Late Night Gamecock Show 77 | ODU Preview | Predictions | South Carolina Gamecocks

[Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] welcome to the late night Gamecock show from Chief Sports South Carolina here are your hosts Matt Anderson and Alex Jones of thebigspur.com [Music] well welcome in to the late night Gamecock show Alex it is AUST 27th do you know what that means uh it's game week yeah Alex knows what it means um it's game week it's game week and Alex is very the day of what everybody is doing at tring Camp preseason all of that nonsense yeah Alex we can hear you by the way um so Alex what's it feel like to be done with spring practice done with Summer practice done with weights now it's just time to see what the game c have in him for this upcoming football season yeah it feels like it's been a a long time coming since you know end the football season and into spring practice and now preseason Camp's over and it's time to start actually talking about a game here yeah so on the Gamecocks open with Old Dominion we'll talk about that here in a little bit but um to get things started Alex were were you at Shane Beamer's press conference today yep I was there all right well well what are your takeaways what did you find interesting and where should we go from here yeah I thought you know a few of the interesting things he brought up one it doesn't seem like there's any new injuries from what we learned about on Carolina calls last Thursday obviously he mentioned Jak Moore or Shane be mentioned Jak Moore and Aaron parks of both guys who seemed like could be out for a little while and you know that was the only two guys he mentioned today again when he got to his little injury Port uh injury part of the press conference and a couple other things uh you know I thought one of the bigger interesting things when he said Rockin isn't going to be on any type of you know snap count or pitch count on Saturday so he's sounds like you know we've all been hearing that he's full go and it sounds like that's GNA be the case come uh come Saturday and I you know I thought another thing that kind of stood out to me was just how much in depth he went on Old Dominion kind of I think may just kind of be a message to you know the players in the fan base just how much you have to respect Old Dominion because I mean they good Sun Belt team who can come up and you know beat anybody I mean they've beaten Virginia Tech and had Wake Forest really close last year at home so they're just kind of making sure everybody knows like got can't you can't just sleep walk through this game you got to take it seriously yeah I thought it was really interesting that he talked about the guys on the guys on staff at Old Dominion that have coached at Tennessee coached at different Power five programs and the fact that they're going to look a lot like Tennessee on offense and this Old Dominion team has had success um the Sun Belt has proved spoiler to number of different Power four power five whatever you call them power back in my day Alex they were called Power Six I don't know what you call it now we just keep going down yeah yeah eventually it's gonna be power two and there's gonna be nothing and that'll be fun too but anyway um just the fact that this team has some Talent they have a linebacker who I think is a preseason All-American maybe in their division or overall um I know that you talked about this player when you did the first schedule preview yeah article way back when and we talked about in this show but that linebackers he's nothing to mess around with he's a pretty good pretty good kid yeah obviously a very proven player I can't remember the exact number of tackles but something incredible that he had and you know was an All-American last year and you know stuck around at old old dominion and you know has a chance to have another big year this year so he's going to be a guy that they're going to have to account for on offensive line and in the Run game pass game everything they're going he's guy they gotta watch out for yeah and I and we we'll preview this game in in depth here in a little bit um but um actually Phil the best producer in the game just said that that linebacker is 120 tackles away from the NCAA record Alex do you know if he's like a fifth year senior or has he done this all in four years or will be four years you know I'm not 100% sure I need to look to see on his on their roster to see what he is I can't remember what year he is but he's been there for a few years um he's a senior so you know I he's had some time to get those tackles and you know being 120 away from the NCA record just looking at what he's done the past few years you know I think you'd have to imagine barring injury he he's got a good chance to get to that yeah don't disagree at all so I mean he's he's probably the playmaker there and yeah and and we'll we we'll get to that in a second but um I do want to talk to you really quickly about the depth chart um have you had a chance to look at this Alex I know you have oh of course yeah it's National dep chart day you can't miss it yeah I mean like depth charts mean different things to different people I understand that like I mean you look at Tennessee's depth chart I think they have like 15 ores at every position but at South Carolina and we we talked about this last week Alex we know who the quarterback is and it's Lenor sellers we know who the running back is and it's going to be rocket Sanders um after that it gets kind of creative when you look at wide receiver and we've talked about this a million times I know you've talked about this on the inside of the Gamecocks but just so everybody knows it looks like it's G to be um ventri Jacobs and I'm not saying he's wide receiver one not what I'm saying um and then Jared Brown or Nick Harbor and then you go to Gage larva Dane or Mao Bennett or pton mang or Luke Dodie so yeah Phil's the the best in the business for a reason so he's pulled up this depth chart here um Alex let's let's look through this and let's just go through after quarterback and running back you got Jared Brown and Nick Harbor I mean anyone that's played in cbla 25 knows that Nick Harbor is the way you win every game every season but any surprises here at wide receiver is this kind of what you expected no you know I think prob after last week I would expected Dre Jacobs and Jared Brown to be a starter and you know I thought Harbor could had a chance to be in that spot but I mean he's he's gonna play a lot still and with that spot with you know the three ores like I you know I kind of lean toward Gage larvan Oro getting the start there but I think for one it shows the depth that they have and you know maybe has and dialog has mention there not much separation has been much separation in the preseason camp but all those guys are going to play and you know we'll learn a little bit about them here on Saturday yeah what's really interesting to me like looking through this depth chart and I appreciate Phil putting on the screen for us but Jared Brown transfer dvon Campbell transfer yeah P Aran transfer Mao Bennett freshman vanre or Dre Jacobs transfer um taon Russell secondy year player um for those game talk fans that say like oh it's the same old same old like this is going to be the same thing we've always seen like I beg to differ and it'll continue when we go through the offensive line yeah and I thought you know with Maisy I think it's really kind of impressive that he you know being a true freshman is right up there and you know I talked about this earlier on the show like kind of pretty impressive that he's up there with these transfers who have played some college football like Jared Brown and Gage Lan and dvon Campbell he's right up there in the dep chart with him so you know I think we've heard a lot of good things about Mao Bennett and you know had a pretty good spring practice good spring game