For the first time this season, it’s time for bowl projections without any hypothetical situations entering the final week of the season.

The Gamecocks—fresh off a 21-17 win over Auburn—are going bowling for the first time since 2018 and are at six wins after a two-year stretch that saw six wins combined.

Now, onto where South Carolina could wind up this year.

The conversation seems to be centering around two or three bowls at the moment with one more week to go in familiar places to South Carolina fans.

The two most likely based on projections is the Duke’s Mayo Bowl (Charlotte), formally the Belk Bowl, or the AutoZone Liberty Bowl (Memphis).

The Gamecocks’ last bowl game was the Belk Bowl, a 28-0 loss to Virginia, and South Carolina last went to the Liberty Bowl in 2006 in Steve Spurrier’s second season in Columbia and at the time was the Gamecocks’ first bowl win since 2002.

If it is the Belk Bowl, then South Carolina will be playing an ACC team—North Carolina and NC State are the two projected—while it would be a Big 12 team in the Liberty Bowl.

Both of those bowls take place after Christmas: Liberty Bowl on Dec. 28 and the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Dec. 30. The Birmingham Bowl is also a potential option with that also on Dec. 28.

A seventh win this Saturday against Clemson would certainly strengthen the Gamecocks’ bowl resume and could elevate them into a potential Music City or Gator Bowl as well.

Here is the full list of bowl projections:

Action Network (Brett McMurphy): AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. Texas Tech (Dec. 28, 6:45 p.m.)

The Athletic: Birmingham Bowl vs. Houston (Dec. 28, noon)

CBS Sports: Birmingham Bowl vs. Western Michigan (Dec. 28, noon)

ESPN (Kyle Bonagura): AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. Iowa State (Dec. 28, 6:45 p.m.)

ESPN (Mark Schlabach): Duke’s Mayo Bowl vs. North Carolina (Dec. 30, 11:30 a.m.)

Saturday Down South: Duke’s Mayo Bowl vs. NC State (Dec. 30, 11:30 a.m.)

Sports Illustrated: AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. Kansas State (Dec. 28, 6:45 p.m.)

Sporting News: Military Bowl vs. Wyoming (Dec. 27, 2:30 p.m.)

As it stands right now, the SEC has 11 bowl-eligible teams with the potential for 13 if LSU (vs. Texas A&M) and Florida (vs. Florida State) both win this weekend.

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