After a shaky 3-3 start, South Carolina had to win out to get here. They did just that. The No. 14 Gamecocks had Alabama on the ropes on their home field in October. Trailing by eight with two minutes to play,

No. 15 South Carolina faces No. 20 Illinois in the Citrus Bowl in the first all-time meeting between the programs. Illinois is looking for its first bowl win since the 2011 season, while South Carolina seeks its second bowl game win in four seasons under coach Shane Beamer.

25 Victories, 14 losses and one tie for SEC teams in the Citrus Bowl and its predecessors -- the Tangerine Bowl, Florida Citrus Bowl and Capital One Bowl. Big Ten teams have a 13-19 record in the game. The SEC has a 20-11 record when playing a Big Ten opponent in the game, with Tennessee beating Iowa 35-0 in last season’s game.