and it's only carried over in preseason camp but it should be exciting to see what this group can accomplish yeah and when we get to our um like top five preseason predictions here in a little bit like I mean that'll be self self-evident when we say what our predictions are but at left tackle I think it's interesting josea Thompson or Trey um tree bade babady or um the or I think it's going to be Josiah Thompson yeah uh but the you look at Kamar Bell I thought it was interesting that Marky Anderson is listed on the second string um that's a guy that I've kind of been waiting to see what will happen with him from an injury standpoint like the talent's there um so we'll see what happens there and for all the people that say like okay well a transfer is all of a sudden the top of the depth chart the offensive line must stink well I I don't know about you but I was not expecting Marky Anderson to be listed on the two deep no me either and just the key for for him is you know deal obviously dealt with the injury last year but then preseason camp was a little limited injuries and you know I think it's a pretty good sign that he's already list on the dep chart just you know just from a health standpoint where he's at yeah you look at versan Lee I think that's pretty much a given I mean Shane Beamer's talked about him at length being the most maybe most respected player on the team and um so that's a given then you go over to um tus Ellie Simkins and Tron ball I think that's interesting I do think it was a nice nod by Shane to say like okay look torelli is has won this but you know these guys are going to play and you look at right tackle Cas Henry and jatavius shivers you know I think as a Gamecock fan and I would think a Gamecock fan would want to see the same five every game this entire season just know the coaching staff has figured out who they want to go to but everything that I've heard everything that I have you know been privy to says that all a lot of these guys are going to play like I don't know if this offensive line is set in stone what's your take on that Alex yeah and I think with go what you said about you know fans want to see a starting five consistent starting five like you know throughout the season you're going to have injuries I mean you saw what happened last year you hope it doesn't happen to that extent but there's going to be injuries and it seems like this year they have the depth that to kind of overcome some of that you know think if you look at you know a guy like tree B you know if he ends up not officially getting that start uh in game one he could be a guy who could you know if he needs to fill in that left tackle or right tackle he can do that you got Marquee Anderson who's a guy they're very high on who can fit in at either guard position and you know for sh Lee I mean even though he's listed at is going to get the start at Center you know he can move around kind of like he's done his whole career so they have depth at the offensive line it seems like you know they can maybe if injuries do happen again you know it seems like they could be right kind of help you can be in a good spot to fill those well it's interesting to me Alex and maybe you might agree disagree I think the offensive depth chart is more interested in the defensive depth chart just because I think that the defense is pretty Rock Solid in my opinion but you look at it in a wide receiver um Dow login said last week that like nothing's set in stone like these guys are still competing and I just wonder if that's still the case on the offensive line like my gut says that it is the case and these guys are still going to find who mess with one another but the fact that you have tree and Javon who I I think both were freshman all-americans and they were on you know second team that's a good thing in my opinion yeah you know when it's been kind of seem projecting that Kamar Bell and tus Simpkins can get those two guard positions you know I think that's kind of been the what you thought about it's just you know I think it says more about those guys being able to come in and take take those spots as experienced players more than more so what it says about tree and trovon I don't think it really says anything bad about those guys like you know when you think back to last year they they just kind of got thrown in there due to the injuries and both of them performed really well and I think having those those two having those years that they did last year it's only going to help them in the future and obviously helps provide depth this year yeah I think so too and I just look at and I say like wow for the first time in my entire 35 years on this planet seems like this is the second or third time that the Gamecocks have eight or nine offensive linemen that can get the job done which is incredibly important um at tight end I don't think there's any you know real reveal here I think Josh Simon and Brady hunt were always going to be the the starting two tight ends especially when they go to 12 Personnel um Josh Simon is a guy that I have a lot of high hopes for I thought that last year you know For Better or For Worse trox was a critical of the offense and you know when you look at the offensive line then what they had to do to protect Spencer ratler Trey Knox was a was a pretty pretty good blocking tight end maybe not the best but a pretty good one but I mean when you look at Michael Smith and Maurice Brown backing them up I feel pretty optimistic don't you yeah when you know coming into preseason camp we like you mentioned knew about Josh Simon and Brady hunt but you know you knew Michael Smith had the potential just from what you saw as a recruit but I mean that guy had has got into camp in his flashed and has made himself to where he's probably going to be a big contributor for this team and Maurice Brown's one of the more intriguing players I think on this depth chart right now just from what he can bring to this team just the work I mean he was a big- time special teams player for them last year and now with him being you know kind of improving in the weight room I think he went from like 234 to 252 somewhere around that he so he's putting the work in the weight room and you know Shane Beamer's mentioned him and Michael Smith as a guy who are gon to play a lot this season so you know they have some we keep talking about depth on this team and especially when we get the defense going to keep talking about depth but they you know kind of built some depth there in the tight end room with those two guys yeah I think like to tie a bone on this before we go to defensive depth chart I'm I'm not worried as I have been in the past um I feel pretty good about this offensive unit I think that you know Lenor sers is ready for this I think having rocket Sanders behind him is going to be just the biggest benefit in the world for a [ __ ] freshman a quarterback but let's go ahead and go over the defensive line depth chart and we'll we'll Analyze This Alex so I know Phil's getting this ready right now but were you surprised to see the defensive line depth chart because that was one of the things that I was a little curious about how all this would shake out yeah I think probably one of the bigger surprises that came from this Dev chart for me at least was jti's gear being on a potential starter at Edge like he was a guy who you know we I'm not going to say we didn't hear a whole lot about just but apparently his guy's just been consistent through throughout camp and has earned that spot to potentially be a starter but I think when you look at the defensive line including Edge and defensive tackle like you when you look at the depth you can just see the depth that they have I mean because you look at defensive tackle you got six guys there who you feel really really good about being you know on in on the field and same for Edge like you know Dylan Stewart's a guy