Examining PrizePicks offensive player projections for South Carolina in Week 2 at Kentucky
South Carolina is only one day away from kicking off SEC play against a familiar conference foe. The Gamecocks will travel to Lexington to face the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on ABC, and the offensive player projections are out, according to PrizePicks.
This is shaping up to be a massive, early season game for both sides. The stakes are higher than ever, with each program looking to get off to a good start in conference play.
South Carolina comes into this matchup fresh off a 23-19 win over Old Dominion in Columbia. It was a great day for the defense with four turnovers and five sacks. However, the offense could never get into a rhythm, specifically in the passing game. Though, the Gamecocks did end up rushing for 174 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Meanwhile, Kentucky dealt with a pair of lightning delays that ultimately shut its opener down with 9:56 left in the third quarter. But the Wildcats did manage to cruise to a 31-0 win over Southern Miss. New starting quarterback Brock Vandagriff threw for 169 yards and three touchdowns in his team debut on Saturday.
Before the game gets rolling, here’s a full look at each offensive player projections for the Gamecocks from PrizePicks with some added thoughts.
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LaNorris Sellers, QB
Pass Yards: 169.5
Rush Yards: 30.5
Pass+Rush Yards: 205.5
With his first college start out of the way, there’s reason to believe Sellers should be more comfortable and know what to expect. At the same time, he hasn’t made a road start before, let alone in the SEC. He had a tendency to rely on his feet to do some of the work last Saturday, rushing 22 times for 68 yards and a touchdown. If Kentucky brings pressure, this will either force him to throw more or take sacks if he looks to run. So it’s tough to say what’s the best play. If it comes down to it, I’d say to trust what he does on the ground. Even if he throws the ball more often, he’s still going to take off and run sometimes. 30.5 rushing yards feels like a good number he can surpass. There’s also just a lot of question marks at wide receiver to where it feels hard to see him having more than the listed projection in pass yards.
Rocket Sanders, RB
Rush yards: 52.5
South Carolina was so run-heavy in Week 1. How much is that going to change this weekend? Shane Beamer and Dowell Loggains have made it abundantly clear they would like to have more explosive plays in the passing game. But it’s easier said than done. It’s not like everything is going to change overnight and the offense turns into an elite passing unit. Either way, Sanders is going to get his touches. If he gets some space, he’s going to take it and run for good chunks of yards. Plus, he’s not on any sort of pitch count as he played 64 snaps last weekend. This feels like a clear more for yardage. And if you’re feeling good about Sanders, he also has a demon listing for more than 0.5 Rush+Rec TDs. If the Gamecocks get within goal line distance, he’s more likely than not going to be fed the ball.
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Vandrevius Jacobs, WR
Receiving Yards: 22.5
In his South Carolina debut, Jacobs totaled two catches for 59 yards with a game-high long of 41. If he creates separation and has room to move, he’s going to turn a medium pass into a long gain. As mentioned earlier, Sellers still doesn’t have a true No. 1 receiver to throw to in the passing game. If he does end up throwing the ball more like his coaches want him to, he’s going to need a reliable pass catcher on the other end. Jacobs could certainly be that guy. But if the offense is more of what we saw last week with a focus on the run game, Jacobs would need some long plays to finish with more than the projection.
Jared Brown, WR
Receiving Yards: 26.5
Much like what I said about Jacobs, it really comes down to what South Carolina decides to do as an offense. This looks like a favorable projection if Sellers is using his arm more. But when Brown did get his opportunity to rack up big yards last time out, he dropped a 50-plus yard bomb that was right in his hands. He didn’t finish with any catches. Earlier in the week, Brown said he lost focus on that play and makes those plays “100 times in practice.” It wouldn’t take much to see him go for more than the projection. But with how limited his opportunities were in the receiving game, this might be tough to roll with.
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Alex Herrera, K
Kicking Points: 5.5
Because of how much South Carolina’s offense struggled against ODU, Alex Herrera was called on quite a bit. And he delivered most of the time, making three of his four field goal attempts. This game could be more of a challenge with Kentucky’s defense and the fact it’s on the road. It’s still very early in Herrera’s playing time since this is his first season as the starter. If the Gamecocks can consistently get into Wildcat territory, I would feel great about this projection. That’s really what it comes down to. But if you don’t like the idea of him kicking in a hostile environment, this might be a harder choice to make. There just isn’t enough to go off of to prove whether or not he can do it. Then again, all it takes is two chip shot field goals and you’ll be golden.
