South Carolina Sticks With Struggling QB LaNorris Sellers, But Has Backup Loaded and Ready for Kentucky

LaNorris Sellers is still South Carolina's starting quarterback.

The Gamecocks kick off against No. 24 Kentucky today at 4:15 p.m. ET on SEC Network, and Sellers will be under center when the ball is snapped, according to multiple reports including Yahoo Sports and The Big Lead. But the coaching staff has made it clear his leash is short.

ESPN's Pete Thamel reported on College GameDay Saturday that backup Cutter Woods took nearly a quarter of South Carolina's first-team practice reps earlier this week, a share that dropped later before Sellers was confirmed as the starter. Thamel said there's a real possibility Woods replaces Sellers mid-game today if the passing struggles continue.

"LaNorris Sellers is really struggling at quarterback, and I've been told by sources there's a possibility if those struggles continue, he could be replaced in-game today by backup Cutter Woods," Thamel said on the broadcast.

Sellers is completing 62.1% of his passes through four games, second-worst among SEC starters behind only Texas A&M's Marcel Reed at 55.4%, according to The Big Lead and sports.yahoo.com. He has six touchdown passes against four interceptions, the third-most picks in the conference. He's thrown for 833 yards.

The interceptions have come at bad times. Against Alabama, Sellers threw a pick-six that put the Crimson Tide up 35-3 before halftime in a 49-18 loss, according to The Big Lead. South Carolina also lost at home to Mississippi State, 41-34. That leaves the Gamecocks 0-2 in SEC play and 2-2 overall heading into Kentucky.

Sellers is averaging 6.8 yards per carry and South Carolina leads the SEC in rushing under new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, per The Big Lead. The run game works. The passing game, ranked ninth in the SEC, does not.

A Steep Fall From 2024

Two years ago, Sellers was one of the best stories in college football. In 2024, as a first-year starter, he completed 65.6% of his passes for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns with just seven interceptions, adding 674 rushing yards and seven more scores on the ground, according to Newsweek. He won SEC Freshman of the Year and third-team All-SEC honors, leading South Carolina to a 9-4 record and a five-game win streak over Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Missouri and Clemson.

Heading into the 2025 season, On3 reported Sellers was projected as high as the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Instead, South Carolina collapsed to 4-8 last year, and the regression has carried into this season. This is expected to be his final year of college eligibility, which means every bad outing now carries NFL draft stakes, according to Newsweek.

Beamer and Briles Won't Deny It

Head coach Shane Beamer wouldn't confirm which quarterback took first-team reps when asked Tuesday, saying only, "We're always competing in practice, and that's at every single position," according to The Big Lead. Briles went further on Wednesday, declining to rule out a Woods appearance: "Yeah, there's always a chance. Our guys are competing today at practice, at every position... If we feel like that was what gave us the best chance to win the game, then that's what we're going to do."

Woods is a 6-foot-3, 215-pound sophomore from Westside High in Anderson, South Carolina, who led his high school to a state title in 2023, per The Big Lead. He signed as a three-star prospect in the 2025 class. In six career appearances, all in relief, he's completed 17 of 25 passes for 161 yards with one touchdown and one interception. This season he's 9 of 14 for 92 yards with his lone touchdown coming against Kent State.

Not Everyone Thinks This Is the Fix

Fan reaction, as captured by College Sports Network, split along predictable lines. Some blamed the coaching staff. "That coaching staff really ruined LaNorris Sellers, huh?" podcaster Bookstore Brew posted on social media. Others were skeptical a quarterback change solves anything structural. "It'll be distasteful if outside influences win out. Yes Sellers is struggling but the changing isn't always a fix," Edward M Williams wrote.

That's a fair concern. South Carolina's passing issues trace partly to Briles' new scheme, which the Gamecocks are still adjusting to in year one. Benching a proven playmaker for an unproven sophomore carries its own risk if Woods struggles too. Nobody outside the building knows for certain whether Sellers' decline is about confidence, scheme fit, or talent regression.

Kentucky enters 3-1, having won 31-21 at Texas A&M earlier this season, but South Carolina has taken the last four meetings in the series, including a 35-13 home win last year, according to The Big Lead. The Wildcats also allow the fourth-most passing yards in the SEC, which Sports Illustrated notes could be Sellers' best shot to turn things around before any change becomes permanent.

Whether Sellers finishes the game at quarterback, and what that means for his NFL draft stock heading into his final college season, remains to be seen once kickoff happens this afternoon.