South Carolina’s week one matchup against Old Dominion is more important than what may be perceived in year four under Shane Beamer.

The South Carolina Gamecocks will get their 2024 college football season kicked off this week against Old Dominion at home. While it may not have the wow factor that other week one games on the slate has, it still is a highly important game for the Gamecocks as they head into year four under head coach Shane Beamer.

For starters, and the easiest point to make, South Carolina needs to start the season off with a win. The schedule picks up in difficulty immediately after week one as the Gamecocks will travel to Kentucky in week two and then host LSU in week three. Getting the season started off right is of high importance this season, so the Gamecocks need to take care of business.

It’s also important for quarterback LaNorris Sellers. He was named the starter by Beamer last week and this game will serve as a building block for the young quarterback. This is the perfect matchup for Sellers to get his feet and get a feel for what it will be like to be the full-time starter this season. If he can build momentum in week one, South Carolina can feel even better about their game against Kentucky and moving forward.

Sellers isn’t the only new face on this offense though. South Carolina will have a handful of new names in the starting rotation and potentially a true freshman starting at tackle, according to Beamer. With the losses of Spencer Rattler and Xavier Legette, the Gamecocks will need to find new names that they can lean on this season. That can be accomplished in week one against Old Dominion.

The quicker South Carolina can get adjusted on both sides of the ball and feel comfortable this season, the better off they will be. Beamer needs to post an improved season this year after his program failed to make a bowl game in 2023. The schedule will provide some tough obstacles for that to be accomplished, but a hot start against Old Dominion could be all of the difference this season.

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