South Carolina knows its bowl and bowl opponent, an it's one a lot of Gamecocks on the roster and fans know well.

The Gamecocks will play North Carolina for the second time in three years so there are plenty of guys on the roster fans will remember but a few new names to know as the game gets closer.

Here are a few to know.

Sam Howell, quarterback

South Carolina fans don’t have fond memories of Howell, who beat the Gamecocks in his debut to start the 2019 season. Since then, he’s turned into a legitimate NFL prospect and this year Howell is completing nearly 63 percent of his passes and averaging 8.7 yards an attempt with 23 touchdowns to nine picks.

He does have a tendency to throw balls with the likelihood of them being batted at the line of scrimmage but has put together another good year despite being pressured on almost 34 percent of dropbacks.

He excels against the blitz—10 yards per attempt, 12 scores and two interceptions with a 123.9 rating—and has a chance to really make things hard for South Carolina’s improved secondary.

Ty Chandler, running back

Chandler, who started his career at Tennessee, is stitching together a solid season at running back behind a line that’s been better run blocking than protecting the quarterback.

He’s already over 1,000 yards rushing and leading the Tar Heels in scrimmage yards with 1,278. Chandler is averaging 6.1 yards per rush with 13 scores and averaging 3.93 yards after contact per carry. Chandler has 44 missed tackles on the year; by comparison ZaQuandre White led the team with 29 this season.

He has home run hitting ability with 32 rushes of at least 10 yards and it’ll be a big test against a Gamecock run defense that’s struggled against good rushing attacks this year.

Josh Downs, wide receiver

Downs is only five yards behind Chandler for the team lead in scrimmage yards and has caught 98 of his 139 targets this year. He’s averaging 13 yards per reception and over nine per target primarily out of the slot.

He’s not the stretch-the-field type player—an average depth of target of 8.1 yards—but doesn’t drop many passes and is a consistent player in the Heels’ offense. Whoever the nickel is, or whichever linebacker is covering him, will be tested.

Tomon Fox, edge

The Gamecock offensive line is dealing with its fair share of struggles this year and Fox is the latest issue it’ll have to deal with. He’s leading the team with 27 pressures, eight sacks and 12 quarterback hurries.

He also has 18 stops, third on the line, with a team best 9.5 tackles for loss and the Heels use him in a few different ways so there will be a lot of pressure on the Gamecocks’ tackles later this month.

Jeremiah Gemmel, linebacker

Gemmel is third on the team in tackles for loss at 6.5 and creates a lot of issues with 12 pressures and nine quarterback hurries. He’s good in the run game with a team-best 35 stops and just seven missed tackles in 744 snaps.

He does allow receptions in coverage but just 9.6 yards per reception and quarterbacks have just an 83 passer rating when targeting his receiver.

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