at 7:30 pm Saturday inside Williams-Brice Stadium as the Tennessee Volunteers make their way to Columbia.

Last season, South Carolina opened the game with a bang. A 75-yard catch and run opened gave South Carolina the early 7-0 lead. However, the defense was unable to slow down Tennessee in the second half and, as was the case throughout 2019, the offense couldn’t maintain any positive mo mentum.

It was another bitter loss where South Carolina looked outmanned. Tha win for Tennessee was a continuation of the momentum head coach Jeremy Pruitt was building after a difficult start to 2019.

The Gamecocks have new faces littering the field offensively in 2020. Colorado State transfer Collin Hill has been named the starter for week one.

He, along with Shi Smith on the outside, will look to lead the Mike Bobo offense to better production than the previous 2 campaigns under Bryan McClendon.

The success of the Gamecock offense will be largely determined by the ability of a young, unproven wide receiving corps. Can Smith, along with Xavier Legette, Rico Powers, and Josh Vann provide reliable sets of hands for their new quarterback?

Defensively, South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp and defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson will need a deep defensive line to wreak havoc on Jarrett Guarantano on Saturday night. If the Gamecocks are going to have success on Saturday night, the defensive line needs to get consistent pressure against the Volunteers.

If the Gamecocks have to dial up pressure from the linebacker position, I don’t believe they will be able to cover the crossing patterns from the Volunteers tight ends. On the outside, Jaycee Horn and Israel Mukuamu have locked down the corners, however, the safety position is up for grabs as it has been in recent years.

Honestly, very few know what to expect on Saturday night at Williams-Brice Stadium. With corona virus testing, we aren’t even sure who may or may not be playing on Saturday. Regardless, this is a crucial game for South Carolina. If the Gamecocks have any hope of navigating a 5-5 record with this schedule, they have to beat Tennessee. The Volunteers win a slugfest 23-17.