The Cockpit Stands Tall: Gamecock Students Turn Storm Delay Into a Statement
For years, South Carolina’s student section — known proudly as The Cockpit — has dealt with criticism. Some say they leave too early, don’t last four quarters, or fail to show the same loyalty as other fanbases. But Saturday night at Williams-Brice Stadium, as storms swept across Columbia and delayed kickoff against SC State, The Cockpit sent a message of its own.
“The Cockpit is going strong,” GoGamecocks posted, sharing a shot of the drenched but unwavering student section.
While much of the stadium emptied, with fans sprinting to concourses for cover and clutching soggy hotdogs and drinks, The Cockpit stayed rooted in their seats. Torrential rain and winds topping 40 mph turned Williams-Brice into chaos — but the students turned it into their own party.
“40+mph winds and the Gamecock student section is NUTS!” tweeted Cole Bryson, as rally towels waved furiously through the downpour.
Instead of scattering, the section erupted louder with each flash of lightning and burst of rain. Every time the sky opened up, the drenched students fired back with chants of “GAME!” … “COCKS!”, their voices echoing through a mostly empty stadium.
“Shoutout to the Gamecock student section for getting hype as hell during a pregame monsoon,” Elijah Campbell wrote, perfectly summing up the madness.
What could have been a miserable delay became a memory — thousands of students, soaked head-to-toe, dancing in the rain and reveling in the moment. The storm became part of the story: the chants, the laughter, the unfiltered joy that only college sports can bring. It was the type of night future alumni will talk about for years: “Remember the SC State game? The storm? We never left.”
The Cockpit was full. It was loud. It was united. And on a night when the weather tried to chase everyone away, the students stayed to prove what loyalty really looks like.
Sometimes, the truest measure of a fan isn’t whether you last until the final whistle — it’s whether you stay standing when the sky itself tries to wash you out.
Forever to thee, Cockpit.
