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South Carolina football is 1-1 after bouncing back from their season-opening rivalry loss against No. 21 North Carolina. Spencer Rattler and head coach Shane Beamer have their work cut out this week, as the Gamecocks travel to Athens to take on No. 1 Georgia. Another loss seems imminent, but what might happen to make this Week 3 SEC showdown interesting? Here's three South Carolina football Week 3 predictions against Georgia:
1. South Carolina covers
FanDuel favors Georgia by 27.5 points, which is a little ridiculous for this in-conference matchup. Maybe South Carolina hasn't looked great so far, but is Georgia really going to beat them by four full touchdowns?
Give a little bit more respect to what Shane Beamer has done in his two seasons in Columbia. After taking over a team that went 2-8 in 2020, Beamer led the Gamecocks to seven wins in 2021 and eight wins in 2022. South Carolina beat No. 7 Clemson on the road less than 10 months ago, ending the Tigers' 40-game home winning streak. Then, they put up 38 points against Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl and lost by seven.
This gaudy line likely says more about Georgia's dominance than it does South Carolina's perceived incompetence. To be fair, the Bulldogs killed the Gamecocks last year, 48-7. They've lost one game in over two calendar years and won back-t0-back National Championships. They're the standard of college football and the favorites to win it all again this year.
Not to say Georgia isn't still ridiculously talented, but they lost a lot of production to the NFL over the offseason. Don't count out this South Carolina football to team to at least make this a game. Georgia wins, but not by four scores.
2. Spencer Rattler scores 4+ touchdowns
Points are hard to come by against this elite Georgia defense, but it is college football. South Carolina is the underdog going on the road against a far superior opponent. The Gamecocks aren't going to bring a conservative game plan into Saturday's game. They know they can't just run the ball and try to limit mistakes. Georgia is just too talented.
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So, expect Beamer and Rattler to come out swinging with deep throws, aggressive play actions and even trick plays. South Carolina will probably be playing from behind, so they'll have to throw the ball a lot.
Rattler has a big arm and can make plays with his legs. If the Gamecocks' offense is able to get going, look for him to rush for a touchdown and throw for three more.
3. Xavier Legette goes for 100+
Xavier Legette is enjoying a breakout season in his fifth year at South Carolina. Over the first four years of his college career, Legette amassed just 42 total receptions. He has 15 catches already this year, for nearly 300 yards and a touchdown. Legette should continue to be Rattler's favorite target against the best defense they will face all year.
Legette was a four-star prospect out of high school and one of the top players in the state of South Carolina. He's a big receiver in a physical sense, and he'll need to play like it for South Carolina to have any chance in this game.
South Carolina is Georgia's first Power-5 opponent of the season, and the Georgia defense might be a little rusty having not been tested against strong competition yet. Look for the Rattler-Legette connection to get going to some degree and link up for a lot of yards.
