The 2016 season brought a multitude of unknowns for South Carolina's football team. With the campaign over halfway complete, there have been several surprises along the way. We take a look at several here.

The defense has exceeded expectations

Will Muschamp has said more than one time this season that the defense has played "OK, not to be confused with good." Many expected that Muschamp and his staff could squeeze more production out of the personnel on the team than had shown in the past couple seasons, yet in some ways, it's still been better than expected. That does not mean this has been an excellent group. But given the situation USC is in on that side of the ball? It's been a good performance overall.

Heading into 2016, there were plenty of questions regarding personnel and depth. The secondary and pass rush, in particular, were sources of angst and some of those issues have manifested themselves. Muschamp has also pointed to a deep-rooted issue in getting off blocks and making plays against the run after the team struggled doing so against Georgia.

There have been some poor performances - the first half against Mississippi State, stopping the run against Georgia, inexplicably giving up 28 to UMass. Yet USC put up a heck of a fight against an explosive Texas A&M team, held Tennessee to two offensive touchdowns, and in general has given the team a chance to win every game this season. Up until the UMass game, the Gamecock offense was averaging 14 points per game, making the defense's performance all the more impressive under the circumstances.