2024 South Carolina Gamecocks Football Prediction | Southern Sports Talk

ladies and gentlemen welcome to the very first episode of Southern Sports Talk I'm your host the Gamecock 22 with my good friend and co-host Jake Warren today we will be talking about the South Carolina Gamecocks 2024 schedule what it looks like and and our predictions for this year as y'all know our team did not did not do great last year my prediction which is still up there unfortunately on the internet uh is it was way off and I do not want to talk about it but this year is going to be different uh because our main our main reason is because we have a new face at the quarterback position red shirt freshman Lenor sers Jake you have any stats on him yeah so Lenor sers he is a freshman quarterback out of Florence South Carolina uh he attended South Florence High School who won the state championship for their division so Lenor sers he threw for 2,948 yards in his senior season over for the Bruins and he had 45 touchdowns and rushed for 1,338 yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground okay uh so he threw a total of 121 touchdowns during his South Florence High School career so at the at the conclusion of his career he was the number four overall Prospect in the state of South Carolina right 16th best quarterback in the country the number 246 overall recruit in the country he was originally committed to Plate Syracuse before switching to South Carolina so last season he backed up Spencer Rattler he played in two games one against sperman and one against vanderville right in that fman game he played exceptionally well he had a total of four passes for 86 yards and two touchdowns lenorris he he's a dual threat quarterback he can do it all the Gamecocks have a good one with Loris Al yeah thank you Jake so other other new faces include rocket Sanders the transfer from Arkansas a very veteran guy who should make a splash he had an injury last year but uh the sources say he have been he has been working tirelessly with the strength and conditioning team to be 100% this season and unfortunately we we lost uh the aforementioned Spencer Rattler uh wide receiver number one Xavier Legette both to the NFL draft and the key transfer that we lost in uh juice Judas Wells who has transferred to Old Miss who we will play later in the season and I don't think the fans took too kindly to the recent posts on Old Miss's social media pages and Lang kein trolling us so that will be a very hostile environment come the 5th of October which I'm very excited about and hopefully we'll be able to witness it in person would like to mention South Carolina's transfer class from this past year right a lot of contributors coming in of course you get Rocket Sanders from the University of Arkansas but there's also a number of other guys too the Gamecock running back room has been completely revamped with guys like Oscar AdAway from North Texas also and then another underrated guy that got brought in Robbie Ashford uh former quarterback at Auburn uh he provides a veteran presence in the quarterback room along with the Youth of Lenor sellers uh the Gamecock staff has said they want to use Ashford in a variety of ways including uh running the ball uh trick plays things like that with the wild cat just using both lenorris and Robbie Ashford on the ground and then tons of other transfers too coming in you know Brady hunt the tight end from Ball State coming in Jared Brown a big impact wide receiver from Coastal and then variety of players on defense Buddy Mack coming in from pit at safety and just all around very good transfer CL transfer class from the Gamecocks number 12 in the nation thank thank you Jake and also uh we have a couple uh new coaching faces uh but the one that really sticks out to me is former interim head coach sea Elliott who who has spent the past couple years as the head coach of the sun Bel School Georgia State and who South Carolina actually played at the season opener in the great 2022 season and has made her return home to Columbia South Carolina it'll I believe he is uh helping out with the Run game and is it the tight ends it is tight ends but he will also be helping with the offensive line I believe very very good so it'll be very excting in to see him back in his energy and um Beamer is yet again in his fourth season and uh hopefully he can uh give the team better results than last year so would you would you like to get into the schedule now I would love to get into the schedule all right uh so basically we with new teams Texas and Oklahoma in the brand new wave of conference realignment South Carolina has been put out of the East because the Visions have been completely dissolved we are playing a mostly Western schedule in my in my eyes uh but uh that's all right it's kind of unfortunate though that we are not playing Georgia Tennessee or Florida but uh that but you know might as well well if you want to beat the best you got to play the best so we're going to start off with the Old Dominion game which I don't think we should have any problems taking the win there I also have South Carolina beating Old Dominion in the first game of the season over Labor Day weekend Old Dominion was not a good football team last year I'll put it that way could old minion be better this year possibly could they give South Carolina a scare I could see the game being somewhat close in the first half but I do see this in the end being a win for the South Carolina Gamecocks I agree the Sun Belt is a tough conference for the group of five standards so I could definitely see uh Old Dominion not not having the greatest season themselves because they have to work with hard teams like James Madison who believe is considered their kind of rival and other teams in the East like appalachin State and Coastal Carolina but nevertheless I