who's a festar freak and you know he's got technically two guys in front of him at Edge and it all kind of depends on situation and stuff like just I mean just because he's third on the dep chart doesn't mean he's going to be third on the field or whatnot but like because Dylan Stewart's gonna play a lot but you know I think once again just a lot of depth on that defensive line well I think it's kind of what Shane talked about today when he talked about the depth chart and like essentially everybody you see on this dep depth chart is going to play on Saturday yeah and but looking at it like Gilbert Edmond he knows the system he is the co kind of co-starter I guess we could say at um defensive end and then J's gear is a kid or jatius I however you pronounce it but that's a guy that JC sherbet from inside the Gamecock has been high on for a very long time injuries kind of derailed his first year in Carolina but the fact that you have DeAndre Jules listed as the third defensive tackle behind Alex Huntley Nick Barrett and then DeAndre Jules that was a starter at Pittsburgh and look say what you want about the ACC but you have a starter at Pittsburgh listed third on the depth chart and I think it goes back to what we've talked about a lot like not very worried about the defensive line I don't think I'm very worried about the linebackers we've talked about this but um B Martin Scott B Martin Scott and the Debo Williams I mean just really really good players that can get um east to west north south um Demetrius Knight Jr another kid that was a transfer um bangley Kamar another kid that was a transfer and like Mo mava and um it was interesting to me that um Fred Johnson um Jr has found his way onto the dep chart as a true freshman yeah I you know just from what the staff thinks about him it probably shouldn't be too surprising that he made his way onto the dev TR they're really really high in him and I think it's good for him to have some of these other you know older experienced players in front of him be able to learn from and to have that year you know he's going to play a lot especially on special teams it's probably going to get some time at linebacker but you know probably shouldn't be too surprised when that guy found his way onto the dep chart and you know I think one of the more one of the guys who's probably being slept on a little bit is probably Bengali Kamar for what he can do I think he's you know a really solid depth piece that you know could probably start at a lot of schools too and you know he like you know with this linebacker room I think you like Debo Williams and B Martin Scott to get the start but I mean Demetrius Knight and Ben go Kamar are right there to and you know can you know his fresh legs coming in there can be right it can be good for South Carolina well it was interesting to me like looking at this step chart and especially a linebacker when you talk about South Carolina need to upgrade talent but if you look at the last four games of last season linebacker was not a problem and the fact that the same linebackers that started the last couple games or Gamecocks last year are still the starters now with increased competition I think that that says a lot about that unit um looking at at the secondary obviously DQ Smith and Nick imanari didn't think those guys would get supplanted um odonald fortune and judge clier at starting DBS um judge looks like he's won this battle but at the same time vicari Swan is gonna have a role as well yeah you know I think I would imagine just kind of my hunch is that judge caller is going to get that start at corner opposite of odonald Fortune but you know V Way's a guy you know I think it's it's really good for South Carina that he's emerged to be able to you know push for that starting quarterback spot because the guy's just a playmaker and you saw that on the high school film and you know I think it's just taken a year for him to work on being consistent but I mean he can be a guy who can come in and make plays right away and he's gonna be another one that you're gonna see a lot of on Saturday night because I think all those guys in the secondary they're gonna play especially at those Corner spots with emry Floyd and David spaling so should be really interesting to see what those guys can do Saturday night yeah I thought it was pretty interesting that jalou Solomon and Kelvin Hunter are kind of side by side there and those are two guys that I know the coaching staff really really liked Kelvin Hunter um you talk about DJ saringer type that that's what that guy is and jouis Solomon I know that the coaches said privately he looks like a three andone guy so you know when you have the opportunity to have that kind of depth it's it's a really really big deal so overall Alex I think I can speak for you and both um pretty optimistic about the depth chart um obviously injuries you know they play a piece in all of this but um Gamecocks right now look like they could withstand an injury or two at multiple multiple positions so um the next thing that we're going to talk about Alex before we hit actually we got two more things before we hit a commercial break but Alex I want to get your five big predictions for the Gamecocks this year um I have five I can go one through five or you can go we can alternate what what do you want to do let's see let's go with what you have first and I'll see if I think I may have a lot of the same ones but we'll see all right so my first prediction is that Lenor sellers combines for 30 total touchdowns this season and that can be passing touchdowns it can be rushing touchdowns but when you look at 12 games in a regular season all this stuff is regular season type stuff um 30 and that's like 2.6 2.7 per game um do you think I'm way off there um 30 is a lot for a [ __ ] freshman but I could see it I mean I maybe feel a little bit better closer to the 20 range just because I think you have to like What They're bringing back in the run or bringing in the running back room with rocket and those guys and you know maybe they can account for a lot of those touchdowns kind of close to that goal line but you know it's not out the I don't think it's out as a possibility but I'd probably lean a little closer to 20 okay so we'll call it 25 there you go yeah all right um the next one rocket Sanders rushes for over 1100 yards this season thoughts on that one Alex yeah I mean I think it all I think a lot will go into that you know if the offensive line can improve run blocking and offensive line can stay healthy you know and it sounds like Rocket's getting back to his 2022 sell from when he was a you know All-American at Arkansas like I think is definitely possible and just depends on like I said a lot goes into that but you know seems like he's ready to be able to get back to that Mark yeah for me I think he's going to rack up like a couple 150 yard games so I'm not saying he's going to average you know whatever it is 120 yards rush in a game I think there's gonna be some 80 yard games some 70 yard games but I'm gonna go 1100 yards um this one's interesting Alex and I'm really interested to get your take on it but I say that there'll be at least five pass catchers this year so wide receiver tight end that catch at least 30 passes and at least five players that go over 300 yards receiving this season um just looking back at last year with Spencer Rattler um there were four guys that caught at least 25 balls and Five Guys that had 250 yards receiving so Five Guys that get at least 300 yards and Five Guys to catch at least at least 30 balls what's your take on that um I think with the Five Guys catching 30 passes I think you could see it just because when you look at last year you pretty much had Xavier Legette you know he was obviously the number one guy and they're going to try to get him the ball every time you know this year I think you don't quite have that Xavier Legette