Staff picks: Furman-South Carolina, Matchups from a fun Week 2

It’s a big week of college football, not just for South Carolina but across the country. And GamecockCentral is here to pick a few.

The Gamecocks have a tough FCS opponent this weekend in Furman and are trying to avoid the program’s first 0-2 start since 2020.

GamecockCentral and the 107.5 FM staff are here to pick that game plus a ton of fun matchups over the course of Week 2.

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Without further ado, this week’s staff picks.

Chris Clark: The Gamecocks are coming off a disappointing night on the lines of scrimmage in the season opener. This one will be a challenge, as Furman’s one of the best teams at the FCS level. This is a good opportunity for the team to get back on track and I while I don’t expect a dominant performance, I expect improvement. South Carolina 37, Furman 17.

Terry Ford: Just throwing a score against the wall. Furman is a good FCS team but the Gamecocks will eventually pull away because, well, because they’re better. South Carolina 37, Furman 17.

Griffin Goodwyn: As Shane Beamer indicated in his weekly media availability on Tuesday, Furman will not be a “pushover.” The Paladins head into this matchup ranked as the No. 6 FCS school in the country and are coming off a 45-10 over Tennessee Tech where it forced six turnovers, a metric it led the nation in last year. But after last weekend, South Carolina needs a win to build some momentum after last weekend, so I don’t see it taking any chances against a weaker opponent. South Carolina 37, Furman 17.

Tyler Head: South Carolina is in need of a major rebound after a disappointing week 1. I think Furman has the ability to hang around for a half, but SC’s talent should allow them to pull away in the second half. South Carolina 34, Furman 17. 

Joe Macheca: The Gamecocks take on the Paladins in much need of a strong showing from all 22 positions on the field. I think they do that exactly. They will be challenged by Furman’s defensive backfield, but a slow and steady attack with enough big plays to win the game handily and pad the explosive play numbers. South Carolina 42, Furman 17.

Wes Mitchell: It’s a bounceback week for South Carolina but Furman isn’t exactly your typical FCS team. This is a proud program that has won a ton of conference titles over the years. More importantly, it’s a veteran team that likely won’t be intimidated by Williams-Brice Stadium. They’ll come in expecting to win but the Gamecocks, particularly Spencer Rattler and the receiving corps, should be too much in the end. South Carolina 35, Furman 14.

Jay Phillips: After a very surprising performance last week there seems to be nowhere to go but up for the Gamecocks OL. Against an FCS opponent, albeit one ranked in the Top 10, it may be difficult to measure any meaningful progress. I’m hesitant to pick a score because of the variables involved, but I think we’ll be able to SEE some things that allow us to gauge what’s different. In very fine pencil: South Carolina 34, Furman 13.

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Kendall Smith: Although I think Furman is a solid team, (and one of the only schools in SC to actually win last week) South Carolina knows they must win this game. I think Spencer Rattler and the Gamecocks will get it done and pull away in the second half, but don’t expect it to be total domination. South Carolina 34, Furman 20. 

Collyn Taylor: This game wouldn’t surprise me if this is close early, and maybe even at halftime. But at some point, the Gamecocks have too much speed, too much strength and too much talent not to pull away. Spencer Rattler looks like the guy he did last week and puts up some really good numbers en route to a double-digit Gamecocks win. South Carolina 31, Furman 13.

Mike Uva: A new-look OL will pay dividends against a scrappy Furman squad as South Carolina will find momentum as the game goes on to build some much-needed confidence before they head to Georgia next weekend. South Carolina 38, Furman 17.

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Jack Veltri: Let’s be honest, last week was a pretty ugly loss for South Carolina. It felt like a game it had a good chance of winning. But now you have to move on. And unfortunately, the Gamecocks’ “cupcake” matchup comes against a really good FCS team in the Furman Paladins. While there’s plenty of issues, I think the Gamecocks will find a way to win. It really just comes down to putting more pressure on the opposing quarterback and being able to block for Spencer Rattler. While I have South Carolina winning, I know it will not be easy or pretty. South Carolina 24, Furman 10.

Chris Wellbaum: Furman is good, I get that, but North Carolina was better and the Paladins don’t have Drake Maye. As bad as things looked at times against North Carolina, South Carolina still got two turnovers, a special teams play, and 350 yards passing from Spencer Rattler. That’s what South Carolina needs to win – the Gamecocks just couldn’t capitalize on opportunities. If they get those opportunities again, and I think they will, they’ll do a better job turning them into points. As always, a fast start would help. South Carolina 38, Furman 17.

Picker	JMU at UVA	Nebraska at Colorado	Ole Miss at Tulane	Texas A&M at Miami	Iowa at Iowa St.	Texas at Alabama	Wisconsin at Washington St.	Oklahoma St. at Arizona St.
Chris Clark	Virginia	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa St.	Alabama	Wisconsin	Arizona St.
Terry Ford	Virginia	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Griffin Goodwyn	JMU	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa St.	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Tyler Head	JMU	Colorado	Tulane	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Washington St.	Oklahoma St.
Joe Macheca	Virginia	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa St.	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Wes Mitchell	JMU	Colorado	Ole Miss	Miami	Iowa	Texas	Wisconsin	Arizona St.
Jay Phillips	JMU	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa St.	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Kendall Smith	JMU	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Collyn Taylor	JMU	Nebraska	Tulane	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Washington St.	Oklahoma St.
Mike Uva	JMU	Colorado	Ole Miss	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Jack Veltri	JMU	Colorado	Tulane	Texas A&M	Iowa	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.
Chris Wellbaum	Virginia	Colorado	Tulane	Miami	Iowa St.	Alabama	Wisconsin	Oklahoma St.

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