- [Dara] It's a familiar scene for University of South Carolina alumni.

White rally towels flailing in the air and the song "Sandstorm" blasting through the speakers.

For many, it reminds them of moments in Columbia, South Carolina, like this... - USC, USC, USC, USC!

- [Dara] Or even this, when they were surrounded by other fans just as excited for a game as they were.

(upbeat music) At The Horseshoe in Charlotte, that passion lives on.

- Nothing better just to see all the South Carolina fans gathered together in Charlotte and cheer on the Gamecocks.

- We're all here for one purpose.

- [Dara] The moment you step into the bar on Mint Street, it's clear that this is a space created specifically for South Carolina fans.

You're immediately greeted with anti-Clemson shirts to remind you of the longstanding rivalry.

There's a glowing neon basketball goal with the Gamecock logo scattered all over it and plenty of coozies, stickers, and towels to go around.

- It's a great atmosphere.

There's a lot going on.

A lot of Gamecocks, you know, everyone's willing to participate in the chance, you know, just throw a "Game" and someone will inevitably say "Cocks".

- [Dara] The Horseshoe opened in 2022 named after a central area on the university's campus in Columbia called The Horseshoe.

The idea came after Flight CLT closed in 2019, leaving alumni without an official gathering place on game days.

- I told him, 'cause I used to work at the other bar, I will build you guys a bar.

Just gimme a few years, obviously can't happen overnight.

So we started looking, going around with some real estate agents, seeing what was available.

- [Dara] Owner James Korpela isn't a USC alumnus.

However, after witnessing the infectious team spirit in Charlotte throughout the years, he became a fan and wanted to make sure alumni not only had a place to watch the games together, but had a place that felt like home.

- [James] I personally stand up at the front greet everybody most of the time.

It makes me happy when you stand there and you hear these people, families that say, oh, we came from an hour and a half away.

Oh we actually came from Columbia 'cause we didn't have tickets to the game.

- [Dara] Creating The Horseshoe wasn't a process that Korpela did alone.

He worked side by side with a man who's been a fan since his very first South Carolina game.

- At seven years old, I had the opportunity via George Rogers who won the Heisman Trophy for us to be on the football field.

And when you hear one crowd yell, "Game" another side yell "Cocks", Game Cocks.

When you hear that chant, if the hair in your arm's not standing up, then you're not human.

- [Dara] As a decades long fan, James Wolf has continuously shown his love for the Gamecocks.

First, as a child attending sporting events.

Then as a student graduating from the school in 2005 and more recently serving for the past 15 years as president of the Charlotte chapters of the Gamecock Club and the USC Alumni Association.

- Like anything in life you get out of it what you put into it.

One of our mottos is "forever to thee" that means being a South Carolina Gamecock is not for four years, it's for a lifetime.

- [Dara] With The Horseshoe being the official home for the Charlotte Gamecock Club, the bar is used for charitable events like Christmas with Cocky, networking opportunities that get alumni hired, and it helps fund scholarships.

- The better The Horseshoe does, the better we do because a portion of those proceeds will go back to our local scholarship fund, which now over the past 10 years has started from a small amount to now over six figures.

- [Dara] The impact of that money can go a long way, especially for students here in the Charlotte area.

According to the university, it receives 2000 applications a year from our local high school students.

And in the same way that Charlotte fuels the economic growth of USC by providing students, the favor is returned.

When alumni move to Charlotte and begin working.

Research shows, the Queen City is the number three destination for alumni.

After Columbia and Greenville, South Carolina, - We decided to move here, found jobs here, and hopefully find a house soon.

- [Dara] There's some notable alumni living in Charlotte like Morgan Romano, former Miss USA and Humpy Wheeler, former president of the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

But there are just two people out of the 25,000 plus alumni that call this area home.

- We both grew up in Rock Hill, South Carolina and so we knew we wanted to be, you know, in a town that was like a little bit bigger.

I feel like it's great knowing that we have a lot of other Gamecock fans in town.

Game!

- Cocks!

- [Dara] So regardless of what year they graduated, the sport they're watching or who they're making connections with.

USC alumni will always have a piece of South Carolina and the Tar Hill state at The Horseshoe for Carolina Impact, I'm Dara Khaalid.