Kentucky Win Defines South Carolina's Rebuild

South Carolina has been looking for validation since they began their rebuild, and on Saturday night got a taste of that.

No, it won't make headlines or lead ESPN on Monday. Nonetheless, South Carolina's win on a national stage serves as a precedent for this rebuild under head coach Shane Beamer.

The ultimate goal when South Carolina hired Beamer was national relevance. There are several steps to get there: improved recruiting, coaching staffs, and execution are a start. They are still far from where they want to end up, but are moving in the right direction.

Beamer crossed two milestones off his checklist; he got his first SEC road win and his first win against a nationally ranked team. Contending within conference is the first milestone they need to reach, and they are off to a strong start.

Georgia served as a measuring stick for this South Carolina team. The Bulldogs are college football's standard right now, and they showed the Gamecocks how far they are from legitimately winning the SEC East.

However, South Carolina proved they can be pesky and contend for No. 2 this season. Kentucky is one of the best teams the SEC has to offer, and if the Gamecocks can play with them, they can play with anyone not named Georgia or Alabama.

The rebuild is still underway, and there's plenty South Carolina must correct. They didn't play perfect by any stretch, but that's the exciting development. Great football teams win imperfect games.

Take Georgia, for example. They didn't play their best football against Missouri, but found a way to escape. Texas had Alabama on the ropes, but the Crimson Tide found ways to rally.

Football isn't about scoring one-hundred points and making the game a track meet. It's about bouncing back from mistakes and playing as a team, two things South Carolina did together. They may not be perfect, but they are a complete team that proved they are continuing an upward arch.

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