Good morning. The Baseball America preseason poll is in, and the Gamecocks are ranked! Here’s where.

What else is mixed into today’s Brew? ⤵️

🎁 The ultimate reward
⚾ On the diamond
🤙 And much, much more

🎥 GAMECOCKS+

Connor Thomson and the Gamecocks are up to No. 2 in the nation on the heels of an upset win over then-No. 1 Virginia and clinching a berth in the ITA National Indoor Championships. Thomson, who took to the court at Wimbledon in 2023, is ready to make history with the Gamecocks. He joined this week’s episode of Gamecock Talk to discuss his journey so far and what’s next for Gamecock men’s tennis.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 The Ultimate Reward. Coach Lamont Paris and his squad are garnering rave reviews from fellow coaches after their teams battle it out with the Gamecocks on the court.

After Saturday afternoon’s loss to South Carolina, Missouri head coach Dennis Gates said: “Coach Paris is doing a great job, tremendous job getting his guys in certain spots. Guys aren’t making mistakes, you look at the assist-to-turnover ratio, guys are playing within their roles and responsibilities and not trying to do extra things.”

Before that, Kentucky head coach Jon Calipari said: “(Paris is) doing a heck of a job. He really is. It’s a veteran kind of team. And he’s getting them to play the way they have to play. They’re the best defensive team in our league, and that’s saying something because this is a (league) with about 10 teams where their whole thing is ‘We’re going to be a great defensive team that can score.’”

On the respect from his peers, Coach Paris said: “The biggest part of it is what I know it means to the guys to know that there’s nothing like respect from your peers. There’s nothing like it, and you can’t manufacture it and you can’t enforce it. And when you get it, it’s the ultimate reward.”

🔼 For The Title. Deebo Samuel and Javon Kinlaw are Super Bowl-bound! The two former South Carolina superstars will face off against the Kansas City Chiefs on February 11 for a chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. Samuel hauled in eight passes for 89 yards and added seven rushing yards while Kinlaw posted three tackles, including one for a loss, in the 49ers’ NFC Championship win.

🔼 On The Diamond. The countdown is on to when Gamecock baseball is finally back on the diamond, and two Gamecocks were named D1Baseball.com Preseason First Team All-Americans. Cole Messina hit .307 with 18 doubles, 17 homers, and 65 RBI in 62 games last season, while Ethan Petry batted .376 with 10 doubles, 23 home runs, and 75 RBI.

🔼 In The Rankings. It’s a young season and both Gamecock men’s and women’s track & field teams are in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Top-25 rankings. The South Carolina women’s squad checks in at No. 15 while the men’s crew landed at No. 16. Both teams will host the South Carolina Invite beginning February 2.

🔼 On To The Ship. After beating LSU 4-1 on Saturday, No. 2 Gamecock men’s tennis secured its berth in the ITA Indoor National Championships! The squad earned the doubles point behind Connor Thomson and Toby Samuel, and Lucas Andrade da Silva and Jelani Sarr. Samuel, Sarr, Andrade da Silva, Casey Hoole, and Sean Daryabeigi picked up the singles wins for the Gamecocks. The ITA Indoor National Championships will run from February 16-19 in New York.

🤔 GAMECOCK TRIVIA

Ranked And Ready. A total of eight SEC teams are ranked in the Baseball America preseason poll, setting up one heck of a conference battle this season. Can you name all eight ranked teams?

Got it? Scroll down to the bottom of this email for the right answer!

📬 STICK WITH US

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📬 A LOOK AHEAD

Tuesday 1/30

🏀 Men’s Basketball @ Tennessee @ 6:30pm ET on SEC Network

Thursday 2/1

🏀 Women’s Basketball @ Auburn @ 8:00pm ET on SEC Network+

Friday 2/2 - Saturday 2/3

🏃 Track & Field @ the South Carolina Invite (Columbia, SC)

Friday 2/2

🎾 Women’s Tennis vs. Georgia Tech @ 12:00pm ET | Live Streaming | Live Stats

🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. NC State @ 4:00pm ET | Live Streaming | Live Stats

Saturday 2/3

🏇 Equestrian vs. Auburn @ 1:00pm ET (Blythewood, SC)

🏀 Men’s Basketball @ Georgia @ 1:00pm ET on SEC Network

Sunday 2/4

⛳ Women’s Golf @ the Therese Hession Regional Challenge Round 1 (Palos Verdes Estates, CA)

🏀 Women’s Basketball vs. Ole Miss @ 2:00pm ET on ESPN2

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: LSU (No. 2), Arkansas (No. 3 ), Florida (No. 4), Vanderbilt (No. 7), Tennessee (No. 8), Texas A&M (No. 11), South Carolina (No. 12), and Auburn (No. 24) are all ranked out of the SEC to start the season.

🤙 Have a good Tuesday, y’all.