Deshaun Fenwick still remembers when he started playing youth sports and the lesson his mom taught him one year when Fenwick was placed on a bad team.

“We probably won one game all season,” Fenwick recalled. “My mom came up to me and was like, ‘I’m real proud of you. You stuck it out even though you guys weren’t really that good. At the same time I always taught you to never quit. I’m glad I instilled that in you.’”

Last week Fenwick and the rest of the Gamecocks were presented with a similar situation after Will Muschamp fired: opt out and focus on their next steps at South Carolina, another school or the NFL or play the rest of the season out.

Four players opted out—most notably Jaycee Horn and Israel Mukuamu—but Fenwick and most every other player stuck around.

Sadarius Hutcherson also had an impassioned speech about why he stuck around after Saturday’s 17-10 loss to Missouri.

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“After the Clemson game I told y’all there’s some unfinished business with me as a senior. I know what adversity is like. At the end of the day my guys need a leader. They look up to me and a few other players. It wouldn’t be right for me to leave. At the end of the day I’m finishing it out,” he said.

“My mom and dad raised me to finish anything I started. That’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to finish these last two games like a man, regardless of if we win or lose. I’m not going to trade these guys for anything in the world. I’ll play any game. If we have a bowl game, I’m still going to play.”

There haven’t been any more opt outs since the initial four, and since then the Gamecocks have adopted the mantra that all they need is right there in the locker room.

A lot of the players in the locker rom, including Fenwick, echoed Tuesday what Hutcherson said Saturday night.

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“I was raised the exact same way. My granddad and mom raised me. They taught me to never quit,” Fenwick said. “She actually called me on that the other day. Me personally, I love the game. I want to play every game. I’m really competitive. I’m ready to play every time.”

The Gamecocks have two more games left—senior night against Georiga Saturday and Dec. 5 at Kentucky—and for some of those players it might be two of the last times they play at South Carolina.

“It wasn’t an option for me. It’s still football at the end of the day,” Jabari Ellis said. “We respect the game. We love the game.”

There is a wave of uncertainty around a lot of the program in terms of what’s next.

The Gamecocks still have to hire a head and with that comes players and coaches leaving, bringing in new players and an almost entirely new staff as well.

With so much going on, Mike Bobo’s message to the players who chose to remain is a simple one: be where your feet are.

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“Your time is right now. It wasn’t last week. It’s not the future after the season or with a new coach. It’s right now. Enjoy right now,” he said. “Don’t get focused on what’s going to happen in two weeks or whom Ray Tanner is going to hire. Enjoy being here and being part of this family and being with these guys right now.”