COLUMBIA — Shane Beamer revealed that athletic director Ray Tanner walked into his office on Sunday and said: “Get ready for Disney World.” Beamer gave him a bear hug in response.
South Carolina football wanted to go to the Citrus Bowl if it didn’t make the College Football Playoff, and it got it. The Gamecocks will face Illinois on Dec. 31 (3 p.m. ET, ABC) at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
“This was the best possible outcome, in our opinion, of where we could be playing,” Beamer said in a news conference Sunday night. “What a statement, the Citrus Bowl had a choice on who they wanted and they chose us . . . they chose us and it’s a statement about our team, our program, our fan base.
“It’s a great statement about what we’ve done this season . . . Outside of the playoff, this is the best bowl in the SEC, for us to be part of it is really cool.”
The Citrus Bowl normally takes the top SEC team that did not make the CFP and this year, it had the option to take Alabama, Ole Miss or South Carolina — all were 9-3.
Beamer said South Carolina already has sold out of its initial Citrus Bowl ticket allotment and has asked for more.
The Gamecocks are No. 14 in the AP and coaches polls and No. 15 in the final CFP rankings. Illinois is No. 21 in the polls and No. 20 in the CFP rankings. Both teams are 9-3.
These teams have never met, but the Fighting Illini have an old friend of the Gamecocks on their staff in Justin Stepp. Stepp is in his first season as Illinois’ wide receivers coach after serving as South Carolina’s from 2021 to 2023. James Coley was hired to be the next Gamecocks wide receivers coach in January but left 43 days later to take a job at Georgia. On Feb. 29, Mike Furrey was hired to replace Stepp.
Beamer said on Sunday that no one has told him yet they aren’t playing in the bowl game. He has met with players who are on the fence, but said there is a groundswell in the locker room to get win No. 10.
“Couldn’t be more fired up,” Beamer said. “I wanted to make sure that our players who did so much this season got the opportunity to go out the right way . . . our players are really excited to be in this game.”
TICKETS: South Carolina vs Illinois tickets for Citrus Bowl game: Prices, how to buy
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Shane Beamer, South Carolina say Citrus Bowl is ideal game destination
