Clemson Football

No. 3 Clemson vs No. 24 South Carolina - Our Take

By Lawton Swann

November 24, 2017

5,747

Each week we give you three keys to the game and our staff predictions. Here is a look at today's opponent Florida State.

The Match Up:

#3 Clemson (10-1, 7-1) vs #24 South Carolina (8-3, 5-3)

Clemson's vs South Carolina 2016 Highlights:

Clemson's @ South Carolina 2015 Highlights:

All-Time Series:

Clemson Leads: 68-42-4
at Columbia: Clemson leads 50-32-3
at Clemson: Clemson leads 18-10-1
First Meeting: South Carolina 12-6 in 1896
Last Meeting: Clemson 56-7 n 2016
Last South Carolina Win: 31-17 a Columbia, 2013
Streak: Clemson won 3 in row

Key 1: Don't turn the ball over

Based on the what the two teams have done this season, from this observer's perspective, the Gamecocks will have to win the turnover battle to win the game.

Williams-Brice Stadium will be rocking in anticipation of knocking Clemson out of the College Football Playoff and snapping a three-game losing streak to the Tigers.

Clemson is almost certainly going to win the majority of snaps at the line of scrimmage, thus the Tigers should control the game and the crowd unless they give South Carolina reason to believe that they can win.

The stadium will be electric at the start and any momentum plays that South Carolina can make will be huge. It will certainly re-energize the crowd, it will give South Carolina's players momentum, and it will surely begin planting seeds of doubt in the minds of Clemson's players.

South Carolina has been outstanding this season forcing turnovers this season.

Protect the ball, control the line, win the game.

Turn the ball over, and you give the Gamecocks a chance to pull an upset.

Key 2: Dominate on the ground

By comparison to recent seasons, Clemson hasn't been great through the air. However, the Tigers have enough in their arsenal through the air to be dangerous.

Hitting on big plays over the top is something that you can expect to see, but nothing is more demoralizing than having the football shoved down your throat. A heavy dose of Etienne, Feaster, Fuller, Choice, would be enough to frustrate the South Carolina.

Add Kelly Bryant's ability on the ground to the mix and the frustration of being run around, over, and through would begin to weigh on the Gamecocks.

Clemson's can defeat South Carolina on the scoreboard through the air, but they can defeat the Gamecocks in their heads by winning on the ground.

Key 3: Wreck Bentley

If you listen to Jake Bentley, last season Clemson was, "not that much better than us or better than us at all," during the Tigers' 56-7 win.

Perhaps the fact that Bentley didn't finish that game caused him to forget how dominant the Tigers were.

This season, Bentley has been erratic at times. He has a good arm, but his instincts have let him down more often than not. Some guys think they can make all the throws, and they can. Other guys think they can make all the throws, and they can't. Bentley seems to be the latter at this point in his career.

Clemson's defensive line is as talented and perhaps as deep as any in America. The Tigers have the luxury of not sending everyone after Bentley, but still getting to him.

If Bentley's words were heard by Clemson, rest assured the defense will be interested in letting him know that last season's blowout win wasn't a fluke.

Prediction:

I'll just say it, this one shouldn't be close. If Clemson plays their A game and South Carolina plays their A game, Clemson should win by double digits. That's just the cold hard facts about where these two teams are in terms of talent.

The atmosphere in Columbia has a chance to play in the Gamecocks favor as early success will certainly keep the crowd alive. However, if Clemson makes the big plays, a nervous energy can also present itself and you have to imagine if we hit that point winning becomes increasingly more difficult for South Carolina.

Clemson comes into this game a lot on the line, the ACC title is out there, as well as a spot in the College Football Playoff for a third consecutive year. But they aren't the only team with something on the line.

Given where the Gamecocks were just a few years ago, losing to The Citadel at home and finished 3-9, beating a top-ranked Clemson team with a chance to win ten games is a big deal. South Carolina also faces the pressure of snapping what would become a four-game winning streak for Clemson.

Don't buy into those that say, "there's no pressure on South Carolina," it's simply not true.

Shifting gears to why I think Clemson wins big.

At quarterback, Kelly Bryant really presents an issue for the Gamecocks. He's great in the open field and the zone-read game is difficult to defend when Bryant's ankle is at 100%. Clemson's quarterback has thrown for 2,154 yards with 10 touchdowns this season, but it's what he adds on the ground that has made slowing Clemson difficult.

Bryant is third on the team in terms of yards rushing with 613, he is second in terms of touchdowns on the ground with ten.

When Bryant is clicking, Clemson's offense is extremely "quick twitch".

South Carolina hasn't done well this season against dual-threat quarterbacks, because of that Kelly Bryant could have a big day.

Defensively, Clemson is the superior team as well. I'm not sure there is a more disciplined and prepared defense in college football. While Brent Venables has surrounded himself with skilled players, it's the mental preparation that wins games.

You can be the greatest five-star player on the planet, but if you are out of position or misread plays, you are no longer worth the five-star rating.

However, finding 5-star, 4-star, and 3-star players who do the little things to prepare is the key to true success.

Clemson has guys like that all over the field. They have a windshield mentality, but they are also cognizant of what was said following last season's blowout win.

Because of that, I fully expect the Gamecocks to have the Tigers' attention.

The ringleader of the talk was quarterback Jake Bentley, and I would imagine Wilkins, Lawrence, Ferrell, and Bryant are interested in checking in on "never again" throughout Saturday's contest.