It’s a crossover matchup between a pair of SEC foes in week 2 of the college football schedule. The South Carolina Gamecocks look for their second straight conference road win as they go west to face the Mississippi State Bulldogs Saturday night. Kickoff from Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi is set for 7:00 pm ET and is televised nationally on ESPN2. In this contest, the Vegas odds have installed Mississippi State as a 7 point favorite with the over/under set at 45.5 points.
South Carolina opened the Will Muschamp era with a come from behind 13-10 victory at Vanderbilt last Thursday. Mississippi State blew a 17-0 halftime lead and lost 21-20 to South Alabama Saturday night. This is the 16th all-time meeting between the two programs. The Gamecocks have wins in the last seven meetings between the programs. That run includes a 34-16 win in Columbia in the last meeting back in 2013. Mississippi State’s last win in the series was back in 1999. The Bulldogs took a 17-0 win over Lou Holtz’s Gamecocks.
South Carolina was a team in disarray last season after Steve Spurrier resigned midseason. The team struggled under Sean Elliott and there were a slew of names bandied about for who would take over. Will Muschamp, who was 28-21 in four seasons at Florida and spent last year as a defensive coordinator for Auburn, got the job. The Gamecocks weren’t projected to do much more than be a middle of the pack team in the SEC. Now, after a come from behind win over Vanderbilt on the road, the Gamecocks have a chance to make some noise early in the year.
One of South Carolina’s issues, which is rampant around college football this year, is picking a starter at QB. It seems you can’t watch a game without seeing at least one team play multiple QBs. Perry Orth completed 11 of 19 passes for 152 yards after getting the start. Freshman Brandon McIlwain saw action on four first half series, completing 5 of 11 passes for 35 yards. He added 29 yards on seven rushing attempts but lost a fumble and avoided a second one thanks to replay. A.J. Turner led South Carolina with 70 rushing yards while receiver Deebo Samuel scored on an eight yard run. Bryan Edwards led South Carolina with eight grabs for 101 yards. Elliott Fry was the hero: he kicked a 48 yard field goal to make it 10-3. He added a 55 yarder with 35 seconds to play to give South Carolina the win.
Mississippi State knew it was a rebuilding project to some extent. Dak Prescott graduated and is suiting up as the starter for the Cowboys with Tony Romo hurt. Still, Dan Mullen returned 13 starters from last season’s team with seven on offense and six on defense. Only 39.7 percent of last season’s offensive production returned but much of that is attributed to Prescott, who did everything for the Bulldogs. Mississippi State jumped to a 17-0 lead at the half and led 20-7 after three quarters but wilted as their defense was hung out to dry.
Damian Williams was by far the more effective of Mississippi State’s two quarterbacks. He completed 20 of 28 passes for 143 yards while adding a team high 93 rushing yards. Nick Fitzgerald was the starter in the opener but quickly took a seat on the bench. He was 0 for 3 throwing the ball and added 11 rushing yards on two carries. Mullen could face a QB quandary sooner rather than later. Brandon Holloway had 11 carries for 48 yards and a score. Fred Ross led Mississippi State with six catches for 34 yards while Holloway had five grabs for 40 yards. Westin Graves missed two field goal attempts, including a 28 yard try off the upright in the final seconds. He has to bounce back for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs simply couldn’t make the key plays on either side of the ball in the fourth quarter last week. When the game hung in the balance, Mississippi State failed to answer the call. South Carolina gutted out a win and rallied from a double digit halftime deficit. More importantly, they did it on the road. That momentum is crucial as the Gamecocks push hard here. Take the points because Mississippi State has to prove itself at this point. For more picks for week 2’s action, check here!
South Carolina is 4-1 ATS in their last five conference games and 5-2 ATS in their last seven overall.