type of number one wide receiver so you're gonna see Lenor sters kind of move around in the pocket and kind of you know move around his progression so and you know find different guys so you know I think I think you know I think there could be a chance of that oh I'm locking it in I'm locking in all these predictions by the way all these things are going to happen so um just to recap Lenor sers 30 plus total touchdowns I mean maybe he wins the Heisman I don't know um rocket Sanders 1100 yards and at least five Gamecock pass catchers catch at least 30 balls and get 300 yards um the next one Alex is the Gamecocks Force more turnovers than they give give up on offense special teams however you want to you know calculate that but I think that the Gamecock defense is poised to force a lot of turnovers this year and I think that Shane Beamer who has and D Loggins to his credit have all said that they want to give up minimal turnovers which every coach says but I'm thinking it's one of those situations where they force more turnovers than they give up what are your thoughts yeah I agree I think that's a really good one just you know when you look at what's been able to do under Shane Beamer and under Clayton white like you know the first few years they were really good at forcing turnovers like not as much last year but I think you know they put a real emphasis getting back to that this year and they know how important it is and you know obviously having a veteran defense experience experienced defense is going to help you do that and you know I think they're also offensively putting a emphasis on you know limiting turnovers and I I think Shane may have mentioned that today again so you know I think that's I I agree with you on that one I think that will happen all right well the last one I got here Alex the last one I have is Lenor Celler and this is kind of cheating this is kind of cheating but Lenor sellers wins freshman SEC freshman of the Year honors I mean if he can do the 30 plus touchdowns that you think or account for 30 plus touchdowns I think he's got a really good chance yeah I mean because you're basically like comparing like how many other freshman quarterbacks are there in the SEC probably not a lot right how many like freshman running backs which is probably the easiest position to transition to um and then wide receiver I I think that you you have a freshman quarterback you know red shirt whatever you want to say but that's how they they tally the votes so I'm going Lenell Lenor sers with SEC freshman of the year um okay Alex I told you I'd give you two or three more um I say the Gamecocks have over four and a half all SEC performers either the coaches or the media um team one through three over four and a half over four and a half uh yeah I think I'll go I'll take that I would take the over I think you know think especially defensively I think you can think about Tonka Tonka Hemingway TJ Sanders dvo Williams I mean maybe one of those transfer guys or Demetrius Knight or benali Kamari can sneak into there or I mean Nick even DQ Smith like you know and who knows if ad Donal Fortune's ready to do you know take that next step so you know I think it's a distinct possibility for that to happen all right I'm gonna give you two more the next one is the Gamecocks block over two and a half punts or field goals this year um I would take I would say two I think I think it kind of depends we need to see kind of what Joe de cis's kind of philosophy is like obviously Pete Pete limo was really aggressive on punt returns or trying to get to the punter you know I think kind of depends on his philosophy but yeah um maybe I say I'll go over you said two over two over under two over under two and a half two and a half all right I'll go over I think they could get I think get all right all right and the last one which might be the most exciting one is that the Gamecocks go for two on their first offensive touchdown of the Season no I would say no I don't think so I think they want want to get Alex r as comfortable as they can so I'm not sure unless it calls for it I'm not sure you won see that all right unless it calls for it yeah Alex is he's he's hedging his bets everybody's hedging his bets all right so before we take a commercial break Alex do you mind just roll rulling through um the guys they're going to visit this weekend so um we we got to do some recruiting I mean it's a Gamecock show first game of the year um who are the guys are gonna be visiting this weekend yeah so I think uh obviously you got to start off with what hail mcgran reported today that uh Mel Skinner is going to be in uh obviously guy who's committed to Cincinnati but is coming out of Riverside High School and number 12 ranked tight end in the 2025 class so it's pretty interesting that he's going to be in this weekend I think it's says a lot about where South kind kind of stands and potentially maybe being able to flip him um a lot of the commitments from that 2025 class going to be in at Anthony ason Donovan Darden daquavius DOD Lex Cyrus Christopher howfield Brian RH shedric serat Jaden sers and Caleb Williams and you know I think one of the bigger maybe potential names in that one's Caleb Williams I think I mean he's said that he's 10,00% committed and it seems that way uh 100% that he is and I think for him to be able to come down for Virginia for the first game is pretty telling he's still very much locked in even with a you know team like George or Virginia Tech trying to get in there uh you know couple more commits from that 2026 class gonna be in and Anthony baxer and Keenan Britt and so you know I think it's a good group so far and you got some 2026 guys from uh you know we've been talking about this class that's got a really good chance to be a pretty solid class from top to bottom you know a couple of guys that are going to be in from there are Zion gals from him and Way South con and Jamal house the tight end from Newberry and so you know I think and uh Marion Watkins too is also going to be in the safety from Northwestern so it's it's time to start for South car going to really start recruiting that 2026 class heavily not that they hav't already but because there's a lot of guys in that class but they're gonna have some of them in this weekend yeah and what I always say on this show and Alex you said the same thing getting players on campus at this time of year is very important you look back at the 2023 class and having players in for Tennessee game Monumental in the way the Gamecocks were able to close that class out because they built that groundwork early and look the Gamecocks we're going to talk about the Gamecock schedule here coming up there are a lot of opportunities for Big Time games and Big Time atmospheres for recruits to come to this season and what the Gamecocks have done so far in the 2025 class is kind of set the groundwork they already know who they're going to get likely but this is really all for next year so as always I say make sure that you're paying attention to the bigs sp.com because you got to look a year two years in advance now it's not necessarily okay well here's a high school senior that's visiting there will be some of those players and there will be some of those players that kind of pop and you know through their senior season but um be just stay tuned to the big.com it'll be well worth your 9.99 a month um also if you guys missed it um tailgate talks this past week was ridiculously awesome it had um Steve sprayer on with Pat DeMarco and um Stephen Garcia and it was an episode you don't want to miss so make sure you're downloading ta tailgate talks go to the chief Sports Network app make sure you get it um if you missed it it's it's fantastic and Stephen Garcia and Patrick DeMarco go in depth with Steve spur and look whatever you think about how Steve sprayer left it it was an amazing run and he holds nothing back in that