For the first time in the 2025 college football season, Brent Venables and the Oklahoma Sooners actually need a win.
The No. 14 Sooners will take their first SEC road trip of the season to South Carolina at 11:45 a.m. CT Saturday after coming off their first loss of the campaign against Texas last week.
Score prediction for Oklahoma vs. South Carolina
The loss to Texas cranked up the intensity for the Sooners to maintain their status as College Football Playoff contenders and also the heat of Venables’ seat. But with their backs against the wall before five games in a row against ranked opponents, the Sooners should do what they need to do in South Carolina against the last unranked team left on their schedule.
The Sooners failed to reach the end zone, or even the red zone, against Texas as the offense overall looked disappointing. But quarterback John Mateer was playing just 17 days after surgery on his throwing hand and didn’t even practice until the Thursday before.
Mateer said this week that he’ll be a full participant at practice, so he should look more like he did the first four games of the season when he was a Heisman Trophy contender. The Sooners also avoided a possible crisis along the offensive line with right tackle Derek Simmons’ status, so they should have all of their starters fully healthy.
South Carolina’s defense has given up the third-most yards this season in the SEC, and although the unit isn’t a pushover, it should be what the healthy Sooners need to get back on track. And despite having a great quarterback of their own in LaNorris Sellers, the Gamecocks still have the worst offense in the SEC that will have to go up against the best defense it'll face all season.
The Sooners can use their trip to South Carolina to get back in the win column and get back on track before a gauntlet ahead.
Prediction: Oklahoma 23, South Carolina 10