UNC vs. South Carolina Prediction, Pick Against the Spread, and Latest Odds
The South Carolina Gamecocks and the UNC Tar Heels will face off Saturday night for a highly anticipated matchup. Matt McCuen is here to share his pick for the UNC vs. South Carolina game. Read on to find out what his pick is.
Matt McCuen - September 2, 2023, 9:00 AM EDT
7 minUNC vs. South Carolina Prediction, Pick Against the Spread, and Latest Odds
The South Carolina Gamecocks and the North Carolina Tar Heels will clash from Charlotte, North Carolina, on Saturday night for a highly anticipated matchup.
UNC vs. South Carolina Date, Time, and Where To Watch
- Date: September 2, 2023
- Game Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- Where to Watch: ABC
UNC vs. South Carolina Prediction
The Gamecocks enter the 2023 campaign on a high note after picking up multiple program-building wins a season ago against Teneese and Clemson.
South Carolina ended the 2022 regular season with a record of 7-4 before losing to Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl. The Gamecocks will attempt to string together their third consecutive winning season.
Shane Beamer is the man in charge of this Gamecocks program, and he has done an outstanding job since taking over in 2021. Beamer, who is the son of college football coaching legend Frank Beamer, has brought a hard-nosed attitude to this program. Beamer went 7-6 in his first year, following it up with an 8-5 season. Beamer defeated North Carolina in his first season in the Duke's Mayo Bowl to get his first Bowl win as a head coach.
Spencer Rattler will be the guy responsible for leading this team. Rattler, who is a former five-star recruit, transferred to South Carolina after three years at Oklahoma. Rattler delivered a season ago, throwing for 3,026 yards, eighteen touchdowns, and twelve interceptions. There is lots of pressure on Rattler to deliver this season and help lead the Game Cocks to their first double-digit winning season since 2013.
Wide Receiver Juice Wells made the South Carolina faithful happy when he announced that he would be returning this year. Wells authored a massive season in 2022 when he caught eighty-six passes for nine hundred twenty-eight yards and six touchdowns. The senior will look to be even better this year in his second season working with Rattler.
Dowell Loggains will take over this Game Cock offense. Loggains spent his career in the NFL from 2008-2020, most recently serving as the offensive coordinator of the New York Jets in 2019. Loggains is also well known for being an advocate of Johnny Manziel as he spent 2014 as the Cleveland Browns quarterback coach and pushed the team to select Manziel in the first round. Loggain's last line of work came at the University of Arkansas, where he served as the team's tight ends coach. Loggains will bring with him Arkansas tight end Trey Knox. Knox had five receiving touchdowns a season ago.
South Carolina once again has a strong secondary, but their struggles may continue up front. Over the years, this program has produced some excellent corners and safeties, but they have struggled up front against the run. One notable starter that will be returning in the secondary is safety DQ Smith.
North Carolina enters the 2023 season ranked twenty-first in the nation. The Heels will begin the year looking to build off of a 9-5 season, which ended with a close loss in the Holiday Bowl vs. Oregon.
Mack Brown will begin his fifth season at the helm for the Heels. Brown, who won a National Championship in 2006 at Texas, feels as if this may be the most talented team he has ever coached at Carolina. Brown has had winning seasons in three of his first four at UNC. Brown brings an overall record of 274-144-1, ranking him nineteenth all-time in wins as a head coach.
Drake Maye is considered by many to be one of the best quarterbacks in all of college football. NFL scouts will keep a close eye on Maye, who is slated to be a first-round pick. The sophomore put up video game-like numbers a season ago, passing for 4,321 yards paired with thirty-eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. Maye also rushed for six hundred fifty-eight yards and six touchdowns. Maye won ACC Offensive Player of the Year in 2022.
Maye will be working with a new offensive coordinator as Chip Lindsey will take over the play-calling duties. Lindsey has experience at the college level since 2010, including a brief stint as head coach of Troy University from 2019-202. Lindsey was most recently the offensive coordinator at UCF.
UNC will have some turnover on their roster from a skill position standpoint. UNC lost some big weapons, including wide receiver Josh Downs. Junior Nate McCollum will be one of the guys that the Heels lean on in the passing game. McCollum is a transfer from Georgia Tech, where he put up some solid numbers a season ago (60 Rec, 655 Yards, three TDs). The offensive line brings loads of experience, as four of the five members upfront will be returning starters.
The Cryptonite for North Carolina has been their defense. UNC ranked dead last in the ACC in defense last year, and it is hard to believe that this defense could be any worse this year. Carolina feels as if they have talented players on the defensive side of the ball, but it will all come down to their level of execution. Linebacker Cedric Gray will return to this UNC defense, which is a welcomed sight as he ended last year with more than one hundred tackles.
UNC vs. South Carolina Pick
This should be the best game of Week 1.
North Carolina holds the home-field advantage, which could be the difference in this kind of game that will be closely contested.
Drake Maye had his way all year a season ago against a strong defense and facing a South Carolina defense with question marks. My gut tells me UNC will be too much from an offensive standpoint.
The total for this game is set at 63.5, which means we likely will see plenty of points. This game will come down to which offense has more punch in it, and to that, we can look at the numbers and say that the Tar Heels will outlast the Gamecocks in this game.
Pick: North Carolina ML -130 is currently the best odds. Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds for this pick
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