The South Carolina Gamecocks have added the Kent State Golden Flashes to their 2026 football schedule, the school announced Monday.
South Carolina will host Kent State at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C., on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. The game will mark only the second meeting between the two schools on the gridiron.
The Gamecocks and Golden Flashes first met on the gridiron in 1995 in Columbia. The Gamecocks defeated the Golden Flashes in that contest, 77-14.
Kent State replaces a previously scheduled home contest against the Miami Hurricanes on South Carolina’s 2026 slate. South Carolina and Miami mutually agreed to cancel the series in October after their respective conferences each announced the move to nine-game league schedules.
With the addition of Kent State, South Carolina has now completed its non-conference football schedule for the 2026 season. One week after hosting the Golden Flashes, the Gamecocks will welcome the Towson Tigers to Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 12.
South Carolina will close out its three-game non-conference slate when it travels to face the in-state rival Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C., on Saturday, Nov. 28.
The SEC previously announced the league opponents for each member in 2026. South Carolina will host Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Tennessee, and Texas A&M and will travel to Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, and Oklahoma.
The SEC will reveal the dates for the complete 2026 football schedule on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 8:00pm ET / 7:00pm CT on a special two-hour schedule release show on the SEC Network.
South Carolina is the second scheduled non-conference opponent for Kent State in 2026. The Golden Flashes are also scheduled to visit the Ohio State Buckeyes on Sept. 19.
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