interview so make sure you get on tailgate talks with that being said we're g to take a quick break and when Alex and I come back we're going to give our South Carolina Old Dominion preview and we're going to look at the Gamecock schedule this year and Alex is g to be put to the task to say what the Gamecocks record will be so after this break we'll see you in a sec I said oh Lord Jesus this a far ain't nobody got time for that emergencies and accidents happen when you're in the middle of a fire or water event all you want is for things to return to normal as soon as possible Resto pros of the Midlands is with you restopros Midlands scc.com open 24/7 when you need them quality that is guaranteed down here in the South we don't always see die while our tasting college football teams or what sauce if any goes best on a rack of ribs or what to mix with our Dixie vodka might be up for debate we can all agree there's nothing better than a southern tailgate and like our favorite college teams our ingredients come from small towns and big cities they're grown in southern soil are crafted by Southern Hands and proudly represent the south in our backyard and Beyond so raise a glass of dipy Southern vka to celebrate being made in America and raised in the South oh man the building is on fire during and after natural disasters or accidents there can be a heavy loss to property Resto pros of the Midlands is here to help open 24/7 call them when you need them 8803 49317 Resto Pros Midlands scc.com quality that is guaranteed [Music] all right Alex we are back and we are going to give our South Carolina vers Old Dominion preview um I feel very confident in saying that you will pick South Carolina to win knocking them wood I hope you do yes but so that game is actually at 4:15 Williams Bryce Stadium um Alex will be there I'll be there really looking forward to it um the way I look at this Alex and um I think I told you this earlier but I kind of do the implied odds with Vegas I take the point spread and the over under and looking at Vegas right now and I shouldn't say right now I did this at two o'clock today but I iuse draftking odds and those those are the odds we're going to use for every single thing I talk about tonight but South Carolina is a 21o favorite and the overunderish 52 points when you use the implied odds here that says South Carolina will score 36.5 points and old dominu will score 15.5 so Alex really quick you know what's your take on that so let's just say let's say 37 to 15 does that sound about right to you yeah you know I think if South cona gets to 37 around there you know obviously that's if that's offensively it's a really good day I got a feeling in this game there's going to be a non-offensive touchdown I think special teams or either defense is g to find a way to come up with a touchdown this game you know I I think offensively you could you can put up you know 28 31 points it's a really nice day to come out in your opening game be able to do that because opening game with so many new faces that you have offensively you know there's a lot that still come together for the offense and being in a first game you just never know but you know I got a feeling that you know they are GNA find a way to run the ball which I think is gonna be huge for South Con in this game and not only this game but this season but you know I think that will help Lenor sers kind of slowly get himself into the game in his first start yeah I think the 52 number is probably pretty good on the over under uh you know if if I had to say over under 15 and a half points for Old Dominion I think I would take the under um I think that this defense is going to have opportunities to do quite well through the first three quarters um that fourth quarter that everyone's been a part of at Williams Bry Stadium sometimes you know there can be a couple touchdowns or field goals scored um I think 36 and a half to 15 and a half is a decent number I would I I think the Gamecocks will score more than than 36 and a half and if you just kind of look at it that's basically saying you know 35 points um five touchdowns I think that you know the game coocks will get five touchdowns and at least one field goal um I I don't think there's much to talk about this from a win loss perspective I think that you know while Gamecock fans will not be happy escaping with a three-point win or a one-point win all you got to do right now is get Lenor sell feet wet and get out with a win uh but moving on from Old Dominion uh Gamecock schedule gets gets real in week two and week two you're heading to Kentucky um if you got if all of you missed it Alex and I kind of went through our SEC preview um last week so you can always go back all these episodes are evergreen as long as um well I guess they the next two weeks Alex I mean things can change yeah but um so South Carolina heads at Kentucky in week two and this is going to be me and Alex's um preview of the season so Alex I'm GNA give you a a win over Old Dominion and I'll take a win as well what is your take against Kentucky so with Kentucky I'm really interested to see to kind of watch some of their game in week one because having a new quarterback and Brock Vander Griff I'm really interested to see how that kind of comes together you know a guy who you know a little unproven but you know has a chance to prove himself kind of early and it's going to be a you know South con is going to be his first SEC start you know so you know they have some pieces to replace offensively you know Ray Davis has gone but you know they got a guy and Chip trainum who's the Ohio State transfer but I don't think it's really 100% sure if he's gonna play in that game with his broken hand so you know it's all I think it's gonna be a close game I I lean right now towards South con of with a three-point win or so in somewhere in that range but I think we'll see kind of we'll know a little bit more about both of those teams uh here after this week but you know I think it's going to be close and I really I think it's almost like a 5050 game right now yeah I would I would not disagree with you at all um I think that South Carolina has won two in a row against Kentucky obviously you have two years ago when Li will Levis was injured and it was just a complete back crap scenario like against a yeah um a backup quarterback I think that South Carolina has more Talent than Kentucky uh but you know it's all about Kentucky and the defense yeah if all of a sudden you know Lenor sers is getting pressured like Spencer rather got pressured at South Carolina is is Lenor ready to make the quick throws that that Spencer did I don't know but right now I'm GNA go win for South Carolina and I'm going to give you win as well uh the next one is a home game LSU um you went first on the Kentucky game so I'll go first on the LSU game I have not been impressed with LSU outside of elite Playmakers and they had two wide receivers I think drafted in the first round they had obviously the Heisman Trophy winning C or Heisman Trophy winner last year uh and Jayden Daniels a guy if you listen to this show a year ago a year and a half ago I was telling you place your hosman trophy bets on jayen Daniels he's gonna win it but uh maybe I'm crazy Alex but I do not believe in in nus me nesm whatever his name is the quarterback I think Lenoris is better I think that two and 0 Williams Bryce is GNA be a tough place to come play and I just LSU goes up and they go down they go up and they go go down yeah so I'm going to take South Carolina to win I'm not going to be as Brave as you and actually say by how many points but I will take um South Carolina to beat LSU what do you say Alex uh I'm leaning towards agreeing right now that they're gonna win that game and I think with LSU we're gonna learn a lot about them here on Sunday night against Southern Cal and know if they come out and find a way to and look really