think they are not uh that they are not the worst team but they are but they are definitely not going to be too much of a challenge for USC y all right so now we get into SEC play with our old foe the Kentucky Wild Cats who last year we beat in a close 17 to 14 game uh the week before the Clemson game and that was a fun game to watch and uh this has become sort of a budding rivalry in my eyes after what Mark Stoops said about the South Carolina team about culture versus climate but uh since he said that we beat him two years in a row now I'll State my opinion first I think that South Carolina uh you know the momentum isn't going their way and Kentucky has this game at home and South Carolina has not especially recently been good to start the season out so in my opinion I think we'll take the loss to Kentucky uh but what do you think Jake I agree with that statement I I agree that Kentucky will take the game in Lexington against the game Cox Kentucky is normally a team that plays very well at the start of the year right last year they started off five and0 of course they didn't play the best competition but still starting off hot is usually what Kentucky does they' bring in Brock Vandergriff from Georgia former festar quarterback and then of course a mark sups Leed defense is always topnotch they return I believe nine of 11 starters and they also bring in uh jaman Dumas Johnson from Georgia big transfer linebacker there so I do believe Kentucky will take this one in Lexington uh sending the Gamecock to one and one all right we will go to the next game it is a home game against the LSU Tigers now the Bayou Bengals have lost their Heisman quarterback uh and jayen Daniels and this year I think they will still be pretty good uh isn't there I believe their new quarterback isn't his name uh Grant nus g nus yep gett NM y yeah I mean I think their Def and their defense was Not Great by any means at all last year I believe they do have Missouri's defensive coordinator is that right I think that's right not sure about that I think they took I believe they took Missouri's defensive coordinator uh to try to fix the defense but I do not believe that their defense will be too much better I think this team's a little overrated uh so you think at this moment I would say Okay South Carolina gets the upset I'm typically a little high on South Carolina than how they typically are but in my opinion I still think dropped this game uh and it's a noon kickoff in Colombia which may be true but uh I think it would have been better our Chan would have been a lot better if it was a 730 kickoff so I call this a loss what do you think what do you think Jake I I will also call this one as a loss for the Gamecocks I think that the Firepower of LSU's offense with Garrett nesm and all around great receivers even though you lose Malik neighbors and Brian Thomas to the draft I think overall that offense is going to be firing in all cylinders one of the best offensive lines in the SEC as well the defense uh cannot be worse than they were last year uh LSU's defense was historically bad however they do return a good amount of starters I think LSU was more talented team and I do think LSU will take the game in Colombia yeah thank thank you well anyway now we are moving on we have had our first bye of the of the year we have two this year because of the wacky calendar um so that that really works out for us doesn't it um because we might and we really do need to with this schedule uh anyway we come we come out of this we come out of this with the old Miss game and this is did we already talk about oh uh yeah sorry I I already marked it uh oh you're fine akan I think will be an easy win Max I do have Arron as a win I don't want to get the Akon fans mad or anything you know this was a bad football team last year they went two and 10 they had one win the FBS All Season uh I don't see the scene being much better I think the Gamecocks get a fairly win all right thank you we move on now after the bye to the Old Miss game like I said earlier there's a lot of bad blood between South Carolina and Old Miss after juice Wells transferred to the rebels and their head coach has not helped the calls by by posting uh a bunch of uh things on the social media mocking Carolina this will be a very fun crowd and hopefully it'll be a night game it's one of those games that has been I think it's called a flex yeah uh where it could be like three but it also could be eight I hope that it is a 7:30 kickoff uh and if it is that will really really help us uh now everything seems to go Carolina's way in the in HomeField Advantage coming off a by week and unlike the LSU game I believe that South Carolina takes the upset to go three and two really yeah this is my called upset right now I think that this will be the game uh where Carolina starts to try to salvage their season and I think it'll be a good Revenge game on what I call the revenge tour the revenge tour in my eyes I'll just introduce it it is uh I believe four games on the season in the season that we well it's three that we' lost last year those being A&M Missouri and Clemson plus the Old Miss team with the with all the bad blood I call it the revenge tour and in my opinion South Carolina starts off the revenge tour with a win against Old Miss all right Jake let's hear your opinion so the game coock start off the month of October with Old Miss normally you know Coober and all that but normally Shane Beamer does not play his best ball in October Right comes late in the season in November yeah we went 0 and three I think last year yeah so miss is a very talented team they are a favorite to make the new expanded college football playoff they brought in the number one transfer class from this past year with guys like of course juice Wells and then Prince Ley uman Mellen from Florida and Walter Nolan