South Carolina Football: Gamecocks doubted by another national outlet
By Kevin Miller
![South Carolina football Head Coach Shane Beamer and his team continue to be doubted despite improving every season. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2F1de6675713d7ede3758bd41631575942384d69798469e4e1e26e7fc76e0e12da.jpg "South Carolina football Head Coach Shane Beamer and his team continue to be doubted despite improving every season. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]")
South Carolina football has received projections all across the odds-making map this offseason. The Gamecocks have been predicted to win anywhere from 6 to 9 games by various outlets, and Las Vegas has typically leaned toward the lower win totals for the 2023 version of the Gridiron Gamecocks.
Last week, DraftKings released their over/under win totals for most college football teams, and the Gamecocks were listed at 6.5 wins. Now, another “Las Vegas insider” has that number even lower.
Caesars Sportsbook opened the South Carolina football program as a 6-win over/under.
This comes as a bit of a surprise as the Gamecocks, despite the country’s most difficult schedule in 2023, appear to be poised for continued ascension up the college football ranks. One of the country’s worst-performing offensive coordinators is no longer South Carolina’s problem, and the most productive skill players of last year’s late-season success on offense are returning.
According to Caesars, Carolina is a safer bet to lose more games than 8 different teams on their schedule (Clemson, North Carolina, Missouri, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi State). Below is the full SEC over/under win totals.
Full SEC Over/Under Win Totals according to Caesars
Georgia Bulldogs: Over/Under 11 wins
Alabama Crimson Tide: Over/Under 10 wins
LSU Tigers: Over/Under 9.5 wins
Tennessee Volunteers: Over/Under 9 wins
Texas A&M Aggies: Over/Under 8.5 wins
Ole Miss Rebels: Over/Under 7.5 wins
Arkansas Razorbacks: Over/Under 7 wins
Missouri Tigers: Over/Under 6.5 wins
Mississippi State Bulldogs: Over/Under 6.5 wins
Kentucky Wildcats: Over/Under 6.5 wins
Auburn Tigers: Over/Under 6.5 wins
South Carolina Gamecocks: Over/Under 6 wins
Florida Gators: Over/Under 5.5 wins
Vanderbilt Commodores: Over/Under 3.5 wins
According to Caesars, only the Florida Gators and Vanderbilt Commodores are safer bets to lose more than the South Carolina Gamecocks. What’s worse, two non-conference opponents have a better over/under total than Carolina, as well. The Clemson Tigers (over/under 10 wins) and North Carolina Tar Heels (over/under 8.5 wins) join the Georgia Bulldogs, Tennessee Volunteers, Texas A&M Aggies, Missouri Tigers, Mississippi State Bulldogs, and Kentucky Wildcats as 2023 Gamecock opponents with better over/under win totals as listed by Caesars.
South Carolina football fans have no reason to panic, however, as the Gamecocks have outperformed every preseason over/under win total the past two seasons. The 2023 iteration of the ‘Cocks will almost assuredly make it three seasons in a row of defying oddsmakers.