First look at South Carolina vs. Oklahoma: Gamecocks just a slight underdog on the road

South Carolina’s football team is coming off a heartbreaker, a game where Alabama gave them multiple chances at a season-turning upset and they just couldn’t take it.

Now Shane Beamer’s Gamecocks get another road game, this time against an Oklahoma team that is feisty but has a relatively low ceiling, given the program’s prestige.

For Beamer, it’s a bit of a homecoming. He spent three years working as an Oklahoma assistant before taking the Gamecocks’ top job.

SOUTH CAROLINA VS. OKLAHOMA GAME, TV INFO

Who: South Carolina (3-3, 1-3 SEC) vs. Oklahoma (4-2, 1-2 SEC)

Where: Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla.

When: 12:45 p.m. Saturday

TV: SEC Network

Last meeting: This is the first meeting between these teams.

VEGAS BETTING ODDS

The Gamecocks are 4-point underdogs against the Sooners, according to Circa Sports. The over/under is 40.5 points.

STATE OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS

South Carolina is coming off another difficult game.

After a slew of mistakes prevented a matchup with Ole Miss from being more of a competitive game, the Gamecocks hung with No. 7 Alabama but couldn’t close it out in the end and lost 27-25. And another close loss against a good team starts to put the stakes of the season into focus.

The Gamecocks have three wins, with FCS Wofford still on the slate. Vanderbilt is tougher than usual, and while Oklahoma and Texas A&M seem beatable coming up, but the ones that got away still linger.

If South Carolina ends up with either five or even four wins, likely prompting some uncomfortable leadership conversations, close calls against LSU and Alabama will loom large.

Folks outside the program are also starting to make noise about the direction and function of the offense. While there are flashes from young players, the group is still 106th nationally in yards per play, which most of the time prompts unrest about the man calling those plays.

State of the Oklahoma Sooners

It’s hard to say the Sooners are in a good place right now coming off an uninspiring loss to Texas. Their offense, with a spate of receiver injuries, quarterback questions and a new coordinator, has simply not been very good. With a difficult SEC slate the rest of the way, beating the Gamecocks is the easiest path to just making a bowl after winning 10 games last season.

At the center of that offense is the progress of quarterback Michael Hawkings Jr. The undersized dual-threat passer replaced blue-chipper Jackson Arnold and has provided a measure of a spark. But that Sooner attack has been far from humming, even with him out there.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers: Each week brings another batch of good plays for the 19-year-old quarterback and an overall line that doesn’t quite wow. He was 23-for-31 against Alabama, but the yardage wasn’t high, and some nice runs were undercut by sacks and a pair of fumbles. He’ll be challenged by a pretty sturdy Sooners defense. For the season in five games, he has 793 passing yards, four scores and four interceptions, plus 219 rushing yards.

South Carolina running back Rocket Sanders: The 230-pound runner has been up and down, with some nice plays and some ineffective games. But when he’s hammering through folks and getting lathered up, it adds such a different element to the Gamecocks offense. For the year, he’s posted 393 yards and five scores despite an ankle injury limiting him at points.

South Carolina nickel Jalon Kilgore: The Oklahoma attack hasn’t been great, but it can cause issues with solid play-makers getting into space, especially the young quarterback. Kilgore is often a player who closes down that space. If he’s tracking folks down, it goes a long way to limiting an attack like this one. For the season, the sophomore has 20 tackles, three for loss and three interceptions.

Oklahoma QB Michael Hawkins Jr.: He started the season as a backup before stepping in for hyped blue-chipper Jackson Arnold. He’s not the most consistent, but he definitely has that “spark” quality to him, running, scrambling and creating chaos. For the season, he’s posted 458 passing yards, one touchdown, no picks, plus 128 rushing yards and one touchdown.

Oklahoma DE R Mason Thomas: Oklahoma has a nice collection of solid to good play-makers, but Thomas is probably the most disruptive as a versatile pass rusher. Considering some of South Carolina’s issues with sacks and strip sacks, controlling Thomas without giving up too many chances elsewhere is a big key. For the season, the 243-pounder has 12 tackles (6.5 for loss), 5.5 sacks and a forced fumble.