South Carolina 2018 Betting Preview: Bentley-Samuel Connection Not Enough

South Carolina 2018 Betting Preview: Bentley-Samuel Connection Not Enough article feature image
Credit:

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Jake Bentley

South Carolina 2018 Betting Odds

  • To win the National Title: +25000
  • To make Playoff: +4500
  • To win the SEC: +4250
  • To win the SEC East: +1000
  • Win Total: 7.5 (over -109, under -121)

Always shop for the best line.


South Carolina 2018 Schedule, Betting Odds

The Action Network Projected Wins: 5.5

Bet To Watch

South Carolina Under 7.5 wins (-121)

Will any team stand in the way of South Carolina claiming second place in the SEC East?

With a win total projection much lower than the oddsmakers, its safe to say South Carolina should be more concerned about Florida and Missouri than having its sights set on Georgia.

The Gamecocks' power rating number took a ding in the offseason for their 2nd Order Win Total (-1.5) — a metric that attempts to quantify the actual number of games a team should have won based on performance — and net turnovers (+11).

No changes were made for returning production, where South Carolina is middle of the pack at 67th overall, keeping everyone on offense and losing most of the defense. The good news is that the Jake Bentley-Deebo Samuel connection is back.

Ridiculous TD by Jake Bentley to Deebo Samuel pic.twitter.com/SblbWQpKlq

— Saturday Down South (@SDS) September 2, 2017

Ranking 122nd in adjusted pace in 2017, the offense will move to an up-tempo pace under new coordinator Bryan McClendon. The defense, meanwhile, lost plenty of its defensive line havoc from last season. Expect a unit that ranked 36th in S&P+ to regress closer to its 2016 ranking in the 50s.

The schedule is not easy and has me taking Under 7.5 (-121) with confidence.



An unproven defense and an offense undergoing an identity change face a tough scenario against Georgia in Week 2. Marshall presents a very formidable defense in a nonconference sandwich game for Week 3.

During conference play, Missouri and Ole Miss will be coming off bye weeks. The Gamecocks will be on back-to-back travel at Florida. And, as always, Clemson awaits in the season finale. That's not a slate with eight wins.

What else you need to know about South Carolina

South Carolina is 10-4-2 against the spread vs. the SEC since 2016. The Gamecocks have gone 8-1 ATS against Missouri, Tennessee and Vanderbilt since 2015.

More College Football Betting Previews

Click here for team previews on all 130 FBS schools.

How would you rate this article?

This site contains commercial content. We may be compensated for the links provided on this page. The content on this page is for informational purposes only. Action Network makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the information given or the outcome of any game or event.