the former number one overall defensive player in the nation from Texas A&M and then of course you have a Heisman favorite in Jackson dart at quarterback and a variety of very very good players down there in Oxford Mississippi so the actual game itself it is a flex game right yep so I see either way I don't think Miss will take South Carolina lightly I think they see this as a potential upset so I do think Lane kein will sort of uh lock in for this matchup and sadly I do have the Miss Rebels taking down the South Carolina Gamecocks in this game all right and uh by the way in the games we disagree in I will not mark uh until the end of the video so now we have we move on to Al Alabama and Oklahoma two Road games uh that will and these three games are definitely our toughest stretch of the season and I think these two will especially be our hardest because they are Road games and is actually interesting we played Alabama multiple times but we have since joining the conference in 19 92 um but we have never in our entire history played Oklahoma this will be a very interesting game uh but uh first Alabama I mean Nick Sabin arguably the greatest football coach of all time is gone and uh they have hired kayn dbor who was who led Washington Huskies to being the national runner up last year but and I think he'll his I think the team will not be as good as it has been in years past but I still think it would be a very solid team and uh with all that being said I do believe we lose this game what do you think Jake yeah so I think that kayin deer in the Alabama Crimson Tide will still be a very very good football team this year obviously a lot of Talent with Jaylen milro quarterback and very solid defensive pieces all around I think at Bryant Denny it's going to be a new it's gonna be a no kick and I don't see the Gamecock putting up much of a fight in this game I do have Alabama taking this win all right and now on to the Oklahoma game as uh previously mentioned South Carolina and Oklahoma have never met but these two coaches have South Carolina's head coach Shane Beamer um knows head coach rent ven very well from his time at Clemson as the defensive coordinator and also Shane Beamer knows the town of Norman Oklahoma very well as he was an assistant coach under Lincoln Riley in the uh late 2010s uh before taking the job at USC so just because this is the first time they have ever played in their histories does not mean that these these uh teams are complete strangers and I believe that Oklahoma will not have the same success uh in the SEC as they have in the Big 12 at least not immediately but still with that being said it is in Norman which is a long way away and I believe at least at this point they are the better football team so in my opinion I believe Oklahoma will win the football game okay so I'm gonna have to agree and say that Oklahoma will take the game in Norman so venol and his Squad down in Norman they are a solid football team obviously uh a lot of success in the Big 12 the SEC is a tougher League but I do think Oklahoma will find success against uh lesser programs like maybe in South Carolina or in Arkansas or Mississippi State and Oklahoma they do have some questions with their offensive line uh that's something that Gamecocks and Sooners have in common I guess but I just think in Norman that's going to be a hard game to take I think Gaylord stadium is going to be rocking and I do have that as a win for o all right now we move past our second bye and into what I call CV which is usually 10 times better than cocktober and we come back uh for a homecoming game in early November against the Texas A&M Aggies out of out of uh out of College Station Texas so uh South Carolina in the past has not had TP typically success against them but we've only beat him one time and and that was in 20122 that being said though Texas A&M has a brand new coaching staff after firing Jimbo fiser last year I think making that national championship trophy prematurely was a big mistake anyway uh they have hired the Duke head coach Mike Elco who who has ties to A&M being being a coordinator uh a couple years back this I believe this team will be good in a couple years I believe he is the right higher and he will take them where they want need to be in a couple years and they still have pieces this year but I do not believe they will be a playoff Contender Darkhorse like a lot of people are saying I think they'll be in a uh around seven and five they will be a good team but not a great playoff Contender team maybe I'm wrong but that's what I believe at least at the moment and after South Carolina having a much needed second bye after coming home uh after two uh Road losses I personally believe that South Carolina can rally the troops and win this first game in the vber slate what do you think okay so Texas A&M first year of Melo from duke uh Texas A&M they're a solid football team I would say across the board a more talented team than the Gamecocks right but at some point the Gamecocks need to show life in the season I have them currently sitting at 2 and five thus far I think at home homecoming at night Shane Beamer I think this will be an upset win for the South Carolina Gamecocks behind a strong showing from Lenor Sellers and the Gamecock Run game and I do think Connor Wegman the Texas A&M quarterback I think he's a very good quarterback don't get me wrong but I think sandstorm at night might get a little rattled I think South Carolina will sneak out a narrow Victory against the Texas a Magis all right now we move on to Vanderbilt there have been some people that have said that Vanderbilt will win this game I'm not one of them I think South Carolina will continue the long streak and win this game at Vandy okay so this game is in Nashville uh Vanderbilt will bring in Diego pavilla the transfer quarterback from