{"id":68309,"date":"2024-11-15T12:00:49","date_gmt":"2024-11-15T17:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=68309"},"modified":"2024-11-15T09:25:54","modified_gmt":"2024-11-15T14:25:54","slug":"south-carolina-vs-missouri-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2024\/11\/15\/south-carolina-vs-missouri-preview\/","title":{"rendered":"Carolina vs Missouri Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

The white-hot 23rd-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks will look to pick up their fourth straight win this Saturday, as they welcome the 24th-ranked Missouri Tigers to Williams-Brice for a 4 o\u2019clock showdown in Columbia. With two losses already on their record, Mizzou will be looking to avoid a third and in doing so stay alive in a heated SEC race.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shane Beamer<\/a>\u2019s team is currently riding a wave of momentum that few other programs can match, but it can all come to a crashing halt if they aren\u2019t careful. Can the Gamecocks continue their winning ways against a sneaky good Missouri? Let\u2019s find out in this week\u2019s South Carolina Gamecocks matchup preview.<\/span><\/p>\n

Woeful Season for Mizzou<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Coming into the season, the Missouri Tigers were viewed by many as a safe bet to make the new expanded playoff. After all, they were coming off an 11-2 2023 campaign which they capped off with a 14-3 Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State. With many of their key players returning, a breakout season seemed destined in Eli Drinkwitz<\/a>\u2019s fifth year at the helm.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fast-forward to where we are now, however, and it\u2019s clear that things have not gone as well as the Tigers had hoped. A combination of factors, including injuries, has led Mizzou to a 7-2 record, with both losses coming in blowout fashion. The first of these came in the form of a 41-10 beatdown to Texas A&M, and the other was a 34-0 blanking by Alabama.<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking at these two results and comparing them to how Carolina fared against both teams, it can be easy to assume that the Gamecocks should have no issue drubbing Missouri. While it is true that both teams appear to be trending in opposite directions, this doesn\u2019t mean that the Tigers don\u2019t pose a threat. <\/span><\/p>\n

Tigers on Offense<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

While it may seem hard to believe at first glance, Mizzou <\/span>possesses one of the more elite skill position groupings in the country. This is primarily due to the pairing of pass catchers the Tigers have out wide in Luther Burden III,<\/a> and Theo Wease Jr.<\/a> Both former five-star recruits, Wease and Burden have quietly become one of the best wide receiver duos in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

I say quietly because, despite their immense talent, the Tigers have struggled to get them the ball. This is <\/span>due in large part<\/span> to the injury struggles of star quarterback Brady Cook. One of the nation\u2019s top returning passers, Cook has seen his final season at Mizzou tainted by several nagging injuries.<\/span><\/p>\n

These injuries have led the Tigers to rely largely on transfer quarterback Drew Pyne, and as a result, <\/span>the passing<\/span> game has struggled. As of this writing, Cook is listed as doubtful to play against Carolina, which would make <\/span>the third<\/span> straight game he\u2019s missed. The lack of consistency at quarterback doesn\u2019t mean that Beamer is looking past the Tiger’s <\/span>elite pass<\/span> catchers <\/span>though.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBoth those guys complement each other because they’re <\/span>really<\/span> good at that scheme, in my opinion,\u201d Beamer said. \u201cThey can get going sideways, put their foot in the ground and get vertical.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The Tigers also possess a great offensive line, and electric running back pairing. If the Gamecocks look past Mizzou just because Cook isn\u2019t playing, then they\u2019d be doing themselves a massive disservice. The Tigers still have every ability to torch the Gamecocks offensively if they aren\u2019t careful. <\/span><\/p>\n

Mizzou Formidable on Defense<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Tigers also possess one of the better defensive units in the SEC, ranking third in total defense <\/span>which is<\/span> right above Carolina. <\/span>They are however<\/span> much better against the pass than the run, which can skew things a bit.<\/span> Still, the Tigers <\/span>are sure to<\/span> be a challenge for LaNorris Sellers<\/a> and company.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mizzou currently ranks as the SEC\u2019s second-best pass defense, which has <\/span>a lot<\/span> to do with their physicality up front and discipline on the back end. Their front seven doesn\u2019t get a lot of sacks, but they certainly <\/span>have the ability to<\/span> harass the quarterback. Combined with a seasoned secondary that doesn\u2019t get beat much, the Tigers make it very challenging to pass the football.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the flip side, Mizzou ranks 12th in the SEC when it comes to defending the run. This is <\/span>at least<\/span> partly due to key injuries along the interior, but overall teams seem to have little issue gashing them on the ground. From what we know about Carolina\u2019s offense, this should <\/span>play to<\/span> their advantage.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, the Gamecocks will have to <\/span>make sure<\/span> they don\u2019t fall into the trap of relying solely on the run. If they allow the Tigers to key in on the run game, and as a result are unable to pass the ball when they need to then things could get out of hand. Keeping the Tigers honest on defense is the key, and that comes from a layered offensive attack.<\/span><\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Looking at where the Gamecocks are currently, this should be a relatively easy win. The offense is rolling under Seller and Raheim Sanders, and the defense remains among the nation’s best. Add in the likely absence of Cook for Mizzou, and things tilt in Carolina\u2019s favor even more. That <\/span>being<\/span> said, games aren\u2019t played on paper and the Gamecocks can\u2019t afford to take the Tigers lightly.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is a team that has historically outplayed the Gamecocks by being more aggressive and physical up front. The Gamecocks must avoid this familiar trap by establishing their presence up front early and often. If Carolina the run game going and keeps the back end honest with the deep ball then they should have no issues picking apart the Tigers.<\/span><\/p>\n

On defense, Burden and Wease have to be kept contained. Carolina cannot allow either to get behind them, as these two <\/span>have the ability to<\/span> take over entire games regardless of who\u2019s throwing them the ball. If Carolina can contain these two, then the rest should take care of itself.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Carolina
Photo courtesy: Stephanie Amador \/ The Tennessean \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The white-hot 23rd-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks will look to pick up their fourth straight win this Saturday, as they welcome the 24th-ranked Missouri Tigers to Williams-Brice for a 4 o\u2019clock showdown in Columbia. With two losses already on their record, Mizzou will be looking to avoid a third and in doing so stay alive in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5264,"featured_media":68315,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3],"tags":[5822,7019,383,20,149,80],"class_list":["post-68309","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-sec","tag-eli-drinkwitz","tag-luther-burden","tag-missouri-tigers","tag-sec","tag-shane-beamer","tag-south-carolina-gamecocks"],"modified_by":"Tony Siracusa, CFB Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5264"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68309"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68309\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}