Gamecock Digest

South Carolina Gamecocks Football: Keys to Victory Against Ole Miss

Alex Joyce

Sep 21, 2024; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks wide receiver Gage Larvadain (7) makes a reception as Akron Zips cornerback Justin Anderson (4) defends in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images
Sep 21, 2024; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks wide receiver Gage Larvadain (7) makes a reception as Akron Zips cornerback Justin Anderson (4) defends in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images / Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

The South Carolina Gamecocks have another high profile matchup on the board with the 12th ranked Ole Miss Rebels coming into town for a 3:30 pm (ET) kick. Although coming off a frustrating loss against Kentucky, Ole Miss is still a playoff contending team with a high powered offense.

In a game that could very much resemble the LSU game just a few weeks ago, the Gamecocks will have to execute at a high level to come away with the victory on Saturday. Kentucky's win may have given South Carolina the blueprint to handing the Rebels their second straight loss. Meanwhile, Lane Kiffin and his team will undoubtedly have worked on those issues and look to bounce back from the loss. Here are the keys to a South Carolina victory:

Affect Jaxson Dart

One of the ways Kentucky was able to frustrate Ole Miss's top scoring offense was the pressure they were able to get on Dart and the run game. While Kiffin and the staff should have more answers this week, the challenge doesn't get any easier. Kyle Kennard and Dylan Stewart will have plenty of opportunities to pin their ears back and get after Dart. This could be a big game for Alex Huntley, TJ Sanders, and Tonka Hemingway as Kentucky's Deone Walker was a menance this past weekend. Either way it could be argued this is the best defensive line the Rebels will face all year, which could prove problematic this weekend.

Limit Turnovers On Offense

As good as LaNorris Sellers has looked early on in his Gamecocks career, his lack of ball security paired with interceptions have been an issue for this offense. It's understandable for a young player in his first couple games to make freshman mistakes, but the mistakes will be costly down the road if they aren't cleaned up. So far through three starts, Sellers has two interceptions and four fumbles. Giving an explosive offense like Ole Miss the ball in great field position could make this game ugly, not to mention future opponents like Alabama.

Create Turnovers and Limit Penalties

The Gamecocks should be an undefeated top 15 team in the country right now if it wasn't for penalities. Currently, South Carolina ranks 119th in the country with 8.3 penalties per game (up from 7.1 in 2023). This must be cleaned up before it bites the Gamecocks later on. Defensively South Carolina has created nine total turnovers (3 fumble recoveries and 6 interceptions) on the year. Forcing the Rebels into mistakes could in turn give the Gamecocks offense short fields to work with and be a driving force in pulling off the upset on Saturday.

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Alex Joyce
ALEX JOYCE