After a long wait, the South Carolina Gamecocks have announced that the team will play the Akron Zips at Williams-Brice Stadium on Dec. 1 at noon.
This will be the first ever meeting between the two schools, and will replace the Gamecocks’ game that was originally scheduled for Sept. 15 against the Marshall Thundering Herd that was canceled due to Hurricane Florence.
“Akron is a quality opponent and someone that we have to be prepared to play,” said head football coach Will Muschamp in a press release. “They’ve been to a bowl game two of the last three years. I’ve known Coach Bowden for many years and know that he’ll have his team ready to play.”
The Zips are currently 4-4 and hold a 2-3 record in the Mid-American Conference. They had a game canceled as well, but not from a hurricane. Their game against Nebraska on Sept. 1 was canceled due to lightning.
Akron head football coach Terry Bowden is in his seventh year as the Akron head coach, but has experience in the SEC. From 1993 to 1998, he was the head coach of the Auburn Tigers.
The Gamecocks are currently 4-3 and 3-3 in the SEC, and will travel to Oxford, Mississippi to take on the Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday.
Because refunds are being processed all Marshall game tickets, those ticket stubs will not be honored for the Dec. 1 game. General public ticket sales will begin on Nov. 5 at 10 a.m., and will be printed and mailed beginning on Nov. 21.
For those who did not originally purchase a Marshall game ticket, admission for the Akron game will cost $50 for the lower level, and $45 for the upper level. At this time, there is no additional information about student tickets.
The game will kick off at noon at Williams-Brice Stadium, and can also be seen on the SEC Network Alternate channel. It can also be streamed on SEC Network+ and the ESPN app.