Staff picks: Clemson at South Carolina, rivalry week matchups

Rivalry week is here. And for South Carolina, there’s a lot at stake. The Gamecocks will face Clemson at Williams-Brice Stadium and need to win to make a bowl game.

But there’s plenty of other good rivalry games going on this weekend. So here’s how the GamecockCentral and 107.5 The Game staff sees this game going plus a few predictions on other key matchups.

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Chris Clark: Clemson has turned Williams-Brice into a house of horrors for the Gamecocks in the last few meetings. The Gamecocks haven’t scored a touchdown against the Tigers in Columbia since 2017, and that was when the game was out of hand.

That was then, and this is now. Clemson’s playing a lot better lately, but they’re also playing very well at home. It’s the same situation for USC, who will have that home field advantage this week and will not be playing a playoff-caliber Clemson program.

In my view, this is a true toss-up, and points could once again be at a premium. I see another nail biter on Saturday. South Carolina 27, Clemson 24

Terry Ford: What the heck! The magic of a night game at Williams-Brice. The defense forces turnovers…the offense hits a few explosive plays…and the Gamecocks win a weird one to become bowl eligible! South Carolina 26, Clemson 24

Griffin Goodwyn:  It all comes down to this for South Carolina. Win, and the Gamecocks will be bowling in December. Lose, and their season will end at the hands of their biggest rival. Clemson heads into this game with one of the staunchest defenses in the country. The Tigers are ranked 10th nationally in yards allowed per game and have the eighth-best pass defense in the country. While South Carolina might not have comparable numbers, it has been playing its best football of the season in recent weeks, which is just as important in a rivalry game like this. Williams-Brice Stadium will be bumping from the opening kickoff to the final play of the game, providing the Tigers with a difficult environment to play in. This will help the Gamecocks significantly, and I think they will put up a good fight through all four quarters. However, Clemson’s defense will be such a challenge for this offense to get through — especially in the air — ultimately causing South Carolina to fall short of that sixth victory they need for postseason play. Clemson 31, South Carolina 21

Tyler Head: South Carolina obviously needs this one to get to a bowl. Clemson’s defense is probably the best the Gamecocks have seen since Georgia. If SC can continue to force turnovers and Rattler can connect with Legette for a couple scores they can win. It won’t be easy, but I’m optimistic. South Carolina 28 Clemson 27

Joe Macheca: South Carolina has officially reached put up or shut up time in 2023. Their season comes down to one game for bowl eligibility and I think they find a way to make some magic happen under the lights. The Gamecock defense finds a way to contain Will Shipley and their experience in the defensive backfield causes Cade Klubnik some issues. The Gamecock offense continues their good run through the air and the offensive line finally put the pieces together to get the run game going. Add a big special teams play and its… South Carolina 31, Clemson 27

Wes Mitchell: As the season has progressed and the defense has improved, albeit against lesser offensive competition, I like South Carolina’s chances to potentially limit Clemson some offensively, particularly with it being in Columbia, though I still believe they’ll need a turnover or two to be in position to pull it off. I also like Spencer Rattler in the quarterback battle and he’ll be ready. But it’s going to once again be tough on him if Carolina can’t get anything going in the running game again. It’s a homer pick all the way but give me the Gamecocks riding the Williams-Brice-at-night wave to a win. South Carolina 24, Clemson 23

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Jay Phillips: The Gamecocks have accomplished their first three goals of the November homestead: win each game. Now the hardest, most challenging and most rewarding opportunity is in front of them. Beating Clemson will take more than 50 yards rushing and 17 points, unless the TO margin is even better than it was against Kentucky. Carolina knows who they are and what they must do to win; Clemson knows the same things. Last week the Williams-Brice atmosphere made a difference. It needs to again. I’ll ride the momentum wave and say USC gets it done. South Carolina 27, Clemson 23.

Kendall Smith: Well, it comes down to this for the Gamecocks. Do I think they’re a better team than Clemson? Not necessarily. But, I know Willy B is about to be shaking on Saturday night and the Tigers haven’t experienced anything like that this season. South Carolina has come to play in season defining games before, so why not do it again? Give me the Gamecocks in a CLOSE one. South Carolina 34, Clemson 31

Mike Uva: Last year I picked Clemson to win and we know how that turned out. So, I’m taking the Tigers again this year. Clemson 24, South Carolina 20

Jack Veltri: I actually picked the correct score last year, but I had Clemson winning. That went well. This feels like a year the Gamecocks can do it again. But the Tigers are hot and rolling right now. So is South Carolina, though. It’s definitely going to be a four quarter battle. I’ve been going back and forth on this game all week. Cade Klubnik has never played in a place like Willy-B. He’s going to make some mistakes. It all comes down to stopping the run. I don’t know if South Carolina can. Plus, I don’t see Dabo or his players making stupid mistakes like they did last year. However, I think there’s too much at stake for the Gamecocks. They will find a way. South Carolina 23, Clemson 20

Chris Wellbaum: Why not? All I know is that there will be some strange things in this game because that’s what both teams do. In the end, Clemson commits some more goalline turnovers, opening the door for South Carolina to steal another win. South Carolina 32, Clemson 26

	Oregon State at Oregon (Civil War)	Ohio State at Michigan (The Game)	Indiana at Purdue (The Old Oaken Bucket)	Wisconsin at Minnesota (Paul Bunyan’s Axe)	Florida State at Florida (Sunshine Showdown)	UNC at NC State	Virginia Tech at Virginia (The Commonwealth Cup)	Jacksonville State at New Mexico State
Chris Clark (73-35)	Oregon	Ohio State	Purdue	Minnesota	Florida State	NC State	Virginia	Jacksonville State
Terry Ford (73-35)	Oregon	Michigan	Purdue	Minnesota	Florida State	NC State	Virginia Tech	New Mexico State
Griffin Goodwyn (77-31)	Oregon	Ohio State	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	UNC	Virginia Tech	New Mexico State
Tyler Head (71-37)	Oregon	Michigan	Indiana	Wisconsin	Florida State	UNC	Virginia Tech	Jacksonville State
Joe Macheca (66-42)	Oregon	Michigan	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida	UNC	Virginia Tech	New Mexico State
Wes Mitchell (77-31)	Oregon	Michigan	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	UNC	Virginia Tech	Jacksonville State
Jay Philips (77-31)	Oregon	Ohio State	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	UNC	Virginia Tech	Jacksonville State
Kendall Smith (72-36)	Oregon	Michigan	Purdue (Sorry mom and dad)	Wisconsin	Florida State	NC State	Virginia Tech	New Mexico State
Mike Uva (77-31)	Oregon	Michigan	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	NC State	Virginia Tech	Jacksonville State
Jack Veltri (64-44)	Oregon	Ohio State	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	NC State	Virginia Tech	New Mexico State
Chris Wellbaum (63-36)	Oregon	Ohio State	Purdue	Wisconsin	Florida State	UNC	Virginia	New Mexico State

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