Texas A&M Football First Glance: South Carolina Gamecocks

What You Need to Know:

• South Carolina comes into College Station with a 3-1 record with wins over NC State, Missouri, and Louisiana Tech. The lone loss was at the hands of Kentucky in week 3.
• South Carolina won on Saturday by scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter (had scored 0 in the previous 3), including a game winning field goal with 4 seconds left to beat Louisiana Tech.
• South Carolina is led by head coach Will Muschamp who is in his 2nd season with the Gamecocks. Muschamp is 9-8 overall and 4-6 in the SEC.
• Texas A&M is currently ranked 39th in total offense per game at 461 YPG (88th in Passing YPG; 15th in Rushing YPG); while South Carolina is ranked 100th at 350 YPG (57th in Passing YPG; 117th in Rushing YPG). (Per ESPN)
• South Carolina’s SB Nation site is Garnet and Black Attack. Head on over to read up on the Gamecocks

Betting Lines:

• The Gamecocks open as a +9.5 underdog.
• South Carolina and Texas A&M are both 2-2 Against the Spread on the season.
• South Carolina is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road

Historical Notes:

• Texas A&M is 3-0 all-time against SEC cross-divisional rival, South Carolina. All 3 wins have come in the Kevin Sumlin era.
• South Carolina is the Aggies’ contrived cross-division rival. The teams play for the James Bonham trophy named for James Butler Bonham, a native South Carolinian, who rode back into the Alamo to inform commander William Travis that no assistance would be coming for the Texan independence fighters.
• Famous Gamecocks include Darius Rucker, Sterling Sharpe, Lauren Michelle Hill, Robert McNair, Zig Ziglar, and Good Bull Hunting favorite Stephen Garcia.
• Sir Big Spur is South Carolina’s live mascot and is an Old English black-breasted red gamecock. This is the second live Mascot A&M has faced this season, and the Aggies are currently 1-0 against teams with a live mascot.

Gamecocks to Watch:

Jake Bentley, QB, Sophomore

Jake Bentley is currently 81 for 127 for 1001 yards with a 7-4 touchdown to interception ratio. The Gamecocks are a passing team and look to move the football through Bentley. Bentley made two crucial plays on the game winning drive on Saturday; the first was a 24 yard scramble and the second was a 41 yard pass to Bryan Edwards. Bentley showed that he has the mental fortitude to be successful with the game on the line.

Bryan Edwards, WR, Sophomore

With star WR Deebo Samuel (3 Touchdowns) out for most of the season, Edwards has filled in the vacancy and is currently leading the Gamecocks in receiving. Edwards made a game-saving catch over a defender that needed a second effort to secure the ball.

Media Blitz:

• Venue: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
• When: Saturday, September 30th at 6:30 pm CT
• Channel: SEC Network

Newsreel:

• Kellen Mond earns Tyler Rose Weekly Honor
• The Aggies improved to 12-6 all-time in overtime games. Head coach Kevin Sumlin is a perfect 5-0 in OT contests in Aggieland.

Weather:

• A midweek cold front should bring some more enjoyable football weather for fans in College Station. Saturday evening looks to be partly cloudy with a high of 84 degrees with temperatures dipping into the 60s.