2025 Fall College Baseball Reset: South Carolina

Paul Mainieri’s first season with the South Carolina Gamecocks didn’t go as planned. USC went 28-29 and only won six games in SEC play, marking what was a very difficult season just two years after a Super Regionals berth. Heading into 2026 without one of the school’s stalwarts from the last three seasons, the new year will mark a new start for a program looking to return to the top of the college baseball food chain.

The Returnees

The Gamecocks got back arguably their best pitcher from the 2025 campaign. Left-hander Jake McCoy, who struck out 77 over 60 innings as a sophomore, headlines the returnee list. McCoy had his problems, including 14 surrendered home runs and a high BB/9 (6.0) rate.

McCoy will be joined by Brandon Stone, formerly of Johnson County CC. Stone struck out 46 over 62 innings last year as a Gamecock.

As for the lineup, Beau Hollins and KJ Scobey return.

Hollins, a 20-year-old sophomore, hit very well as a freshman for South Carolina. The switch-hitter batted .308 with six home runs and 16 extra-base hits last season.

Scobey, meanwhile, hit .257 and blasted eight home runs (15 extra-base hits in total) during his first season in Columbia.

The Newcomers

This past summer was a hard one for South Carolina, as the Gamecocks lost several notable players.

Ethan Petry, a three-year star, was drafted in the second round by the Nationals after he hit a team-high 10 home runs last season. Although it was easily his worst season in the NCAA. Remember, this is the same player who blasted 44 home runs between 2023-24 and dominated the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2024.

Nathan Hall, the team leader in hits, was drafted in the fifth round by the Diamondbacks. And Matthew Becker, a strikeout machine for four seasons in Columbia, was drafted by the Twins in the 19th round.

USC also lost several pitchers to the transfer portal. Jackson Soucie, the 22-year-old left-hander, headed up north to join the Kentucky Wildcats. Ryder Garino, who struck out 34 over 24.2 IP as a freshman, is now part of the NC State Wolfpack.

Given that the Gamecocks lost a lot of pieces, it’s not a shock to see a lot of new faces in Columbia.

South Carolina’s reinforcements for the lineup include outfielder Tyler Bak, a junior transfer from Wofford, a school that’s been an offensive powerhouse over the past few years. Bak slashed .325/.427/.427 (.854 OPS) for the Terriers last season.

Outfielder Ethan Lizama joins USC after he hit 15 home runs, along with a 1.053 OPS with Western Kentucky last season.

As for USC’s pitching, Josh Gregoire struck out 40 over 34 for ULM last year. He’s one of several transfer additions. Sophomore Bryce Navarre joins the Gamecocks after he threw 6.2 innings for Texas. Left-hander Alex Valentin, a starting pitcher for Texas State, is also a new pitcher for the Gamecocks.

Alex Philpott, who struck out 16 over 14.1 IP in the Cape this past summer, moved from Florida to South Carolina.

Moving on to the freshmen, this year’s team is light on freshmen. Only four freshmen, one of whom is a redshirt (Riley Goodman), are on the roster. Two of USC’s notable recruits, Luke Roupe and Noah Franklin, were drafted and signed by the Brewers and Rangers, respectively.

The Gamecocks did get Patrick Dudley, a left-handed pitcher who hit the low-90s in high school.

Summary

Given how deep the SEC is this season, it’ll be a tough slog for the Gamecocks this season.

The question will be whether South Carolina’s new additions, coupled with the several returnees, can make an impact to help USC improve from the 6-24 in-conference record the school posted last season.