Clemson-South Carolina Announce Starting Rotations
By: Jason Priester February 26, 2026

One day before the start of the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry series, both teams have announced their starting rotations for the weekend.

“The greatest rivalry college baseball has to offer,” head coach Erik Bakich said. “There is no better rivalry than Clemson-South Carolina. It is something that we have the utmost respect for. The way we prepare for it and put a target on it all year long is how we show that respect. I know it is going to be a hell of a series.”

SERIES SETUP
• Who – Clemson (8-0) vs. South Carolina (6-3)
• Best Ranking – CU – No. 11 USA Today; USC – NR
• When – Friday (7 p.m.), Saturday (3 p.m.), Sunday (3 p.m.)
• Where – Columbia, S.C. (Founders Park) Friday; Columbia, S.C. (Segra Park) Saturday; Clemson, S.C. (Doug Kingsmore Stadium) Sunday
• Watch – SEC Network+ (Friday), ACC Network Extra (Saturday, Sunday)
• Video Announcers (Friday) – Kip Bouknight, Grayson Greiner, Dave Weinstein
• Video Announcers (Saturday) – Bob Mahony, William Qualkinbush
• Video Announcers (Sunday) – Don Munson, Ron Smith
• Listen (Radio) – Clemson Athletic Network (locally on WCCP, 105.5 FM)

Bakich will go with the same rotation he’s used for each of the first two weeks of the season. Ace Aidan Knaak gets the ball on Friday in Founders Park, while Michael Sharman gets the nod on Saturday in Segra. Talan Bell will start the finale at Doug Kingsmore.

STARTING PITCHERS
• Friday – RHP Aidan Knaak (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Josh Gunther (1-0, 7.88 ERA)
• Saturday – RHP Amp Phillips (1-0, 1.86 ERA) vs. LHP Michael Sharman (2-0, 0.88 ERA)
• Sunday – RHP Riley Goodman (0-1, 3.68 ERA) vs. LHP Talan Bell (0-0, 3.60 ERA)

Clemson comes in riding an eight-game winning streak to start the season, while the Gamecocks are 6-3 and fresh off a Wednesday loss to Queens, who had never beaten a Power-4 program. The Tigers have won five straight in the series and have taken eight of the past 11 series between the two programs.

“You can take stats, you can take records, and throw them all out of the window,” Bakich said. “For this series, it is going to come down to who plays better.”

Clemson 2B Jarren Purify turns the front end of a double play on South Carolina shortstop Henry Kaczmar (7) Saturday, March 1, 2025 in the Reedy River Rivalry at Fluor Field in Greenville, SC. Bart Boatwright/The Clemson Insider

SERIES HISTORY
• Overall Record – Clemson leads 191-145-2 (1899-2025)
• Record at South Carolina – South Carolina leads 86-71-2 (1900-2025)
• Record at Neutral – Clemson leads 15-13 (1899-2025)
• Record at Clemson – Clemson leads 105-46 (1907-2025)

CLEMSON OVERVIEW
• Clemson, which has played all its games at home, defeated Presbyterian 6-2 at home on Tuesday.
• The Tigers are averaging 7.3 runs per game and hitting .332 with a .534 slugging percentage, .428 on-base percentage and eight steals.
• The pitching staff has a 1.43 ERA, .163 opponents’ batting average and 4.47 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and Clemson is fielding .960.

SOUTH CAROLINA OVERVIEW
• South Carolina has a 6-3 home record, 1-0 road record, is averaging 6.4 runs per game and is led by second-year Head Coach Paul Mainieri.
• The Gamecocks lost to Queens 9-8 at home on Wednesday night. They are hitting .305 and have a 3.71 ERA and .967 fielding percentage.
• Will Craddock is hitting .500 with nine runs, Talmadge LeCroy is batting .471 with seven RBIs and Alex Valentin has two saves.

STORIED RIVALRY
• South Carolina is Clemson’s most-common opponent in history, as the two have played 338 times since 1899.
• The two have met at least once every year since 1945, with the exception of 1984. Therefore, the two have met each of the last 41 years.
• The season matchups went to a three-game, weekend-series format in 2010 after the two teams played four midweek games for decades.
• The series is tied 8-8 in regular-season, neutral-site contests since 2010.
• South Carolina leads the series 12-7 at Founders Park (opened in 2009).
• Clemson leads the series 2-1 at Segra Park (the first meeting there was in 2020).
• Clemson leads the series 58-29 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium (opened in 1970).

QUICK HITS
• Clemson is the designated home team and occupies the third-base dugout at Segra Park on Saturday.
• Clemson has won eight of the last 11 season series against South Carolina from 2015-25.
• Former Tiger Head Coach Monte Lee (2016-22) is the associate head coach and hitting coach at South Carolina.

TIGERS AT SEGRA PARK
• Clemson has a 4-2 all-time record in six games at Segra Park in Columbia, S.C.
• The Tigers have outscored the opposition 39-25 at Segra Park, an average score of 6.5-4.2.
• Clemson is 2-1 against South Carolina at Segra Park.
• Clemson is 2-0 under Head Coach Erik Bakich at Segra Park.

BOB BRADLEY AWARD PRESENTED SUNDAY
• Clemson’s MVP of the South Carolina series is presented the Bob Bradley Award. The Gamecocks’ MVP receives the Tom Price Award.
• The 2026 series marks the 26th year the awards are presented.
• The two late athletic communications directors served as baseball contacts for their respective schools for decades.

GAFFNEY RESURGING
• Junior infielder and catcher Luke Gaffney has rebounded in 2026 to become one of the team’s top offensive threats.
• He is hitting .464 with a homer, three doubles, seven RBIs, five runs and a .679 slugging percentage in eight games in 2026.
• He has a .559 on-base percentage thanks to six walks against only one strikeout.
• He has reached base in all eight games in the 2026 season and has hit safely in each of the last seven games.
• In his two years as a Tiger, he is hitting .296 with 10 doubles, six homers, 46 RBIs, 31 runs and two steals in 62 games (59 starts).

Clemson Athletic Communications contributed to this story