South Carolina came into the 2015 season with high hopes, especially on defense.

Last year, the Gamecocks finished near the bottom of the SEC in almost every defensive category.

Optimism reigned when Jon Hoke was hired to revitalize the struggling unit. Surely, his NFL expertise and familiarity with the SEC from his stint at Florida would make the Gamecocks defense an instant success.

It didn’t quite work out that way.

The South Carolina defense actually got worse under Hoke.

Last season, the Gamecocks finished the year ranked No. 92 in total defense. This year, they fell to No. 95 in the country, giving up 6.03 yards per play and 429.8 yards per game.

Hoke enjoyed a reputation for building great pass defense. While South Carolina improved under Hoke, it still gave up 212.4 yards through the air per game, 50th in the country.

When he was hired, Hoke was confident that he could turn the Gamecocks defense around.

“All we are going to do is go out there and try to build a championship defense,” Hoke told reporters in his introductory news conference.  “It’s going to be a day-by-day process. We are going to be very detailed in what we do. It’s always going to be technique over tactics. It’ll be a step-by-step process. We are going to try to improve every day, no more than that.”

Sure, it’s hard to judge a body of work after just one season, and what else is a guy supposed to say in his introduction?

But it’s clear that South Carolina has a long way to go before its defense is considered championship caliber. Hoke did nothing to improve the struggling unit and give a new coach reason to keep him on the coaching staff.

The next Gamecocks defensive coordinator will need to rebuild without standout linebackers Skai Moore and T.J. Holloman, spur T.J. Gurley, nose tackle Gerald Dixon Jr. and cornerback Isaiah Johnson.