2001 South Carolina Gamecocks football team

2001 South Carolina Gamecocks football
Outback Bowl champion
Outback Bowl, W 31–28 vs. Ohio State
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEastern Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
APNo. 13
Record9–3 (5–3 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorSkip Holtz (3rd season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorCharlie Strong (3rd season)
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumWilliams-Brice Stadium
2001 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Eastern Division
No. 4 Tennessee x   7 – 1     11 – 2  
No. 3 Florida  %   6 – 2     10 – 2  
No. 13   5 – 3     9 – 3  
No. 22 Georgia   5 – 3     8 – 4  
Kentucky   1 – 7     2 – 9  
Vanderbilt   0 – 8     2 – 9  
Western Division
No. 7 LSU xy$   5 – 3     10 – 3  
Auburn x   5 – 3     7 – 5  
Ole Miss   4 – 4     7 – 4  
Alabama   4 – 4     7 – 5  
Arkansas   4 – 4     7 – 5  
Mississippi State   2 – 6     3 – 8  
Championship: LSU 31, Tennessee 20
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2001 South Carolina Gamecocks football team represented the University of South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Gamecocks were led by Lou Holtz in his third season as head coach, and played their home games in Williams–Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina.

South Carolina followed up one of the biggest turnarounds in college football history in 2000 with another successful season in 2001. South Carolina's game on September 20 against No. 17 Mississippi State was the first NCAA Division I-A game played following the September 11 attacks.[1] Just over a week later, South Carolina defeated Alabama for the first time in program history, resulting in fans rushing the field.[2] By early October, the Gamecocks were 5–0 and ranked No. 9 in the AP poll, their highest ranking since 1988.[3] The Gamecocks defeated No. 22 Ohio State in the Outback Bowl for the second consecutive year, finishing the season with a record of 9–3 and ranked No. 13 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll. The final win total and final ranking were both the second highest in school history until then.[4][3]

With a 17–7 record, the 2000 and 2001 seasons represented the best two-year mark in program history until then.[4] Holtz became the first Gamecock head football coach to win two bowl games.[4]

Schedule

The November 10 game played host to ESPN's College Gameday, a first for the program. A game against Bowling Green was scheduled for September 15, but was canceled in the wake of the September 11 attacks.[5] The game was never played. South Carolina added Wofford to the schedule to replace the open date originally scheduled for November 3.[6]

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 17:00 pmBoise State*No. 21
CSSW 32–1383,019
September 87:45 pmat No. 25 GeorgiaNo. 21
ESPNW 14–986,520
September 207:30 pmat No. 17 Mississippi StateNo. 18
ESPNW 16–1443,579
September 2912:30 pmAlabamaNo. 15
  • Williams–Brice Stadium
  • Columbia, SC
JPSW 37–3684,100
October 61:00 pmKentuckyNo. 13
  • Williams–Brice Stadium
  • Columbia, SC
PPVW 42–680,250
October 133:30 pmat ArkansasNo. 9
CBSL 7–1053,514
October 201:00 pmVanderbiltNo. 16
  • Williams–Brice Stadium
  • Columbia, SC
CSSW 46–1483,104
October 276:00 pmat No. 9 TennesseeNo. 12
ESPN2L 10–17107,530
November 31:00 pmWofford*No. 17
  • Williams–Brice Stadium
  • Columbia, SC
W 38–1477,922[7]
November 107:45 pmNo. 4 FloridaNo. 14
ESPNL 17–5484,900
November 1712:30 pmClemson*No. 22
  • Williams–Brice Stadium
  • Columbia, SC (rivalry)
JPSW 20–1585,000
January 111:00 amvs. No. 22 Ohio State*No. 14
ESPNW 31–2866,249
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

[8]

Roster

2001 South Carolina Gamecocks football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
RB 4 Andrew Pinnock Jr
QB 9 Corey Jenkins Jr
QB Erik Kimrey Sr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
NT 57 Langston Moore Jr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

References

  1. ^ Cleveland, Rick (September 12, 2021). "Sept. 20, 2001: When football was played and patriotism broke out". Mississippi Today. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  2. ^ "The last time every SEC team rushed the field". Saturday Down South. August 26, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "South Carolina Gamecocks Poll History". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "South Carolina Gamecocks College Football History, Stats, Records". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  5. ^ "Remembering 9/11 and the SEC's initial mistake". September 5, 2011.
  6. ^ "NCAA Football - Wofford vs. South Carolina".
  7. ^ "Gamecocks' eyes now set on Florida". Florence Morning News. November 4, 2001. Retrieved July 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Cumulative Season Statistics". University of South Carolina. Archived from the original on April 20, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2011.
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