No. 6 Georgia (-6) @ No. 24 South Carolina TV: CBS 3:30 pm Saturday
Daniel: While Georgia looks like the clearly superior team this year, this series has been a bit unpredictable recently. Additionally, South Carolina has won three of the last four and the last two at home in Columbia in this series. That being said, I like Georgia to take care of business on the road in this one. South Carolina’s passing defense has been absolutely shelled and its run defense hasn’t exactly been stout either, giving up over 5.0 yards per carry so far this season. Todd Gurley likes the sound of that. And even if South Carolina does stack the box, I think Hutson Mason can get it down against a porous secondary. Winner: Georgia 35-24
Houston: This game is all about what we think and what we know. We think Georgia is one of college football’s elite teams after their week one smashing of Clemson – who we also think is a pretty good team this year. But at this point we know that South Carolina is struggling on defense in their adjustment process of switching from the 4-3 to the 3-4. We know that Georgia has the most talented stable of running backs in the SEC (sorry Alabama, it’s true), and we know that South Carolina’s secondary couldn’t stop a nose bleed even if you gifted them a roll of toilet paper. I was stunned that this line was only -6, and maybe someone knows something I don’t, but I just don’t think South Carolina has much going for them heading into this matchup. Winner: Georgia 38-20
Reed: A year after fielding a top-20 defense, the Gamecocks couldn’t slow down hapless Vanderbilt (OK–that may be a stretch). South Carolina ranks last in the SEC in total defense and passing defense and second to last in rushing defense. The Bulldogs don’t have the weapons to expose SC’s terrible pass defense, but they do have Todd Gurley and 15 carries from him should wreak havoc on the Gamecock defense. Spurrier always out coaches Richt, though, and they should be able to keep the game close. Despite their horrific defense, that far too many people are counting out the Ole Ball Coach in this one. South Carolina doesn’t lose close games in Columbia and I think SC finds a little magic (and capitalizes off UGA turnovers) and pulls off the big upset. Winner: South Carolina 28-27
Richard: South Carolina’s defense is replacing a ton of talented players, and they have a lot to prove if they want to have any chance to win the SEC East, and get to Atlanta. They have struggled mightily against two quality spread offenses. However, they did play better in the second half against East Carolina, after getting off to a rocky start. They got some pressure on the QB, forced some timely turnovers, and limited ECU to 1 score in the second half. However, they are still giving up too many big plays, and their secondary to this point has been extremely vulnerable. It will be interesting to see how they fare versus a more traditional Georgia offense. When your defense is allowing too many big plays, the last thing you want to see is Georgia’s talented RB stable led by Todd Gurley. Hutson Mason isn’t Aaron Murray, but he won’t have to be. The Bulldog rushing attack should open up the passing game for him. While South Carolina’s offense hasn’t been perfect, it has been good enough to win. If the Gamecock defense doesn’t tighten up significantly, Steve Spurrier’s offense will have to have a dynamic game in order to have any chance to win. South Carolina will score some points, but not enough. Georgia will hunker down, and pull away in the end. Winner: Georgia 34- 20
