On Saturday, South Carolina returns home to face the Kentucky Wildcats under the lights at Williams-Brice Stadium. The Gamecocks (2-2, 0-2 SEC) and Wildcats (2-1, 0-1 SEC) will meet in a game that feels like a must-win for both teams as they try to right their seasons before October.
Recent Struggles and Stakes
Shane Beamer's squad enters the matchup off of back-to-back SEC losses to Vanderbilt and Missouri, while Mark Stoops' Wildcats will come in fresh off a bye week. The Gamecocks have fallen completely out of the Top 25 conversation, while Kentucky hasn't sniffed the rankings at all this season. For both teams, this is a chance to stabilize and set the tone for the rest of the year.
Betting Line and Analytics
The oddsmakers opened with South Carolina as a 7-point favorite. That number has dipped slightly to 6.5, with some markets pushing the spread as low as 5.5. ESPN's FPI gives South Carolina a 57.8% chance of winning while is SP+ model projects an almost dead even final score of 24-24, even with the Gamecocks as the slightest of favorites.
Fox Sports' AI pick has the Gamecocks winning and covering, predicting a 27-20 final. College Football News' analyst Pete Fiutak was critical of South Carolina's performance this season, but he still forecasted a narrow 30-24 bounce-back win.
Several other outlets passed on making a pick, noting that neither South Carolina nor Kentucky has national momentum right now. Still, the general consensus among those weighing in is that South Carolina is favored to win.
Looking Ahead
If the Gamecocks can pull out the W on Saturday, they will get a much-needed confidence boost heading into the bye week. After that, the toughest gautlet of the 2025 season begins with LSU on the road, Oklahoma at home, Alabama at home, Ole Miss on the road, and Texas A&M on the road, in consecutive weeks.
South Carolina has history on its side against Kentucky. Beamer is 3-1 against Stoops, and the Gamecocks have won three straight matchups over the Wildcats. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. ET.