The Missouri Tigers (3-0) get set for their SEC opener on Saturday night vs the South Carolina Gamecocks (2-1, 0-1 SEC). Mizzou is coming off a 52-10 win over Sun Belt opponent Louisiana, while South Carolina is coming off a puzzling 31-7 loss to Vanderbilt at home.
Kick-off on Saturday night in COMO is set for 6:00 pm. CST on ESPN with Dave Pasch (PxP), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst) and Taylor McGregor (sideline reporter) on the call. It’s the 16th straight sellout at Memorial Stadium as the Tigers look
to take back the Mayor’s Cup after last year’s loss in the other Columbia.
To preview Saturday’s matchup, we talked it over with Alex Joyce from Gamecocks on SI.
Here’s the Q&A to get you ready:
Sammy Stava: On a scale of 1-10, what is the panic level on the Gamecocks’ season after losing 31-7 to Vanderbilt at home?
Alex Joyce: I’d put it at a 5 mainly due to the unknown injury status of quarterback LaNorris Sellers. The injury along with the offensive play calling is what has bothered fans the most it seems. I don’t believe the panic meter should be high just because of what Vanderbilt was able to do because with Deigo Pavia they are a really good football team. Although I would like to have seen more from the offensive on Saturday night, the drop off from Sellers to Luke Doty is huge. The team struggling to move the ball was not as surprising to me for that reason. However, the defensive side of the ball has given me cause to pause. The secondary has a lot of veteran leadership in it, but the front seven has a lot of work to do if the Gamecocks want to replicate their success from last season.
SS: LaNorris Sellers exited the Vanderbilt game with a concussion, and his status is unclear for Saturday’s game vs Mizzou, but Shane Beamer feels optimistic about his availability. Do you expect him to play, and do you expect him to be 100 percent?
AJ: If he does play, I doubt he’s at 100 percent. Beamer was optimistic surrounding his status on Sunday evening, but then responded to a question about Sellers’ health on Tuesday by telling reporters to basically wait for the injury report on Wednesday evening. Beamer also mentioned that if a player cannot practice on Tuesday or Wednesday the week of the game, it’s likely they won’t play. Without having inside knowledge of the situation, I would lean towards Sellers not playing mainly due to how hush hush the program is right now. My best guess is he’s either listed as “questionable” or “probable” just to keep Missouri guessing before kickoff.
SS: Defensive lineman Dylan Stewart was ejected in the second half from the Vanderbilt game with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, but he will still be able to play in the first half vs Mizzou. What can we expect to see from the preseason first-team All-SEC defender?
AJ: The ejection was unfortunate and very much looked like a frustration penalty. As long as he doesn’t commit a similar penalty this weekend, I still expect to see a dominant version of Dylan Stewart. He’s the only guy in the front seven I trust to be consistently great. I’m sure Eli Drinkwitz and his staff has plans to limit his impact on Saturday, so the rest of the front seven will have to step up in a way they were not able to in the loss to Vanderbilt.
SS: Who besides Sellers is a name to watch for the Gamecocks on offense? Who on the defensive side of the ball has made a big impact thus far?
AJ: Offensively it has to be Nyck Harbor. He’s a 6-foot-5 and 235 pound legit track star who has developed his route running year after year. Whoever is at quarterback on Saturday will be looking his way a lot. On the defensive side of the ball, I would watch out for Bryan Thomas Jr. He is the bookend of the defensive line opposite Dylan Stewart. South Carolina will need him to have a good game to help get after Beau Pribula and this high-powered offense.
SS: Missouri comes in as a double-digit favorite. How do you see this game playing out on Saturday? Have a final score prediction?
AJ: Being unsure of Sellers’ injury status, I would take Missouri to win and cover in this game. Diego Pavia was able to use his mobility to keep plays alive and make plays downfield. Pribula can do the same thing if the Gamecocks haven’t found a way to fix that this week. With this game being on the road and likely a backup quarterback starting, I’m thinking Missouri wins somewhere around 35-17.
Thank you to Alex for answering our questions. Follow him on Twitter (X) for Gamecock coverage leading up to Saturday’s game.
