Missouri Tigers football vs. South Carolina: TV, kickoff time, bet line, prediction
THE DETAILS
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, South Carolina
TV: SEC Network Alternate
Betting line: Missouri by 6 1/2
Radio: KMBZ (98.1 FM)
PREDICTION
It felt dicey at times — though some around the Mizzou program weren’t too worried — but the Tigers are finally going to play a football game in November. There were off-field moments to keep an eye on all week. Mizzou coach Eliah Drinkwitz saw his roster numbers slowly dwindle until hitting the SEC’s roster threshold of 53 players. But the Tigers are ready to play. On the other side, South Carolina fired coach Will Muschamp at the beginning of the week, leaving interim coach Mike Bobo looking to keep the team together.
Other than all that, there will be a game in the other Columbia of the SEC East. We don’t talk guarantees in 2020, though, until it’s kickoff. Fortunately, Mizzou players, coaches and personnel boarded their charter flight Friday bound eastward.
The Tigers haven’t played a game since being blown out by Florida, meaning there’s plenty of potential for rust. Drinkwitz has had to play the “chicken-or-egg” game all week when it comes to practice as injuries, transfers, opt outs and COVID-19 slimmed his roster.
Look out for MU’s Larry Rountree III making history as he’s only 19 yards away from becoming the most prolific Mizzou running back of all-time. And here’s a fun stat: When Rountree runs for more than 100 yards in a game, things tend to go well for the Tigers. We’re curious to see how Tiger quarterback Connor Bazelak looks coming off the lengthy time off, but he’s soaking up all he can at his position.
Expect a high-scoring game — at least for the Tigers (2-3). The Gamecocks (2-5) have been putrid defensively over their three-game losing streak. Then you mix in key opt outs, including South Carolina’s top cornerback and other pieces, and it leaves a barren secondary, prime for the pickings. Bazelak has proved he can sling it against a porous defense when he threw for more than 400 yards against LSU.
Of course, it’s still an SEC football game. Despite the Gamecocks free-falling, they still feature talented players. South Carolina running back Kevin Harris is still a threat, and he has 13 touchdowns on the season. The Gamecocks upset ranked Auburn earlier this year, so while they struggle, they’re not completely hapless.
We’ll say Mizzou gets out to a comfortable lead to start the game, though there could be some rhythm issues. Drinkwitz said concentration has been an issue this year and the depleted Tigers can’t afford many miscues. Otherwise, South Carolina gets on the board a few times, but the Tigers are able to get back to the .500 mark with a win.
Missouri 31, South Carolina 20