The University of South Carolina football team is on their way to the plains Friday night, gearing up for Saturday's big match-up with the Auburn Tigers.
But before the team left Columbia, Gamecock fans got a chance to send-them off in style at Williams-Brice Stadium. Fans wished their favorite players and the head ball coach good luck as the team boarded the busses. Many say, they hope the loss of former Gamecock stand-out Kenny McKinley, who was found dead earlier this week, will help motivate the team this weekend.
"Definitely, definitely, they'll definitely have more focus about it, about losing a good player like they had. I'm sure they will," one fan said. "Knowing how much Kenny McKinley loved playing for the Gamecocks and how hard he played, maybe they can just feed off of that and play with a little extra emotion and just give 110-percent come out with a win," said another.
McKinley was South Carolina's career leader in catches and yards. His body was found Monday near Denver. Authorities think he shot himself in the head. A report says an investigator learned the second-year pro, who played sparingly as a rookie, had been depressed over a recent knee surgery.
Kickoff for the South Carolina - Auburn game is set for 7:47pm Saturday night on ESPN.