New Mexico State who beat Auburn last season uh Vanderbilt is a bad football team they are not very great uh last season they lost to unb and just not great for the Vanderbilt commodor last season so this year I do not think vanderbelt is a more talented football team than the Gamecocks Shane Beamer has not lost to Vader bille and I do have the game Cox winning against Vanderbilt by I would say two touchdowns in this matchup all right so now we have three more games left on the schedule and this next one is an important one uh this is one of the multiple SEC forced rivalries uh since the uh 2012 expansion uh and this rivalry has actually been it's it's been a little bitter on our side because we have not won since Eli drinkwitz has taken over and this will be an important game to Carolina fans and this is also on the revenge tour uh and especially this is really important after the horrible showing against them last year where we only scored I believe 12 in Columbia Missouri we do get this team at home we get this team in Columbia South Carolina and uh we've come off a two- game win streak if our prediction is correct but here uh the thing is they were really good last year and they seem like they will continue to be a much better team than they were in coach drinkwitz's first three years and in my opinion I believe that South Carolina drops this game uh because we always will drop one in Co just like Florida two years ago and Clemson last year I think this is at least the first game we dropped this month what do you think so Missouri is a very good football team uh they had an 11- win season and they beat Ohio State in the cotton bow uh you will lose some Talent obviously you lose Cody Shader and you lose uh guys in the secondary so Missouri talent wise I think these teams are a lot more even than people say but they do return Brady cook who is one of the best quarterbacks in the conference and they do return maybe the best receiver in the nation with uh Luther Burton the third so I think this game will be I don't want to say not a great game for South Carolina but I don't I don't think this will be the best ball that the gamec will play this season I think Missouri has had their number over the past however many SE however many seasons it's been and I just do not see the Gamecock taking this game I have this as a loss all right so now we move on to the FCS Powerhouse I say that sarcastically wford which went two and nine last year and I do not think there will be any problem for South Carolina I think we take that game in a much needed almost bye before we play our Rivals the Clemson Tigers in Clemson and I don't think Jake will disagree with me I also have this as a win for Carolina all right now we go to arguably the most important game on our schedule against the Clemson Tigers last time we played in Clemson we beat them 31-30 in a in in a fantastic game which cemented Beamer as a good coach for at least the time at least the time being uh but the opinion changed a little bit after last year but everyone was happy with that game Beamer got an extension after that season and every and everyone was ecstatic because that was our first win against them since 201 13 now or last year actually let's talk about that first they beat us uh in in one of the most boring games I've ever seen uh so uh that was a little bit of a heartbreaker but now we are back in Clemson and this team has been on a downhill Trend every year since 2020 uh at least record-wise dbos continued to or continued to refuse to use the transfer portal now I think that South Carolina can once again beat Clemson I think we beat Clemson again to get our sweet revenge on them in 2024 but I could be wrong what do you think Jake so the Clemson Tigers are a very talented team they return Kade kumnick the junior quarterback and uh they also returned Phil mafa they do lose will Shipley and uh other key contributors like nck Wiggins and other players on the defense but I do think that the receivers will be healthy unlike last season and I do think the return of Derek Carter probably one of one of if not the best off-ball linebackers in the nation so I do think that Clemson is overall a more talented team than you this one is in Death Valley sometimes you just have a feeling that hey they might pull it off but this time I see this as a Clemson win so I'm G have to say that the Gamecocks do not pull it out in Clemson in Memorial Stadium all right so now with all that we have we can now we can now finish the schedule uh now in my in my opinion we will win these two games and go seven and five with a three and five Conference record 5-2 home record two and three road record but according to Jake he has us going 5- seven with a two and six Conference record a 4 and three home record and a 1 and four road record both are both are reasonable um in my opinion I'm typical typically a little more optimistic while Jake for the years I've known him has been a little more pessimistic about USC USC think my expectations are uh realistic we can go with that I thought my expectations were realistic last year when I said seven and five but you know I was wrong about that well I was I was realistic in 2022 it ended up I did end up predicting us to go eight and four which did happen the games were a little different but I am actually grateful that I got that right but anyway way these are our predictions I have us going seven and five Jake has us going 5- seven but the ultimate question is what do y'all think make sure to tell us down in the comments below and share this with your friends if you want to I can't make you but uh thank you all for watching the very first episode of Southern Sports Talk I'm your host the gamec 22 with with with the with my with the your other host Jake Warren thanks for watching and we'll see you guys on the other side