The 2011 South Carolina Gamecocks football team represented the University of South Carolina in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gamecocks were led by seventh-year head coach Steve Spurrier and played their home games at Williams-Brice Stadium. They are a member of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference and finished 11-2 for the season and 6–2 in SEC play. While they finished undefeated against the Eastern Division, a 13-16 loss to Auburn and a 28-44 loss to Arkansas left them second in the division standings behind Georgia. In the Capital One Bowl, they defeated Nebraska 30–13. The 11 wins were a school record; it was only the second time in the school's 119-year football history that it won as many as 10 games. They also finished eighth in the final Coaches' Poll and ninth in the final AP Poll—their first-ever top-10 finishes in any major poll.
On April 10, 2011, the Garnet squad defeated the Black squad, 21–17, in the annual Garnet & Black Spring Game, in front of a crowd of 30,100.
Projected starters and primary backups versus Clemson on November 26, 2011.
Antonio Allen – AP Second-Team All-SEC; AP Second-Team All-American
A.J. Cann – Coaches SEC All-Freshman Team
Jadeveon Clowney – Coaches Second-Team All-SEC; Coaches SEC All-Freshman Team; SEC Freshman of the Year; Sporting News All-Freshman Team
Bruce Ellington – SEC Co-Freshman of the Week, 10/17/11; Coaches SEC All-Freshman Team
Melvin Ingram – Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week, 9/11/11; SEC Special Teams Player of the Week, 9/12/11; SEC Defensive Player of the Week, 9/26/11; SEC Defensive Player of the Week, 10/3/11; AP & Coaches First-Team All-SEC; AFCA All-American Team; Walter Camp First-Team All-American; AP First-Team All-American; Sporting News All-American Team
Alshon Jeffrey – AP Second-Team All-SEC; Capital One Bowl MVP
Marcus Lattimore – SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, 9/19/11; AP & Coaches Second-Team All-SEC
Mike Matulis – Sporting News All-Freshman Team
Travian Robertson – SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week, 10/14/11
Connor Shaw – SEC Offensive Player of the Week, 10/10/11; SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, 11/28/11
D.J. Swearinger – SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week, 10/17/11
Rokevious Watkins – SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week, 9/5/11; AP First-Team All-SEC; Coaches Second-Team All-SEC
Brandon Wilds – SEC Freshman of the Week, 10/31/11
Dalton Wilson – Capital One Academic All-America Second Team
Steve Spurrier – Head Coach
Ellis Johnson – Assistant Head Coach & Defense Assistant Coach
Lorenzo Ward – Defensive Coordinator & Cornerbacks
John Butler – Special Teams Coordinator
Shawn Elliott (American football) – Offensive Line/Running Game Coordinator
Craig Fitzgerald – Strength & Conditioning
Jay Graham – Running Backs/Tight Ends
Jeep Hunter – Safeties
Brad Lawing – Defensive Line
G.A. Mangus – Quarterbacks
Steve Spurrier, Jr. – Wide Receivers
