Aside from Shane Beamer’s arrival, of course, the most enticing anticipation for 2021 is the promising backfield of Kevin Harris and MarShawn Lloyd, who is expected to return from a torn ACL.

Coming off a 1,000-yard season for Harris, combined with the recruiting praise of Lloyd, who was expected to the starter to begin with, there is plenty for Beamer and his staff to build around on offense.

However, in the mean time, Beamer and his staff have a host of issues to clean up as they work to get the Gamecocks back on track following a 2-8 record.

Here are the 5 biggest areas the Gamecocks must improve in 2021:

Quarterback

This was one of the more uneven positions the last 2 seasons, and the addition of Mike Bobo as offensive coordinator didn’t do a whole lot to improve it. While Collin Hill may move on, the remaining question of Luke Doty versus Ryan Hilinski remains. Then throw in recruit Colten Gauthier, which may seem like a long shot, but the Gamecocks have made a habit of starting freshmen recently like Jake Bentley, Hilinski and Doty. The Gamecocks haven’t had 2 straight seasons of single-digit interceptions since 2012-13. The program needs some stability and continuity at quarterback, something they haven’t had since the early days of Bentley, and before that, it was Connor Shaw.

Wide receiver

The Gamecocks need a lot more from their receivers and tight ends. There is plenty of talent available, it’s going to come down to coaching and player development to turn the corner and return to the kind of Wide Receiver U. the program has developed with its all-time pass catchers. Tight ends Jaheim Bell and Keveon Mullins, along with wide receivers Xavier Legette and Jalen Brooks, who have showed potential and drawn respect from teammates. Dakereon Joyner and Josh Vann are capable, too.

Aside from tight end Nick Muse, who is very questionable to return in 2021, the Gamecocks never had a second receiver provide consistent production. With athletic tight ends becoming more productive and more prominent in modern offenses, Beamer and his staff will need to tap into that resource. The Gamecocks were second to last in the SEC in passing offense in 2020, at just 187 yards per game.

Developing 5-stars

As they get older, attention will ramp up on Zacch Pickens and Jordan Burch, the 5-star defensive linemen who will be increasingly counted on to live up to their high school hype. Pickens made 5 tackles at Kentucky and had 3 against Georgia, while Burch didn’t play in the last 2 games.

As Beamer well knows, when South Carolina is cooking, it’s typically on the defensive line. In fact, it’s near impossible to become a division title contender without at least one dominant pass rusher. J.J. Enagbare came on this season with 6 sacks, which leads the SEC, but Pickens and Burch need to become the types of players that are known around the league, and who coaches discuss when gameplanning against the Gamecocks.

Developing consistency

One of the unfortunate trademarks of the Will Muschamp era is the Gamecocks could never string together any sort of a winning streak. The last 3-game winning streak came in 2017, and there was another one in 2016. But to find a 4-game winning streak, the Gamecocks have to go all the way back to 2013.

There’s only so many stretches where they will play Vanderbilt, and a pair of nonconference games. It’s demoralizing for the locker room and the fan base to have a great performance only to know in the back of your mind that the next week will be a flop.

Beating the non-blue bloods in SEC

One of the early trouble signs for Muschamp was he couldn’t beat Kentucky. Before last season’s win, Kentucky had a 5-game winning streak over South Carolina. The Gamecocks have now lost 2 straight to Missouri. Muschamp seemed to have it going against Tennessee, but then dropped the last 2 games to a Vols team that has proven to be below average.

The most troubling is the 7-game losing streak against Texas A&M. As long as that is the crossover game on the schedule, the Gamecocks have to at least break even. Sure the Big 3 of Clemson, Georgia and Florida are important, but realistically, those will be tall orders for a few seasons. If those are going to be mostly losses, the Gamecocks can’t afford to risk bowl eligibility by also dropping mid-tier league opponents, especially multiple in a row.