5dimes has set the over/under for South Carolina football wins in 2016 at 6.5– and I think you should stay away from the enticing odds.
Last time we saw South Carolina Head Coach Will Muschamp acting as head coach for a team, he was leading Florida to a 6-5 record in 2014. That season followed a 4-8 season, so needless to say, the Gators decided to part ways with their head coach at the time. Now, he gets a 2nd chance at the University of South Carolina after spending a season at Auburn as defensive coordinator.
5dimes currently has the over/under win total for the Gamecocks set at 6.5. Considering that Muschamp went a combined 10-13 in his last 2 seasons at Florida, it would seem as if that number is a little high for a South Carolina football team coming off of a 3-win season. Keep in mind, postseason games and bowl games do apply to that 6.5 win total.
The odds suggest that sports books are wary of the Gamecocks as well. If you are taking the under, the odds are currently set at -280. If you believe in South Carolina and Will Muschamp, the over looks mighty enticing as it is paying +200. Let’s take a moment to break down the schedule to determine how many wins we think South Carolina will finish with this year.
Related: Tennessee Football: Over/Under 10.5 Wins
Related: Alabama Football: Over/Under 10 Wins
South Carolina Football 2016 Schedule
@Vanderbilt– I expect this to be the most boring game of the year in the SEC, but it won’t be short on hard hits. Give me South Carolina to squeak this win out.
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@Mississippi State
– Opening up the season on back-to-back road games isn’t the easiest thing in the world, and it becomes much more difficult to play when the home team is rattling your brain with cowbells. I’m picking State to win this game, but if we see any traces of the Kurt Roper offense that he established at Duke, South Carolina may be able to pull of the upset. For counting purposes, we’re going to chalk this up as a loss.
East Carolina– Muschamp’s Gators tended to lose games they weren’t supposed to during his tenure as head coach, but I don’t think this will be one of those games. South Carolina wins.
@Kentucky – I expect Kentucky to finish the regular season at or above .500 this year, and in order to do that, Kentucky must win this game. I’ve got South Carolina losing on the road, making their record 2-2 through the first 4 games of the season.
Texas A&M – Despite a great performance by the South Carolina defense in this game, I expect the John Chavis defense of A&M to give Kurt Roper fits as South Carolina continues to learn the new offense. Texas A&M wins on the road.
Georgia– Another great performance by the South Carolina defense, and the offense will come up short again. However, I think we start to see the vision for Kurt Roper’s offense begin to take shape, and despite the Gamecocks being 2-4 at this point, I think there will be hope for the remainder of the season.
UMass – Much needed South Carolina win.
Garnet and Cocky
Tennessee
– If you’ve read anything of mine lately, you know that I’m big on Tennessee this year. I think Tennessee wins this game, and it may get ugly if Tennessee has been achieving expectations to this point.
Missouri – South Carolina football will be facing another program trying to rebuild after a tumultuous season the year prior. I think that home field advantage will help, and South Carolina wins this game by a field goal. A win here theoretically puts the Gamecocks one game away from .500 as they sit at 4-5 on the year.
@Florida – It is going to be really interesting to see how Will Muschamp responds when he returns to Florida. I think Florida has the better team and the better coach. Florida wins, but again, I expect the South Carolina defense to make a very strong showing. If Florida has been unable to solidify the quarterback position by this point in the season, a South Carolina win wouldn’t be surprising here. For our count though, I’ve currently got South Carolina at 4-6.
Western Carolina – South Carolina win.
@Clemson – South Carolina took Clemson down to the wire last year in this game, and rivalry games are anything but predictable. But what I can predict is that if South Carolina wins this game, it could be one of the biggest upsets of the year. I’m taking Clemson for the win.
Over or Under?
At the end of the day I have South Carolina picked to win 5 games. But, that doesn’t necessarily mean I’d take the Gamecocks for the under. Having to risk 280 dollars to make 100 dollars just isn’t worth it in the SEC. Florida came out of nowhere last year, and Missouri unexpectedly dominated seasons before that, and both proved we just don’t know what is going to happen in the SEC East.
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No money on the line? No odds? I’m taking South Carolina for the under. Sure. But, when it comes to betting money, the +200 is just too hard for me to pass up. If South Carolina wins all the games I’ve predicted them to win, and they can just add a win somewhere on their schedule, then that additional win gets them bowl eligible with 6 wins on the season. I think they will have their opportunities to beat Kentucky, Georgia, Texas A&M and/or Florida. If they capitalize on one of those opportunities and become bowl eligible, I will take them over any 6-6 team from any other conference. That would wind down to me basically betting South Carolina will win that bowl game, and my odds will be 2:1. I’ll take that action all day.