good against Southern Cal you know maybe that changes my prediction but as of right now I'm going to say a win because of just so how much they have to replace offensively well for the record Alex if they go out and just like boat race Southern cow we do a prediction every single week so we can change our predictions later we're gonna make this prediction right now um against akan I'm gonna put you down for a l for South Carolina I think that's the way you're leaning H absolutely not all right so right now Alex and I both have the Gamecocks four and o heading into their bye before Old Miss comes to town and you know there's a lot of storylines with ol Miss obviously juice Wells uh big one um we'll see if he plays um kind of like Marshon Lloyd who's now with the Green Bay Packers and doesn't want to practice anymore and doesn't want to get treatment and all of a sudden decided like hey I got my contract I'll just hang out for a little bit I didn't say that that's what Marshon L decided to do um so with Miss it this is probably I don't know is the biggest game on the schedule like in the first half of the Season yeah and I you know I think in the end it could end up being the toughest game on the schedule just with the talent that Old Miss has you know all over the field offensively like Jackson dart's one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC maybe the best and obviously one of the best in the country and they did so well in the transfer portal it's especially on that perimeter and especially on the defensive line that you know this one's going to be tough for South Carolina yeah I think we're both dancing around it a little bit um I think that 4 and0 going into Miss is a great opportunity for South Carolina um I also very well aware that ol Miss has 48 or something new players on their roster this season this will be the first test for Miss in this football season um I think a bye-week helps South Carolina going into this game and I think that the defense is really good for South Carolina this year and I'm gonna go a win oh wow and I promise I'm not picking a win every game I'm not gonna be that guy but I do think there's a big opportunity for South Carolina to win that game I think there's going to be a lot of juice in that stadium so I'm gonna go win Alex you're putting me on the spot aren't you um I'm not I'm not trying to I'm not trying yeah I mean really I I think it's gonna be close I just think in the end Old Miss maybe has too many weapons offensively I I think it's gonna be close Mama go with a loss and all of Gamecock Nation died Alex yeah like I mean golly if they're on the big forur go ahead and and hit Alex up and let him know that he thinks juice Wells is gonna have his Heisman coming out party I didn't I didn't say that I think right I think it's gonna be a really close game and you're right on the south count defense and you know the juice that that game's gonna have it's just you know Jackson Dart and what they have offensively is just it's really really good and not saying that South count defense can't you know contain it or you know limit them but you know that's I'm have to go with the loss close loss oh Alex Gamecock Nation hates you right now how do you feel about that yeah I know well you're not you're not going to make them feel any better right now so um yeah after Old Miss Gamecocks travel to Tuscaloosa Alex I mean should I just go and put l by 100 points by you right now no but you're going first on this one again all right all right all right I'm and look I'm I'm making notes right here um it's an interesting game for me uh kayn dor is a really good coach obviously just took Washington to the national championship and Jaylen milro showed me more last year than I thought he would um he he's my Dark Horse Heisman Trophy winner this season and I've been to Tuscaloosa before I was there for the four straight throws to Alshon Jeffrey on the fade it was a little bit after my 21st birthday I don't remember it very well but I was there um I think that tuscalo is just too much for Lenor sers I mean this will be his first true Road game after Kentucky and Kentucky isn't the most formidable atmosphere so I will take the Gamecocks to unfortunately drop from The Undefeated ranks but I will say if the Gamecocks win the five games that I have them they will be top 10 in the country when they lose to Alabama yeah I'm leaning the same way you are on this one it's just you know Alabama even though Nick sabin's gone like still got a loaded program and it's gonna be a tough test for South con and you know I think they're gonna have their moments in that game but I think it's g i think you know I'm G have to go with a loss all right so Alex has the Gamecocks at 4 and two after six games Matt your hero has the Gamecocks at five and one after that um Gamecocks have another road trip and it'll be to Oklahoma uh Norman Oklahoma I know a lot of Gamecock fans are making plans to go to this game uh with Oklahoma it's kind of a I don't know throw some balls in the air and see which one has a win on it when you throw it when you catch it I don't know um Oklahoma has some questions I think they're gonna have a pretty good defense I'm not absolutely sure about their offense but that is a Brett venol team I I lean towards it being a tough game but if the Gamecocks are able to get through Kentucky LSU and Old Miss and then a loss to Alabama they're gonna have to pick themselves up off the mat and it's a tough one you got a byee coming up so maybe something happens but I'm G to go with a with a loss to Oklahoma and I hate doing it well I'm gon kind of turn the tables on you here I I'm I think South con may end up winning this game um I think okay I you know you kind of mentioned the question marks Oklahoma has like you know they got a really good linebacker and Danny stutzman who's really good and you know Brent vinal is always gonna have a really good defense but you know just wonder what they're going to be offensively uh losing Dylan Gabriel and bringing in the new quarterback so you know I I'm gonna go with a win here I'm gonna go with a close win I love it because um something we talked about in a previous episode was that the Gamecocks would beat Oklahoma or Alabama this year and it was um you know pretty big prediction and you said they would win one of those games so kudos to you kudos to you Alex for continuing that yeah yeah for sure um so you got a by we and then you have um homecoming at Williams Bry Stadium against Texas A&M uh it's an interesting one to me I think that South Carolina obviously does not have a great history against Texas A&M but they won the last one they played what are your thoughts Alex yeah you know tm's a really interesting team like you know I feel like I've said this a thousand times already but we're gonna learn a lot about them in week one going up against another Dame having college game day there they're gonna be on the stage or big stage in week one and you know Mike elos are elco's a really good coach and you know I kind of you know all right you're gonna go first on the ition again because I'm I'm not sure where I'm not sure where I'm leaning all I'm taking the Gamecocks I think that you know like I said if they've beaten Kentucky LSU om Miss lost to Alabama lost to Oklahoma have a by we now they're playing Texas A&M at home on homecoming they've already proven their medal and I think that during the bye they figure out a way to do it I agree I I I think it's gonna be another win for South Conor so so what do I have them as now uh we both have them at 1 two three four five six and two okay right now six and two all right then you got Vanderbilt go ahead and do it yeah W West Side all right then you got Missouri seven and two Missouri coming to Williams Bry Stadium oh man um Missouri defensively has a lot to replace you know they I can't remember them exact number but when I was