Kentucky football predicted to lose at home to South Carolina

Will the Kentucky Wildcats take care of business against South Carolina?

Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops walks off the field after the Cats fall to Tennessee 33-27 Saturday night in Lexington. Kentucky is now 5-3 for the season. Oct. 28, 2023. / Matt Stone/Louisville Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Kentucky Wildcats are getting ready to take on a South Carolina team that really struggled in week one. They found a way to win at home against Old Dominion and now will head to Lexington to take on the Kentucky Wildcats.

This is a huge game for the Wildcats because there is a chance College GameDay will be in town for Week 3 agaisnt Georgia if the Wildcats can beat South Carolina.

Will Helms of College Football Network believes the Kentucky Wildcats are going to lose at home to the South Carolina Gamecocks 24-20. Here is the justification about this take from Helms.

"My prediction is going to be different than most others you’ll find on the internet. CFN’s Strength of Schedule model puts this line closer to the 2.5-3 point range in favor of Kentucky, much less than the 10 that the line has been bet to. Shane Beamer’s teams have historically underwhelmed in Week 1 before going back to the drawing board prior to Week 2. Sellers will almost certainly be better than his 10-23 performance in Week 1, and the Gamecocks’ offense will likely average more than 3.5 sack-adjusted yards per rush. It comes down to whether the defense can avoid the mental lapses and big plays on defense that marred what was a brilliant game up front. Expect Dylan Stewart and Kyle Kennard to get after Vandagriff and put him in an unfamiliar spot under pressure.
Ten seems like a lot to give the Gamecocks here, even if they struggled in Week 1. This game is almost always close and low scoring. I lean towards going under an already low total. A lot has to go right for the Gamecocks after a lot went wrong last season, but Beamer has three wins as a 10-point underdog since 2021, the third-most in college football in that time."

- Will Helms on Kentucky vs. USC

If Kentucky's run defense is able to slow the rushing attack of Rocket Sanders and LaNorris Sellers and the offense has another good showing, the Wildcats will win this game. Kentucky needs to make sure they are focused on this game and don't look ahead to the massive matchup with #1 Georgia.

If Kentucky can take down the Gamecocks, it will set up one of the biggest football games in Lexington in a very long time.