Week 5 was a separation Saturday across college football, and the Carolinas are no different. The cream rose to the top, and the rest shrunk when the spotlight was brightest. Below are my takeaways from the various games across the Carolinas and what it means for each program.
South Carolina
As of today, head coach Shane Beamer remains in charge at South Carolina; however, his seat is scorching hot after a 35-34 overtime loss to Kentucky. The Gamecocks have looked helpless the last two seasons, and when South Carolina manages to find occasional success, it regularly ends with blowing the lead. Beamer’s Gamecocks built a 17-0 lead in the second quarter and appeared to be firmly in control against Kentucky. However, South Carolina once again vanished around halftime and blew the lead by the end of the third quarter. Despite forcing overtime, South Carolina still lost after allowing the Wildcats to clinch a win with a wide-open pass on a two-point conversion.
There’s only so much goodwill that a coach can build up without making the College Football Playoff. Beamer’s first four years were successful in my eyes, after posting winning records in three of four seasons, defeating rival Clemson twice, and falling just shy of the playoff with an impressive nine-win campaign in 2024. The program appeared to be climbing into the upper half of the SEC. The recruiting also looked promising as the Gamecocks regularly landed blue-chip prospects and dominated in-state recruiting. Then the program collapsed, and nothing has gone right since 2025. The Gamecocks are now just 2-11 against Power Four competition the last two seasons, and it’s now been over a full calendar year since South Carolina won an SEC game.
The roster isn’t in dire shape. The offensive line has improved and running back Matt Fuller is emerging as a star. Various defensive players have flashed in spurts, including cornerback Vicari Swain and edge rusher Anthony Addison. Yet everything remains inconsistent. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers is taking plenty of criticism for his regressions, which is most evident by his erratic accuracy. Still, the issues go beyond him when receivers drop passes, defensive backs bust in coverage, and the defensive line fails to generate pressure, especially in second halves.
The schedule will only get harder for South Carolina, with teams like Georgia, Florida, and Tennessee still on the schedule. Beamer used most of his options to buy time in previous seasons, such as staffing changes. One lever that Beamer could still pull to try to save the season is a quarterback change and replace Sellers with Cutter Woods as the starter. It’s the nuclear button of options, and even with that option, it is likely already too late for Shane Beamer to turn around and save the season.
NC State
Entering Saturday, the Wolfpack faced Louisville in a must-win game for both sides. The Cardinals are a more talented squad, but NC State jumped ahead for a 28-14 lead. For the third week in a row, the Pack blew a double-digit lead, but managed to hit a late field goal and escape with a 31-28 win. The victory is NC State’s first in ACC play and gives the Pack a very narrow path to still make the ACC title game. Now holding a tiebreaker over Louisville and facing a relatively easy schedule moving forward, NC State has an opportunity to make its move for a big season, despite the disastrous start to the year.
One thing became quite clear about the Wolfpack when facing Louisville: NC State can’t win games in a low-scoring defensive fashion as head coach Dave Doeren typically has throughout his career. Instead, the Pack will need to put up points in bunches and play opportunistic defense to force turnovers. The Wolfpack forced five fumbles and recovered three of them, including arguably a season-saving forced fumble by edge rusher Harvey Dyson late in the fourth quarter. Linebacker Popo Aguirre Jr. set a program record by recovering three fumbles, showcasing the instincts that allow him to always be near the ball. It certainly wasn’t a vintage Wolfpack defensive performance with several missed tackles mixed in, but the defense did enough to support the offense.
Quarterback CJ Bailey tore apart the Cardinals’ secondary with 373 passing yards in what was Bailey’s best showing of the season. It’s no secret that Bailey is talented, but a slow start to the season quieted hype around the junior. For the first time this season, Bailey appeared to trust all his weapons and distributed the ball to several new additions, including receiver Jojo Trader, who had five catches. It’s critical that Bailey gets the passing game going as the Wolfpack is dealing with key injuries on the offensive line and at running back. Backup running back Davion Gause stepped up admirably with 21 carries, but was a clear step down from starter Duke Scott.
Overall, NC State’s still not winning pretty, but has quietly turned the season around. With a huge game hosting Wake Forest coming up this week, NC State will face another tough test before the bye week. After the bye week, the schedule truly opens up with several winnable games. Can Doeren’s team capitalize? Often Doeren does his best work in the back half of the season, so there’s reason for optimism. However, every NC State fan also knows that expectations are Doeren’s worst enemy.
North Carolina
Yes, North Carolina lost by double digits when hosting Notre Dame. However, the 37-26 loss to the Fighting Irish was an encouraging sign. The Tar Heels fought hard and nearly tied the game with a kickoff return touchdown to open the second half. However, a botched PAT killed momentum, and Notre Dame pulled away. Still, this result would have been unthinkable last season, and it’s a sign that head coach Bill Belichick is slowly fixing things in Chapel Hill.
The Tar Heel defense struggled against Notre Dame, which shouldn’t be a shock given how talented the Irish are. Failing to record a single sack, Notre Dame QB CJ Carr had enough time to pick apart the Heels’ defense. With little pressure on Carr, the Tar Heels also failed to force any turnovers, despite rainy conditions that often present chances for chaos. Furthermore, Notre Dame successfully established the run and averaged over five yards per carry. To get back in the win column, UNC will need more from its defense. Outside of a game against Miami, however, Carolina won’t face many offenses like Notre Dame’s.
QB Billy Edwards saw his share of struggles, which included a pair of picks in the first half that nearly buried the Tar Heels. However, there were signs of life as multiple weapons stepped up to support Edwards. Receiver Jordan Shipp looked outstanding with a team-high seven receptions, while tight end Jelani Thurman remained a reliable option for Edwards. If the running game can make improvements, which there is reason to believe Benjamin Hall is growing nicely into a lead back, the Tar Heels will have a potent enough offense. Next week’s matchup against Pitt, who lost starting quarterback Mason Heintschel to a torn ACL this week, will be pivotal for Carolina. Despite the scoreboard, I’m buying stock in the Tar Heels this week.
Clemson
Miami walked into Death Valley and did what Clemson did for years to teams: slowly but surely torch an underdog’s upset bid. With the ABC primetime treatment, Clemson found itself on a familiar stage. However, the magic of head coach Dabo Swinney is gone, and so are the primetime wins for the Tigers. There was never much doubt during this game that Miami would win; the question was simply how bad would it get for Clemson.
Going into the game, I expected Miami to be able to name a final score and then post it. While it wasn’t quite that lopsided, as the Hurricanes only won 41-13, there were very few bright spots for the Tigers. Freshman QB Tait Reynolds couldn’t keep pace with the explosive Miami offense, despite throwing for nearly 300 yards. Receivers Bryant Wesco Jr. and Tyler Brown did a good job of getting separation and combined for 19 catches. However, the rest of the Clemson offense looked incapable of challenging Miami.
Defensively, the Tigers were bludgeoned in the run game. Running backs Mark Fletcher Jr. and Javian Mallory time and time again. The only time Clemson wasn’t worn down in the run game was when QB Darian Mensah found his go-to receivers Malachi Toney and Cooper Barkate for explosive plays through the air.
The reality for Clemson is that the Tigers are nowhere near elite and will be fighting to simply achieve a winning record. I’d expect Clemson to be an underdog in at least three more games this season when facing Virginia Tech, Florida State, and Duke. Even if Clemson can pick off one of these games, handle business against weaker ACC competition, and close the year with a win over rival South Carolina, the standard won’t be met. Until further notice, Clemson is an average ACC football program, a far fall from its recent glory as a model program of the sport.