doing their preview I was kind of surprised or kind of caught off guard at just how much they have to replace and Blake Baker's going to be at LSU now so I think he's a really good coordinator so but you know offensively they got a lot Luther Burton Brady cook all those guys I'm just laughing at the fact that we're gonna have the Game [ __ ] like nine and three or 10 and two I know all right man like come on just like make make make the Shane memer is never going to allow you to go back to a press conference I swear Alex I know um I'm gonna go win because I think Missour is overachieved then wford win-win and man what are you gonna do here Alex Jones the game at Clemson I mean gosh so what what's my record right now right now you got the does the record matter or is the teams matter no the I'm just what I have them all right one two three four five six seven eight you got the Gamecocks at eight and three right now and I got the gamec at nine and two so I think with Clemson you know looking at what they have this year you got C Kade kumnick but you know something were to happen to Kade like I'm not sure where they turn to at quarterback you know they you know same thing at running back you got Phil mafa and it's just a little bit of unproven you know depth behind him so I'm not I mean you know if they're both healthy you know Clemson's always a tough place to play but you know South kind found a way to win that game two years ago using special teams and I'm I'm torn on it it's a 50-50 game for me really right now well flip a coin here I got one I got one you ready I'll flip a coin okay all right heads Gamecocks or Clemson you got to pick it uh Tails Gamecocks it's t all right then all right so Alex Jones has picked the Gamecock to beat Clemson and Matt Anderson is a company man so he will as well so I got the Gamecocks at 10 and two Alex Jones has him in nine and three 10 and two make your plans for the college football playoff it's happening nine and three I just don't know Alex can they can they make it a nine and three you're doubting the Gamecocks making the ball playoff can you really do that yeah I don't know like nine nine and three would be an incredible season you know I when you look at this team like just kind of going back to what we've predicted so far like ky's a huge game and you know just for where the season goes like you go two and you find a way to go two and0 beat oldin Kentucky you know I think there's a lot on the table obviously being two and 0 but you know I got a feeling that they're going to get one one and one out of LSU and old miss you know I think they'll beat one of those teams and I'm leaning towards isue just from what I said earlier and you know it's I think there's just a lot of tossup games that you know down the road they're going to you know continue to be toss-ups and we'll see where these teams stand but you know South count can find a way to win their share of you know these tossup games like you know I could see a know I say I I think they're going to get to six wins and I'm feeling pretty confident on that you know and if you find a way to win some of those tossup games you can maybe get to seven eight you know I know I said what nine and three is what I said you know we see the route that they can get there but you know I think even an eight and Four Season would be really really good well I think I think the floor is six if the Gamecocks don't win six that's a a much bigger issue yeah quite frankly um if the Gamecocks win five games I think that they're needs to be conversations about where the Gamecocks go forward and maybe that's changes on the coaching staff I don't know um I'm a big believer in Shane I'm a big believer in da Loggins I'm a big believer in Clayton white and all the coaches like please do not hear this the wrong way but they're it's the toughest league in the country bar none and you're not going to beat people out coaching them you have to have the players and Ellis Johnson said that on inside the Gamecock the other day but I do think the players are in place so that's why I say like the floor I think the floor is six and like I'm not joking around when I say that the ceiling's T I think that if things break the the right way when you look at by weeks and where the Gamecocks you know come off by weeks and you know we'll see I I'm not saying 10 and two is the the prescription right I would I think the four game stretch of Old Miss Alabama Oklahoma A&M like obviously that's a really difficult stretch but that's kind of going to make a break South car season like find a way to get two of those wins I think you're feeling pretty good you know and you get any more than that obviously you're feeling really good but that's the key stretch right there and you know those first four games before that by week if you can find a way to get three and one and I mean if you're four and0 like obviously that's great but if you find a way to get to three and one before that four game stretch like you I think you're putting yourself in a pretty good spot entering that you know I think probably their most difficult stretch of the Season yeah I don't disagree at all so um 10 and two my prediction Alex is N9 and three we've told you the ways that it can go for us or against us and we'd be ha we would love to hear y'all's take on this by the way I mean everyone has a season prediction I know that you know Gamecocks wear a garnet wear a pair of garnet glasses and every opportunity they have and look you know it it's not it's not crazy um before we get out of here Alex I am G to go through the SEC football slate this week we're not going to spend a lot of time on this but just did want to get this out there um Thursday night you have two games names you have Arkansas Pine Bluff at Arkansas um Arkansas is favored by 48 and a half points the over under 57 so the um implied scores Arkansas 52 and Arkansas Poma four um I might just go ahead and take Arkansas Pine Pine Bluff um their team over which probably be like three or five whatever uh Murray State plays an O Ed Missouri sorry Missouri state of Missouri on Thursday Missouri is a 48 Point favorite over under 57.5 and then when you get to Friday night Temple at Oklahoma Oklahoma is a 42 and a half Point favorite um Saturday the big game and me and Alex Alex will talk about a little bit later um Clemson vers Georgia in Atlanta Georgia is at 13 and a half Point favorite over under 48.5 um the implied point total there is Georgia 31 Clemson 17 and a half um Saturday at 12 you have Virginia Tech vers Vanderbilt Virginia Tech is a 13 and a half Point favorite over under 48 uh 1245 you have Chattanooga versus Tennessee Tennessee is a 38 and a half Point favorite over under 57 um by the way all of these lines come from DraftKings so if you're if you're going to play these games go to DraftKings those are the lines I'm using as of 2m Miami at Florida Miami minus two and a half over under 54 Colorado State at Texas Texas minus 32 and a half over under 60 big number there we already talked about this but Old Dominion at South Carolina South Carolina minus 21 over under 52 Eastern Kentucky at Mississippi State Mississippi State minus 25 A5 over under 60 uh Western Kentucky at Alabama this one kind of surprised me Alabama minus 31 a half over under 59 and a half um Ferman at om Miss Miss minus 42 over under 60 and a half just if you want to bet it just take Old Miss because they're going to murder people um L kein murders people when he has the opportunity to he doesn't do it every time but he will murder you if he gets the chance um another big one here Notre Dame at Texas A&M uh Texas A&M is minus three over under 46 and a half um Alex this one was actually interesting to me because correct me if I'm wrong but the former Duke quarterback is now the quarterback at Notre Dame isn't that Riley Leonard yeah and so Texas A&M coach um coached him at Duke which