Missouri is hosting South Carolina on Saturday night of Week 4. The game will take place at 7:00 P.M. ET in Columbia, Missouri.
The Tigers are 10-point home favorites in this game on DraftKings Sportsbook, with the total set at 48.5 points. This is a preview, prediction and pick for this South Carolina vs. Missouri SEC matchup.
South Carolina vs. Missouri prediction, preview
South Carolina Preview
It has been a tough start to the season for South Carolina. They started off 2-0 with wins over Virginia Tech and SC State, but didn’t look overly convincing in either win. In Week 3, they began SEC play at home against Vanderbilt. Things could not have gone worse for South Carolina, with star quarterback LaNorris Sellers suffering a concussion and then getting blown out by Vanderbilt once Sellers left the game. It is still unknown if Sellers will be playing in this game for the Gamcocks, but it will likely determine their season. If Sellers comes back, they could still get things back on track and improve to have another great season like they did in 2024. However, without Sellers, this team could spiral out of control and have this be a completely lost season.
Missouri Preview
Missouri feels confident in the fact that they hit on transfer quarterback Beau Pribula. Pribula transferred in from Penn State to be the starter at Missouri after backing up Drew Allar. He has led Missouri to a 3-0 start, including a key win over Kansas. Now, Pribula will get his first taste of SEC play against South Carolina. It helps for Pribula that he will get his first start against an SEC defense at home. It would be especially beneficial if he didn’t have to worry about going toe to toe with LaNorris Sellers. Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. Even if LaNorris Sellers is able to play, that experience against Daniels should be invaluable to the Missouri defense when looking to stop Sellers.
South Carolina vs. Missouri pick, best bet
My best bet for this game is the under 48.5. The South Carolina offense has been terrible to start the season, ranking 83rd in EPA/play and 99th in success rate. The Missouri defense ranks 11th in EPA/play and should be able to shut them down if LaNorris Sellers can’t play. Even if Sellers does play, it will be tough for South Carolina to generate anything explosive against the Missouri defense. The South Carolina defense lost its grip on the game late against Vanderbilt, but prior to that, it had been a tough unit with great athletes. Missouri should take a conservative offensive approach and try to grind the ball down the field with the run game. At the current spread of ten points, the number is too high if Sellers plays, but if Sellers doesn’t play, it could be a blowout. That makes it safer to play the total, as it should be a lower-scoring game either way.
