No player wants to leave the field for the last time needing assistance. South Carolina senior linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams is no different.

His 2017 season was cut short due to a season-ending shoulder injury suffered against Kentucky in the third game of the year. Given the option to return for the 2018 season after being granted a fifth year of eligibility by the NCAA, not only does Allen-Williams want to go out on his own terms, he wants to help the Gamecocks finally beat Kentucky.

Despite South Carolina holding the all-time lead in the series between the two schools (17-11-1), no active Gamecock has ever beaten the Wildcats on the gridiron. Following last season’s win, Kentucky has won four games in a row in the annual series. Considering South Carolina won 13 of the previous 14 in the series before the recent skid, the need to beat Kentucky burns deep for many players on SC’s roster.

That’s something Allen-Williams admitted during his Wednesday media availability.

“I knew I was coming back, I couldn’t leave the way I left,”Allen-Williams said. “We lost to Kentucky, I ain’t beat Kentucky. We haven’t beat Kentucky the four years I’ve been here. That’s one reason (for the return) — just that game alone.”

After seeing the field extensively over the years before suffering a season-ending injury in the third game of the 2017 campaign, the fifth-year senior senses the 2018 season could be South Carolina’s best since he stepped on campus in 2014.

“Just realizing I have the opportunity to come back with a team that we have coming back this year, we have an opportunity to do something special,” Allen-Williams added. “Coming back was always on my mind.”

The senior says he’s back up to 235-pounds and putting on “good, healthy weight” while he continues to rehab — he’s just under six months removed from his shoulder injury.

No matter how long it takes him to return to form, one thing is for sure, Allen-Williams will be ready to go Sept. 29 when South Carolina travels to Lexington to take on the Wildcats. That’s the last chance he’ll have as a Gamecock player to come away with a win against Kentucky.