is interesting to me so uh Texas A&M minus three over under 46 and a half Alabama A&M at Auburn Auburn minus 48 over under 56 and a half uh Southern Miss at Kentucky interesting we need to pay attention to this one Alex yeah uh Kentucky minus 28 over under 50 they're saying Kentucky 39 Southern Miss 11 and then you get to Monday night um LSU vers Southern cow in Las Vegas LSU minus 4 a half over under 64 so that is the SEC slate this weekend um we gotta wait till next week until we have SEC teams actually playing SEC teams Alex what are the odds that the SEC goes 16 and0 this week um you know I think SEC is GNA come out this weekend with a pretty good record just with the FCS you know lower level games that how many of those are but that Florida Miami game is one that's really interesting you know you know we'll talk we'll talk about that in a second we'll talk about in a second but um do you think what are like 80% chance that SEC goes undefeated 50% chance SEC goes undefeated I'll go 70% 70 to 80% all right that's that's a hell of a money line just throw all your money on the SEC team so Alex I pulled together some Best Bets of the weekend and for those of you guys that were or GS that were not here last year I usually pull five games I try and keep them top 25 games if I can um just because that's what most people are going to watch but so Alex you're you're getting this in real time um you don't know which way I'm going and I'm sorry for that but I picked five this week um so Saturday at 12 noon you have Clemson at Georgia uh Georgia is minus 13 13.5 points and the over under is 48 and a half points Georgia is projected to win this game 31 to 17 and a half do you have a lean here yeah I I think for one it's going the under is going to hit on this one I think it's two really good defensive teams going at it and I'm a lean Georgia to get the win so you're GNA take the under yeah under 40 and a half okay I like that I almost took it I got you mark in blue me and yellow I'm taking Georgia minus 13 and a half because I've seen Kade Club Nick try and played football before and Georgia just has way more Talent all right and it's in Atlanta yeah all right so the next game on our best bet segment Pinn State at West Virginia Penn State is minus 75 over under 51 A5 um Penn State 30 West Virginia 21 and a half what are your thoughts there what you what's the line you say on that one uh Penn State this is like two o'clock today so um Penn State minus 7 and a half over under 51 and a half uh I think I think this one's going to be Clos but I think Penn State kind of runs runs away with it towards the end uh I'm going to go Penn State to win by 10 so um we have um Phil mulanax our fearless producer he just weighed in he's taking West Virginia plus the points or Phil if you're still here is that West Viria money line because that would be pretty tasty um while Phil Phil answers this I'm taking pen State minus 7 and a half as my best bet uh I just okay Phil says points but won't be surprised if they win all right so I'm gonna take Penn State I'm like Alex what' you pick I said I think they're gonna beat the spread I think they're gonna win by 10 all right so me and Alex are united here and Phil is on the island he's taking the the plus seven and a half and next week Phil's gonna be like I told you so all right so the next game that we have is at 3:30 uh Miami at Florida and Miami is at two and a half Point favorite over under 54 Miami uh this isn't right but Miami 28 to Florida 25 what's your take on that oh man I think I said last week that Florida was going to win I think come on time on time on I I have the receipts okay second so you took Alex took Florida so you gotta take the two and a half yeah I do I do I think it's gonna be a field goal game I think Florida wins all right so Alex is taking the three and a or the three point two and a half yeah I'm taking the under 54 so me and Alex won't be um too far off on this I just don't think either team's actually really great at football and I think that scoring 54 points combined when a coach refuses take a knee and fumbles away the game trying to get guy 100 yards like I just don't trust that coach um so I'm gonna take under 54 um the next one Alex Notre Dame at Texas A&M Notre Dame is a three-point Underdog Texas andm favored by three over under 46 and a half which basically equates to Texas A&M 25 Notre Dame 22 to thoughts on that kind of leaned in the under again on this one I believe you know I think Mike ELO's a defens of gy you know what' you say the spread is currently no or Texan in what Texan in minus three minus three okay so it's pretty pretty close on that um I I think Texas A&M I'm G take the under but I think Texas A&M wins by six or seven okay I mean I'm going back to the fact that um Mike Elco knows the Riley Leonard the quarterback Dame pretty well so I'm going Texas A&M minus three so you got the under I got the minus three I feel good about that and then we could not leave you guys hanging Monday night there is still a bet to be made and that is the LSU Southern Cal football game LSU minus 4 and a half over under 64 points goly so it's basically looking like LSU 34 and a half 35 Southern Cal 30 what's your take on this one Alex I hate to do it again but take the under like I mean I'm taking the under my man I like I mean I what we talked about with LSU earlier having so much to replace like it's a lot of points that they're going to have to combine score and you know I think I'll take the under yeah so for me on this one Alex I just kind of thought about it like you had LSU and you had Southern Cal two of the teams that just scored the most points in inant football last year and what did you lose two years ago's Heisman Trophy winning Canada the number one pick in the NFL draft and then last year's Heisman Trophy winner like I think the public is just overselling 64 and a half is a a lot of points on a neutral field in the first game of the season too like I mean yeah so I mean that is my best bet like honestly um so I kind of just did some math here quickly um give or take whatever me and Alex said if you want to throw five doll on it you might make $120 you want to throw $100 on it you might make $2400 but as I said last year I will say again this year please do not bet money that you cannot afford to lose if you have a gambling problem please seek help and I will be betting five doll on each one of these so if I lose 25 times 12 haven't lost my entire house so um and I I don't know if Alex gambles or not but anyway um appreciate you guys so much um we'd love to hear y'all's picks um we will be back here actually Sunday night Sunday night we'll be joined by Joe um Alex might know how to pronounce his last name I haven't talked to him yet to hear yeah so Joe machica and Alex and I are gonna do a Sunday night show we're g to be recapping Shane memer's press conference talking about the games um I do not know what network or what YouTube channel that'll be right now but at the end of the day we'll be here Sunday night we'll tell you how to find us on the big spur and um looking forward to it it's football season and Alex and I have talked about potentially doing um some impromptu shows as well so stay stay locked in here we're so excited to spend this time with all of you and you know we appreciate you all giving us most valuable thing you have which is your time and we'll be around and you can find Alex Jones at alexjones 45 you can find me at late night Gamecock show on Twitter um fair warning I don't check my Twitter very often but I know Alex does because he's got all the time 247 but um you can always find us on thebigspur.com so we appreciate you all join us so much we hope you have a great rest of the week Gamecock start on Saturday um make sure you check out inside the game Cox the rest of the week too and um we will see you guys soon have a great evening bye everybody