Will Muschamp, South Carolina
Atlanta isn’t — and shouldn’t — be the expectation for Will Muschamp and the South Carolina Gamecocks in 2020. If they get there, Muschamp buys himself at least another five years in Columbia.
For now, a winning season with a big win is what Muschamp might need to extend his stay at South Carolina.
Entering his fifth season with the Gamecocks, Muschamp led South Carolina to a 9-win season his second year in 2017, which included wins over Florida and Michigan in the Outback Bowl. But the Gamecocks have struggled to replicate that success in each of the last two seasons.
In 2019, South Carolina lost starting quarterback Jake Bentley to injury in their season opener against North Carolina, forcing true freshman Ryan Hillinski into the starting role for the rest of the season.
The early attrition likely gave Muschamp a mulligan in a 2019 season that ended in a 4-8 campaign, a season that actually included a major upset win at Georgia early in the year. Muschamp’s eight figure buyout could have also played a factor in South Carolina’s decision to keep him at least one more season.
Regardless, the Gamecocks are going to need to show marked improvement in 2020 and win 6-7 games and be as competitive as possible against Clemson, Florida, Tennessee, and Georgia for Muschamp to stay on. That alone turns the pressure up on him, but an unprecedented offseason that cut into South Carolina’s preparation could be another reason that Muschamp remains the head coach through at least 2021.
It should be noted that Muschamp made a lot of staff changes earlier this offseason, which included the hiring of new offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. Missing out on spring practice could hurt South Carolina’s transition into a new offense and yield poor results on that side of the ball in 2020
