The South Carolina football fan's weekend viewing guide and who to pull for

South Carolina has done its part by continuing to win and the rest of the college football world has given the Gamecocks some of the chaos they have needed over the last couple of weeks to remain in the hunt for the College Football Playoff.

Could more drama be on the way?

In addition to a Top 15 matchup in the Palmetto Bowl, there are nearly 10 other games South Carolina fans should monitor this weekend, beginning on Black Friday.

Some feature huge longshot odds or likely won’t affect Carolina’s chances much but others could easily be the difference in making the field or not — assuming of course that the Gamecocks can take care of their own business.

Below is a quick viewing guide for the college football weekend.

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Friday

Mississippi State @ No. 14 Ole Miss – 3:30 – ABC/ESPN+

Pull for: Mississippi State

An Ole Miss loss would give them four losses and put it behind Carolina. The upset isn’t likely but even the Rebels looking bad could help.

Georgia Tech @ No. 7 UGA – 7:30 – ABC/ESPN+

Pull for: Georgia Tech

It probably won’t really end up mattering. But a UGA loss would eliminate it from the at-large conversation which wouldn’t be a bad thing for Carolina if the Bulldogs were to lose in the SEC Championship.

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Saturday

No. 15 South Carolina @ No. 12 Clemson – Noon – ESPN/ESPN+

Pull for: South Carolina

Obviously.

No. 8 Tennessee @ Vanderbilt – Noon – ABC/ESPN+

Pull for: Vanderbilt

A Commodore win would drop Tennessee, currently in the bracket, into the three-loss SEC team bundle. The Vols would then be losers of two of their last three, and would fall out of the field and likely behind the Gamecocks.

No. 5 Notre Dame @ Southern Cal – 3:30 – CBS

Pull for: Southern Cal

One of the few times that USC will pull for the other USC. The Trojans have had a fourth-quarter lead in every game they’ve played this year, so they’re certainly capable despite the lackluster record. A loss would give Notre Dame two on the season. The question: would it be enough to drop them out of the field?

No. 6 Miami @ Syracuse – 3:30 – ESPN

Pull for: Syracuse

Look, any win from someone ahead of you is a good thing but there are other upsets that would be more helpful. Someone is going to have to come out of the ACC, so a Miami win isn’t potentially detrimental but a loss from the Canes or SMU would be helpful. If you could only choose one of those, though, it would certainly be for SMU to lose Saturday and then lose to Miami in the ACC Championship game. A Miami loss would also put Clemson in the ACC Championship which would keep it alive for the CFP.

California @ No. 9 SMU – 3:30 – ESPN2

Pull for: Cal

If you had a magic wand and could only pick one loss from the other teams, it might be best spent on SMU or Tennessee, especially if Miami goes on to beat SMU in the title game. An SMU loss eliminates them from at-large contention.

Auburn @ No. 13 Alabama – 3:30 – ABC/ESPN+

Pull for: Auburn

Simple. An Alabama loss puts them behind Carolina.

Purdue @ Indiana – 7 – FS1

Pull for: Purdue

It’s not happening because Purdue is awful but you can still pull for it — I just wouldn’t expend much energy on it.

Texas @ Texas A&M – 7:30 – ABC/ESPN+

Pull for: Texas

Some think Texas is out of the field with a loss but I don’t quite buy that. Would they fall behind Carolina? I don’t buy that either. Since the winner will go to the SEC Championship game, the best case is for Texas to win and completely eliminate A&M from going getting in through the backdoor by winning the title. That would be a doomsday scenario for the Gamecocks’ chances.

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