South Carolina Gamecocks keys to victory against Georgia Bulldogs, game preview

ATHENS, G.A. (WIS) - The University of South Carolina Gamecocks (1-1) travel to the Peach State to take on the defending national champions and number 1 ranked University of Georgia Bulldogs (2-0).

To overcome the new retooled defense that Georgia has, the Gamecocks will have to rely on their running game, one aspect of their offense that has been a true weakness through the first two games of the season.

Currently, South Carolina ranks last in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in total rushing yards, with just 106 total yards on the year. The last time the Gamecocks defeated the Bulldogs in 2019, the team amassed 142 yards on the ground.

Gamecocks quarterback Spencer Rattler will be put to these against the Bulldogs’ defense, the signal-caller is third amongst Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) quarterbacks with 349 yards passing per game, he only trails University of Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and University of Washington’s Michael Penix Jr.

Rattler is also completing 84.3% of his passes with three touchdowns and has no interceptions.

A key problem South Carolina must overcome is the injury bug that continues to plague the team. The Gamecocks will look for added effort from wide receiver Antwane “Juice” Wells who has been limited this season with a lower-body injury and only has one catch for five yards.

An unexpected star who has shined bright for Gamecocks so far this season has been wide receiver Xavier Legette, who has filled Wells’ role as Rattler’s favorite target. The Mullins, S.C. native leads the SEC and ranks second nationally with 148 receiving yards per game. Legette also leads the SEC with 180 all-purpose yards per game and ranks second in the conference with 7.5 receptions per game.

Although it is an uphill battle for South Carolina, the Gamecocks seem up to the task of continuing their winning streak after losing to the University of North Carolina in the season opener and beating Furman University in the first home game of the season.

You can watch the game starting at 3:30 p.m. on Sat. Sept. 16 on CBS or streaming on Paramount +.

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