No. 1 Georgia (2-0) travels to Columbia, S.C. to face South Carolina (1-1) this Saturday at noon.
The Bulldogs will take the field for the first time as the No. 1 overall team this season after jumping Alabama for the top spot.
Head coach Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks are looking to bounce back after a loss to Arkansas a week ago.
Here’s why South Carolina could cover the -24.5 point spread.
5
Trip to Columbia
The fact that this is a noon kickoff is good for Georgia, but playing at William’s-Brice Stadium in Columbia is one of the toughest environments in the SEC.
Bulldog fans are familiar with highly touted Georgia teams getting stumped here in the past.
South Carolina will have to take advantage of their home field on Saturday to keep it close.
4
SEC opener
No. 25 Oregon did not live up to the offseason hype in the season opener and Samford, an FCS program, was basically a scrimmage game for the Bulldogs last week.
The Gamecocks will be the toughest test yet for Georgia and have already began their SEC schedule, a 44-30 loss to No. 10 Arkansas.
3
Passing attack
South Carolina’s best performance against Arkansas was from its passing attack, led by quarterback Spencer Rattler.
The Dawgs secondary will be tested in this matchup. Rattler threw for 376 yards with a touchdown and an interception versus the Razorbacks. That said, the Gamecocks were playing catchup for most of the game.
2
Young defense
Georgia’s defense is wildly talented but also inexperienced in some spots.
The youth at cornerback and linebacker has held up so far through two weeks and South Carolina will try to attack this inexperience with Rattler and company.
Tight end Jaheim Bell is one of the Gamecocks’ weapons that create some matchup problems when given space. Bell is one of the top-100 rated 2023 NFL draft prospects.
1
Is Shane Beamer due up?
Former Georgia special teams and tight ends coach, Shane Beamer, is in his second season as head coach of the Gamecocks.
Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs won Beamer’s debut versus his former team 40-13 a year ago in Athens.
On paper, South Carolina is a tougher test than a year ago. Even while missing some top defensive production, the Gamecocks have talents like Rattler and Bell that could keep this one close in the end.
