Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
By Chris Marler
South Carolina’s chicken curse may be broken. For now, at least.
On Saturday, rumors surfaced that Jacarrius Peak may potentially miss the 2026 season because of a lower leg injury. The reason for the injury was almost as shocking as the injury itself.
A fanbase and program that feels doomed and cursed at times finally caught a break after some horrible news from a self-inflicted wound. Literally. Peak was injured during a team orchestrated 3-on-3 basketball tournament. Head coach Shane Beamer boasted about the event the prior week on Ari Wasserman and Andy Staples’s podcast.
“Peak’s injury stinks and is unfortunate, but he’s in good spirits. Can’t put the guys in bubble wrap and bring them out for September 5 to be ready for the season.”
Phew. That’s a relief.
Shane Beamer addressing Jacarrius Peak’s injury at the start of Matthew Smiley’s intro presser:
Peak will miss spring practice. He will not be fully cleared in the summertime, but they fully anticipate him being ready to go when September rolls around.
— Jack Veltri (@Jacktveltri) February 24, 2026
It’s probably more of a relief for Beamer than anyone else. In a year where he sits on the hottest seat of any coach in the SEC, losing your biggest offseason acquisitional piece seven months before the season even begins would’ve been a pretty massive disaster. It would have also been pretty tough to explain to your bosses that your starting left tackle, and $2 million or more investment, was lost in a pivotal year for some offseason extracurricular fun.
That roll of the dice from Shane Beamer will surely be scrutinized and deservingly so. This is a make-or-break year for the Gamecocks coming off a 4-8 season where they were a consensus preseason top 15 team heading into the year. This year’s squad is very talented thanks to several key pieces being retained like Dylan Stewart and LaNorris Sellers. Protecting Sellers, and other quarterbacks, has been one of the biggest underachievements of the Beamer era. They’ve allowed 40 sacks or more in each of the last three seasons.=
Lowest allowed pressure rate, FBS tackles:
Spencer Fano, Utah: 1.4%
Carter Smith, Indiana: 1.4%
Jacarrius Peak, NC State: 1.6%
Trevor Lauck, Iowa: 1.9%
Melvin Siani, Wake Forest: 1.9%
Nathan Elwood, Air Force: 2.0%
Cayden Green, Missouri: 2.2%
Aamil Wagner, Notre Dame: 2.2%… pic.twitter.com/yyfAVPlULk— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) December 2, 2025
That should change with Peak in the lineup. Keeping pass rushers away from the quarterback has been his specialty.
Hopefully keeping Shane Beamer, and its stars, out of their own way before the season starts will follow suit.
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