South Carolina Football: How to watch, storylines, expert picks, predictions vs. North Carolina

How to watch South Carolina Football take on the North Carolina Tar Heels

South Carolina football will take on the North Carolina Tar Heels this Saturday to open the season. The game will be at Bank of America Stadium (Home of the Carolina Panthers) in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Gamecocks and Tar Heels, though at a neutral site, will be the College GameDay matchup of the week.

The official kickoff time is set for 7:44 on ABC and the ESPN App on Saturday, September 2nd.

Currently, Spectrum’s parent company Charter is feeding with Disney (who owns ABC and ESPN), so the game could be blacked out for millions this weekend. For tips on how to get around the blackout, check out this link.

Storylines to watch for in South Carolina Football’s week 1 matchup

The playing status of some high-profile wide receivers is up in the air. UNC’s Tez Walker was ruled ineligible earlier this offseason and has an outstanding appeal with the NCAA that has not received a ruling. Gamecock receivers Juice Wells and Nyck Harbor have both been called questionable for the game but are expected to play.

A few more Gamecocks’ statuses are mirky, as well. Linebacker Mo Kaba and defensive ends Tyreek Johnson and Jatius Geer have also been banged up, but only Geer remains questionable as Kaba and Johnson appear set to play. Tight end Connor Cox and linebacker Bam Martin-Scott have been added to the list of questionable players.

EDIT: Geer, Cox, and Martin-Scott have been ruled OUT for the game against North Carolina.

Longer-term injuries are keeping Jaylen Nichols and Ryan Brubaker out this weekend.

Rumors have floated around Chapel Hill this week that projected starting defensive back DeAndre Boykins could be in danger of missing this weekend’s game. Fellow defensive back Lejond Cavazos is likely out.

Both North Carolina and South Carolina are debuting new offensive coordinators. Chip Lindsey is taking over playcalling duties from Phil Longo (now at Wisconsin), and Dowell Loggains is replacing Marcus Satterfield (now at Nebraska), respectively.

What experts are saying about South Carolina Football’s chances this weekend

As are most GameDay faceoffs, the Battle of the Carolinas should be a good one. Most analysts and betting lines believe the game will be close.

According to ESPN’s FPI (Football Power Index), North Carolina has a 57.4% chance of winning the game, making it one of the tightest predictions of Week 1.

One ESPN analyst, Cole Cubelic, disagrees with the computer-powered prognostication from his company. Cubelis says that he feels “pretty good” about the Gamecocks’ chances to knock off the Tar Heels on Saturday.

College Football News’ panel of experts has picked the Gamecocks, as well. By a count of 14-8, Shane Beamer’s team was picked to end up victorious over Mack Brown’s squad.

Betting giants like FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM believe the Gamecock vs. Tar Heel showdown to be a close one. All three agencies have UNC listed as a 2.5-point favorite in the game. In other words: this one is a toss-up in the betting industry.

In a conversation between Garnet and Cocky’s Kevin Miller and Keeping It Heel’s Nick Delahanty, both site experts picked a close game with some offensive fireworks in which the South Carolina Gamecocks emerge victorious.

Official Garnet and Cocky prediction for South Carolina Football vs. North Carolina Football

Possibly the best game of the true opening weekend of college football, South Carolina vs. North Carolina should not disappoint viewers. Two high-profile quarterbacks and two big-time receiving corps could light up the Charlotte sky with after-touchdown fireworks, especially against defenses with more than a few question marks heading into the season.

On Saturday, if South Carolina keeps the game even or at least mostly close from an offense vs. defense perspective, the Gamecocks’ superior special teams unit could be the deciding factor. Don’t be surprised to see special teams coordinator Pete Lembo’s unit block a kick, execute a momentum-swinging trick play, or repeatedly have field-flipping punt coverages.

Expect Drake Maye to be really good for the Tar Heels and for Spencer Rattler to be up to the task of keeping his team in the game against the firepower of the UNC offense. In the end, in a close game like this one, whichever team can do the abnormal (create turnovers, win the special teams battle, make “wow” plays, etc.) will win. South Carolina appears to be in a better position to do so.