Kentucky vs. South Carolina football gameday guide: Can Wildcats beat Gamecocks again?
LEXINGTON — About six months ago, Mark Stoops got a new cellphone. Half a year later, he's still figuring out how to use it. But he joked Monday "it's kind of a good thing" he's technologically challenged.
Because of it, he rarely sees negativity that might exist outside the doors of the Kentucky football complex.
Had he scoured social media or message boards in the past year, however, Stoops would have witnessed a rise in sniping between the fan bases of Kentucky and South Carolina's football programs. It's coincided in hard feelings that developed last year when Stoops made comments at SEC media days that coach Shane Beamer viewed as criticism of his USC program.
After the Gamecocks upset a ranked Wildcats squad last season at Kroger Field, Beamer trolled Stoops in a postgame locker room celebration.
Stoops, straightfaced, said he wasn't aware there's animosity between him and Beamer. Allegedly.
Blame his phone.
"I have no clue where that would come," Stoops said. "I don’t feel that way; maybe (Beamer) does. ... You have to ask him. I don’t feel that at all. It’s another game, and we need it for our university, for our players. There’s zero to do with me and Shane.”
Stoops has other things on his mind, anyway.
"Improving our (bowl) placement, improving our record in the SEC, getting another win — you know what it’s worth," he said. "I think that motivation is more what we’re concerned about is us trying to get another win, get to .500 in the SEC.”
A shootout could be in the offing Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium: South Carolina, behind quarterback Spencer Rattler, averages 28.8 points per game. But it gives up 28.6 points per contest. And the Gamecocks allow more passing yards, on average, than any team in the league.
"Our (pass) rushes, we need to be better at rushing, being more disciplined and more relentless," Stoops said. "Getting to the quarterback, not rushing past the quarterback, letting (Rattler) have the easy pocket to step up into. Then, plastering and covering and being better down the field as well. ... Spencer has a very good feel for moving around the pocket.”
Here's what to know about Kentucky's SEC finale against South Carolina:
Kentucky vs. South Carolina football pregame notes
Kentucky trails in the all-time series versus South Carolina 19-14-1. And the Gamecocks lead 9-6-1 in games played in Columbia. But the Wildcats have been the better team in the rivalry since Stoops took over prior to the 2013 campaign: He is 7-3 versus USC as UK's coach.
A victory at Mississippi State earlier this month clinched bowl eligibility for UK for the eighth consecutive season. It extends what already is the longest stretch of bowl bids in program history. It also is the third-longest active streak in the SEC behind Georgia (27 seasons) and Alabama (20).
Kentucky has scored four touchdowns defensively this season. That's tied for most in the country (with seven other teams).
UK running back Ray Davis has 16 touchdowns (11 rushing, five receiving) this fall. If he crosses the end zone four more times, he'll set UK's single-season mark. Benny Snell holds the record, notching 19 TDs (all rushing) in 2017.
As he has all season, Davis continues to rank among the best tailbacks in the SEC. He ranks among the top five in the league in total rushing yards (929), rushing touchdowns (11), rushing yards per game (92.9) and yards per carry (5.81).
Davis has scored at least one touchdown in nine of Kentucky's 10 games in 2023. He set a record earlier this year, becoming the first Wildcat with at least one TD in each of the team's first eight games to start a season (per UK's single-game statistics, which date back to the 1940s).
Wildcats defensive back Maxwell Hairston has picked off five passes this fall, most among SEC players and tied for second most nationally behind Notre Dame's Xavier Watts (seven) for the FBS lead.
UK quarterback Devin Leary's 19 touchdown passes are the second-best tally among conference signal callers. LSU's Jayden Daniels has 30 TD tosses, most in the country.
South Carolina wide receiver Xavier Legette is fifth in the FBS in total receiving yards (1,093) and receiving yards per game (109.3); only one player in the SEC (LSU's Malik Nabers) ranks ahead of him in those categories. He had 217 receiving yards against Jacksonville State earlier this month, which marked the second most in a game in program history (Pharoh Cooper had 233 yards versus Tennessee in 2014).
Gamecocks linebacker Debo Williams is a tackling machine, with 94 takedowns this fall, ranking third in the conference behind Mississippi State duo Jett Johnson (99) and Nathaniel Watson (95). Williams has logged six games of 10 or more tackles in 2023, including each of USC's last four outings.
UK vs. USC football pregame reading
UK vs. South Carolina matchup look: Story lines, key players, odds, more
Last time out: What we learned about the Wildcats in 49-21 loss to Alabama
C.L. Brown: It's not that Kentucky football is losing. Cats haven't competed against SEC's best
Lingering questions: Where does UK football go from here? With only 3 games left in 2023 season, offense hasn't delivered as expected
Ongoing struggles: Mark Stoops' record vs. top-10 teams drops to 1-18 after lopsided setback to Crimson Tide
Kentucky football recruiting: Wildcats land one of program's highest-ranked commits ever in Brian Robinson
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Kentucky vs. South Carolina football odds
Kentucky is a 2-point road favorite against South Carolina, according to the DraftKings college football odds.
WANNA BET? Top Kentucky sportsbooks and sports betting apps reviewed
How to watch Kentucky vs. South Carolina football game
Who: Kentucky (6-4, 3-4 SEC) at South Carolina (4-6, 2-5)
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, South Carolina
TV: SEC Network
Radio: Tom Leach (play-by-play) and Jeff Piecoro (analyst) will have the UK radio network call on 840 AM in Louisville and both 630 AM and 98.1 FM in Lexington and online at UKAthletics.com. The game also will be carried on satellite radio: Sirius (Channel 138), XM (Channel 190) and the SiriusXM app (Channel 961).
Streaming: Authenticated subscribers can access SEC Network via TV-connected devices or by going to WatchESPN.com, the WatchESPN app or ESPN+.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
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This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: How to watch UK vs South Carolina football: Odds, notes for SEC game
