Granted Clemson still has to play The Citadel this Saturday before the annual rivalry week with South Carolina officially kicks off, and though the players and coaches can’t talk about the Palmetto State’s biggest game, it doesn’t mean The Clemson Insider can’t.

With that said, let’s take a look at the history of the two rivals. The series is the second oldest rivalry in the South behind Auburn vs. Georgia, and it is the second longest continuous series in the country overall, playing every year since 1909.

In all, Clemson leads the all-time series 68-42-4, and currently owns a three-game win streak over the Gamecocks.

Both programs have had some great teams over the years, of course Clemson has won two national championships and played for another so the Tigers obviously have a leg up, but have you ever wondered how Clemson’s greatest teams compared to the Gamecocks’ best.

Well, there really isn’t much of a comparison.

The Clemson Insider picked the 10 best teams from both programs, using the criteria of bowl teams, conference championships, national championships and final Associated Press rankings to determine the best of the best.

Obviously at Clemson, there were much more to choose from, so several AP top 10 teams as well as conference champions and other 10-win teams did not make our list. For the Gamecocks, they had some pretty good teams as well that did not make the list such as their George Rogers’ led teams from 1979 and 1980.

Clemson’s 10 best teams can claim 2 national championships, 7 conference titles and 7 AP Final Top 10 rankings. Four of the Tigers’ top 10 teams went undefeated and the other six had just one loss.

South Carolina’s top 10 teams can boast just one conference championship and one division title, while just three teams finished in the Final AP Top 10. The Gamecocks four best teams all suffered two losses and they are the only four in school history to win at least 10 games.

Of Clemson’s 10 best teams, the Tigers went 9-0-1 against the Gamecocks, while South Carolina’s best was 9-1 against Clemson.

How does Clemson’s 10 best stack up against the Gamecocks’ best? Also, would any of South Carolina’s top 10 make Clemson’s top 10? Personally, I don’t think so. I’ll let you decide. Below are the 10 best teams from both programs.

Clemson’s 10 best teams

Year       Record  Accomplishment             Final AP ranking

1981       12-0       National Champions      No. 1

2016       14-1       National Champions      No. 1

2015       14-1       ACC Champions                                No. 2

1948       11-0       SoCon Champions           No. 11

1900       6-0          SIAA Champions              No polls at that time

1950       9-0-1      Orange Bowl Champs    No. 10

1978       11-1       ACC Champions                                No. 6

1939       9-1          First Bowl team                                No. 12

1982       9-1-1      ACC Champions                                No. 8

1983       9-1-1      7-0 in the ACC                   No. 10

South Carolina’s 10 best teams

Year       Record  Accomplishment             Final AP ranking

2013       11-2       Capital One Champs       No. 4

2012       11-2       Outback Bowl Champs  No. 8

2011       11-2       Capital One Champs       No. 9

1984       10-2       Gator Bowl Participant  No. 11

1969       7-4          ACC Champions          Not ranked

2010       9-4          SEC East Champions       No. 22

2001       9-3          Outback Bowl Champs  No. 13

1987       8-4          Gator Bowl Participant  No. 15

2000       8-4          Outback Bowl Champs  No. 19

1958       7-3          Beat Clemson 26-6          No. 15