The last time Florida rose to third place in the AP Top 25 ranking, its next opponent was South Carolina, and the Gators overcame Gamecocks by 44-11 in 2012. Ironically, that was during the most successful of the Will Muschamp’s three seasons as the UF coach. Now, with Florida (1-0) ranked third for the first time, the Gators’ opponent is South Carolina again. This time, Muschamp will be on the opposite sideline, trying to direct the Gamecocks to another October turnaround.
South Carolina (0-1) then won No. 3 Georgia on the road in October 2019, giving Muschamp his best win in a gloomy season that put him on the hot seat. Guiding his team to another victory like that would do wonders for the coach who has a 26-26 record in the fifth season of his second performance as SEC East coach.
But winning Florida will require slowing down an attack that set a school record by accumulating 642 yards in the season’s opening win against Ole Miss last week. The Gators’ defense seemed susceptible to the team’s 51-35 victory over the rebels, however, which will put the burden on a reshaped South Carolina attack to maintain what could be a high-scoring case.
Although Dan Mullen is 2-0 against Muschamp in many seasons, Florida’s victories averaged 9.3 points per game. Considering that Saturday’s spread is almost double that, will the Gators be able to cover?
Storylines
South Carolina: The Gamecocks offensive reached a respectable 394 yards under the command of new offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, with graduate transfer Colin Hill in the quarterback in a 31-27 defeat to Tennessee last week. But the real star was Shi Smith. The senior receiver took 10 passes for 140 yards and a touchdown while lining up in various receiving positions. South Carolina’s defense was pushed forward from time to time, but it kept Tennessee at just 1 out of 11 in third-party conversions down. Gamecocks will need to be clutched on third descents again to keep Florida’s air strike under control.
Florida: Kyle Trask played six touchdowns against Ole Miss while continuing where he left off during a prolific 2019 season. The veteran redshirt’s 416 yards were the most scored by a Florida quarterback against an SEC opponent since Rex Grossman shot 464 yards against LSU in 2001. Kyle Pitts took four of those touchdowns, showing why he is the most highly rated tight end in CBS Sports’ 2021 NFL Draft position rankings. The attack is clearly not a problem for the Gators, but there are doubts about the defense, which earned 613 yards for an Ole Miss team that played its first game on a new system last week. But Florida played most of the game without starting safety Shawn Davis, who was sent off for targeting the first series of the game. Junior defender Brad Stewart Jr. is also back on the depth table this week after losing last week’s game for undisclosed reasons.
View information
Meeting: Saturday, October 3 | Time: ET noon
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium – Gainesville, Florida
TV: ESPN | Live broadcast: fuboTV (try for free)
Game preview, choices
The Gamecocks are only 1-3 against Florida in Muschamp’s term, but their average margin of defeat in those three losses is only 9.3 points. South Carolina scored 27 points against Florida last season and 31 in 2018. Given the vulnerability of Florida’s defense against Ole Miss, it is safe to bet that South Carolina will reach at least 20 points. And with some seniors in high school, South Carolina should be able to stop Florida from turning this into a complete disaster. Choice: South Carolina +17.5
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