South Carolina Football: The final word on North Carolina

South Carolina football opens its season tonight against the North Carolina Tar Heels. Much has been said about this matchup already:

Drake Maye vs. Spencer Rattler could be one of the best quarterback duels of the year, this game will show which of the Carolinas can be a real contender to make a New Year’s 6 Bowl Game and which one will just be hoping for any bowl game, the non-historic neutral site matchups are losing their luster, and so on and so forth.

But what are the essential, need-to-know pieces of information that South Carolina football fans should hear before kickoff?

• Kickoff is set for 7:44 PM (with a five-minute flex for television broadcast purposes) on ABC and the ESPN APP. For consumers who have Spectrum, the game might be blacked out because of an ongoing dispute between Spectrum and Disney. If this is you, check out this guide to avoid the blackout.
• College GameDay will be in Charlotte for the game. South Carolina football fan Darius Rucker will be the guest picker on the show, and he is part of the team performing the new version of the show’s intro song, replacing Big and Rich. Neither South Carolina nor North Carolina have had much luck in their most recent College GameDay experiences.
• This is the fourth USC-UNC matchup in the last nine seasons. All four will have been played in Bank of America Stadium (home of the Carolina Panthers) in Charlotte, North Carolina. The ‘Cocks have topped the ‘Heels in 7 of the last 9 meetings between the teams, including the most recent game in the 2021 Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
• North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker will not play as his appeal to the NCAA for eligibility was not granted.
• South Carolina football has several players officially out with injury. Offensive linemen Jaylen Nichols and Ryan Brubaker have longer-term injuries, and defensive end JT Geer, tight end Connor Cox, and linebacker Bam Martin-Scott will also miss this game.
• Gamecock wide receivers Juice Wells and Nyck Harbor will play despite being less than 100% healthy.
• Both South Carolina and North Carolina will be breaking in new offensive coordinators. Dowell Loggains replaced Marcus Satterfield for the Gamecocks, and Chip Lindsey has taken over the headset for Phil Longo for the Tar Heels.
• Coach Shane Beamer has announced that the Gamecocks will wear garnet jerseys. The helmet and pants combination has not been announced yet. He also said he believes that North Carolina will wear blue.
• Most betting outlets and college football analysts agree that this game should be a close one. Fans should have a chance to watch one of the best games of the young season.