| Mode: | football |
| Year: | 2016 |
| Team: | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| Conference: | Southeastern Conference |
| Division: | East Division |
| Short Conf: | SEC |
| Record: | 6–7 |
| Conf Record: | 3–5 [1] |
| Head Coach: | Will Muschamp |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Off Coach: | Kurt Roper |
| Oc Year: | 1st |
| Cooff Coach1: | Bryan McClendon |
| Cooc1 Year: | 1st |
| Def Coach: | Travaris Robinson |
| Dc Year: | 1st |
| Off Scheme: | Spread |
| Def Scheme: | Multiple 4–3 |
| Stadium: | Williams-Brice Stadium |
| Bowl: | Birmingham Bowl |
| Bowl Result: | L 39–46 OT vs. South Florida |
The 2016 South Carolina Gamecocks football team represented the University of South Carolina in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gamecocks played their home games at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina and competed in the East Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Gamecocks' first-year head coach was Will Muschamp, with Kurt Roper as offensive coordinator and Travaris Robinson as defensive coordinator.[2] They finished the season 6–7, 3–5 in SEC play to finish in fifth place in the East Division.[3] They were invited to the Birmingham Bowl, where they lost to No. 25 South Florida in overtime.[4]
In 2016, Muschamp's first year, South Carolina had a three-win improvement over the previous year, and returned to the postseason.[5] The upset over No. 18 Tennessee at home was another highlight.[6] [7]
South Carolina announced its 2016 football schedule on October 29, 2015. The 2016 schedule consisted of seven home and five away games in the regular season. The Gamecocks hosted SEC foes Georgia, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas A&M, and traveled to Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Vanderbilt.[8]
For the tenth year, the Gamecocks opened their season on a Thursday. The team hosted three out of four of its non–conference games which were against Clemson (from the ACC), East Carolina (from the American), Massachusetts (from the MAC), and Western Carolina (from the Southern Conference).
The game between South Carolina and Georgia on October 8, 2016, was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew, and was rescheduled the following day on October 9, 2016.
Schedule Source:[9]