Pic. Central South Carolina.
Handsome snake, closest I can see would be a brown snake.
Marsh or rat snake?
yep, id a snake.
you have a cold?
Looks like a Brown Snake to me ( despite the lack of brownness 
).
ETA: Picture of one from the Durham area.
It’s right there in the image name, it’s a carsnake.
Thanks, all!
For what it’s worth, Earl, I agree that it’s a brown snake, formerly called a DeKay’s Snake. Adults are typically only about a foot long.
I too agree, it’s a Brown Snake, sometimes called the Little Brown Snake (I love that name!) formerly called Dekay’s Snake.
People routinely bring us animals, especially snakes, for ID. This is one where the people often disbelieve us. The name just sounds too simple and trite. We take a quick look and say “Yep, that’s a Little Brown Snake” and they make some sarcastic remark about “Couldn’t you do better than that?” So we have to drag out the formal name, and patiently explain that, indeed, this one has a really obvious moniker.
Story in the same theme? I was leading a field trip once, guiding a group of people on a nature and wildlife excursion in the Big Cypress Swamp. At one point we had to walk along a dusty dirt road. We came upon a small snake that had been killed on the road, then repeatedly run over and flattened. It was also dry season, so the remains were desiccated. Picking it up, what remained was a rather thin, colorful strip of mostly-skin, about 5/8 inch wide and 20 inches long. It literally flapped and twisted in the breeze as I held it up. The inevitable question was asked, “What kind of snake is that?” and without a thought I replied “Ribbon Snake”. The derisive laughter went on for several minutes. It took longer to convince the entire party that it was, indeed, a Peninsula Ribbon Snake (Thamnophis sauritus sackenii) and I wasn’t just jerking their chains.
I doe what you did dare.