Oklahoma will play host to South Carolina on Saturday afternoon at the Palace on the Prairie on a homecoming weekend. The date also coincides nicely with Halloween, which seems like an appropriate setting for the ghoulish nature of the Sooners' season so far.
Both teams enter the contest with identical 4-3 overall records and off the momentum of wins last weekend. Oklahoma played what might have been its best game of the season in terms of the performance of the offense, posting a 23-15 win on the road at Mississippi State. South Carolina, meanwhile, is riding a two-game win streak with consecutive victories over Florida and at home against then-No. 11 Tennessee last week.
This is just the third meeting all-time between Oklahoma and South Carolina. The previous two games took place in each of the last two seasons, with the road team winning both games. South Carolina won 35-9 in 2024 in Norman, and the Sooners returned the favor, winning 26-7 last season in Columbia.
Oklahoma has a record of 153-18 (.895) since the 1999 season playing at home at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. That is just four more home losses than OU conference titles over that period and is the third-best home winning percentage among FBS teams over the same time span. Saturday will be the 171st consecutive sellout of an Oklahoma home game.
How to watch Oklahoma vs. South Carolina
When: 3:15 p.m. CT Saturday, Oct 31, at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman
Watch: SEC Network (watch using Fubo TV free trial)
Announcers: Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Gene Chizik (analysis), and Michella Chester (sideline reporting)
What to know about South Carolina
- This is the third meeting in as many seasons between Oklahoma and South Carolina, and LaNorris Sellers has been the Gamecock starting quarterback in all three games. Sellers is a dangerous dual-threat who can use both his legs and his arm to beat you. Through seven games this season, the senior signal caller has completed 60.7% of his passes for 1,548 yards, 13 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He also has run for 507 yards with four rushing touchdowns. The Oklahoma defense sacked Sellers six times and held him to -9 rushing yards last season.
- South Carolina ranks third in the SEC this season in total offense, averaging 456.0 yards per game, along with a conference-best 218.3 rushing yards per game. Matt Fuller and Sellers are the main ball carriers, with Fuller having rushed for 513 yards. Both Fuller and Sellers average close to 6.0 yards per carry. The Gamecocks are one of just 34 FBS teams with over 400 yards of offense in at least five games this season.
- South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer was the associate head coach of offense at Oklahoma (coaching tight ends and H-backs) on Lincoln Riley's staff from 2018 through the 2020 season. While Beamer was at Oklahoma, the Sooners were 33-6 overall, won three Big 12 championships, and made two College Football Playoff appearances.
- The Gamecocks beat Tennessee last weekend on a game-winning 48-yard field goal by Malik Orsan. Since 2021, South Carolina has ranked second in the SEC, successfully converting 82.8% of its field-goal tries (77 of 93). Only Georgia has a better FG percentage (86.4) over that span.
What to know about Oklahoma
- Although the Oklahoma offense is coming off its best outing of the season in the win last week against Mississippi State, the Sooners continue to bring up the rear in that statistical category in the SEC rankings. The Sooners are averaging 331.7 yards per game. Much-maligned OU quarterback John Mateer also had his best game of the season last weekend, completing 75.9% of his passes for 283 yards and two touchdowns. He had an error-free game with no turnovers.
- While the OU offense has had a tough time garnering any kind of consistency this season, the defense continues to perform at a high standard. The Sooners lead the nation in first downs allowed (13.6 per game) and rank in the top 20 in six other defensive categories: No. 2 in third-down conversion percentage (23.6), No. 4 in red-zone conversion percentage (64.7), No. 8 in passing defense (151.3 yards per game) and sacks per game (3.1), No. 11 in total defense (273.7 ypg) and No. 20 in yards per play (4.7).
- In 33 games since the start of the 2024 season (Oklahoma's inaugural year in the SEC), the Sooners have allowed fewer than 100 rushing yards 16 times, including twice this season (69 vs. New Mexico and 72 by Kentucky). South Carolina is averaging 218.3 rushing yards per game this season, second-best in the SEC and 13th nationally.
- Wide receiver Isaiah Sategna leads the Sooners with 41 receptions for 578 yards and three touchdowns. Tight end Rocky Beers ranks fourth nationally, averaging 56.4 yards per game.
Other storylines
- A key matchup in the game: Oklahoma's third-down defense, which ranks No. 2 among FBS teams, vs. South Carolina's third-down offense, which ranks 26th nationally (46.5% success rate).
- Oklahoma has followed every win with a loss this season. It marks the first time in Sooner football history that an OU team has alternated wins and losses in each of its first seven games of the season.
- South Carolina received votes in both major polls this week, making the Gamecocks the seventh Oklahoma opponent that was ranked or receiving votes in at least one of the two polls at the time the game was played.
Prediction
This is a winnable game for Oklahoma, and the Sooners need to take full advantage of the opportunity. To do so, however, OU is going to have to be able to run the ball effectively, as it did a week ago against Mississippi State, and stop the South Carolina run game, which is the second-best in the SEC, forcing the Gamecocks to beat the Sooners through the air, going against the SEC's top passing defense.
Oklahoma 24, South Carolina 20
Add us as a preferred source on Google