College Football

East Carolina vs South Carolina 9/11/21 College Football Picks, Odds, Predictions

South Carolina Gamecocks (1-0) vs. East Carolina Pirates (0-1)
September 11, 2021 12:00 pm EDT
The Line: East Carolina Pirates -2 / South Carolina Gamecocks +2; Over/Under: 55
(Get latest betting odds)

The East Carolina Pirates meet the South Carolina Gamecocks Saturday in week 2 college football action at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The South Carolina Gamecocks look for another win after beating Eastern Illinois in their opener. The East Carolina Pirates need a win after losing their opener to Appalachian State. 

The South Carolina Gamecocks look for their first 2-0 start since the 2017 CFB season. Zeb Noland is completing 59.1 percent of his passes for 121 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. Noland has eight touchdowns in his last two seasons. ZaQuandre White and Josh Vann have combined for 66 receiving yards and two touchdowns while MarShawn Lloyd has one reception. The South Carolina Gamecocks ground game is averaging 258 yards per contest, and White leads the way with 128 yards and one touchdown. Defensively, South Carolina is allowing zero points and 109 yards per game. Cam Smith leads the South Carolina Gamecocks with four tackles, Brad Johnson has one sack and Jordan Burch has one interception.

The East Carolina Pirates hope to avoid back-to-back 0-2 starts to a season. Holton Ahlers is completing 55 percent of his passes for 295 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Ahlers has two or more touchdown passes in six of his last seven games. Keaton Mitchell and Rahjai Harris have combined for 135 receiving yards and one touchdown while Jsi Hatfield has three receptions. The East Carolina Pirates ground game is averaging 86 yards per contest, and Mitchell leads the way with 50 yards on four carries. Defensively, East Carolina is allowing 33 points and 485 yards per game. Ja’Quan McMillian leads the East Carolina Pirates with 10 tackles, Suirad Ware has one sack and Suirad Ware has one tackle for loss.

The Gamecocks are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 road games and 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games overall. The Pirates are 16-39 ATS vs. a team with a winning record and 8-20 ATS in their last 28 games as a favorite. The over is 5-0 in Gamecocks last 5 road games. The over is 11-5 in Pirates last 16 games overall.

The South Carolina Gamecocks are a lower level SEC team, but they’re still an SEC program that has above-average athletes and are the more talented team from top to bottom here. The East Carolina Pirates didn’t do enough against App State to move the needle and their defense still struggles to get stops. While South Carolina isn’t a world beater, this line is a bit confusing. We’re getting free points with a lower level SEC team against a lower level AAC team. Make it make sense. Give me the Gamecocks.

Randy Chambers's Free Pick: South Carolina Gamecocks +2

Need More? Get Premium Picks

Randy Chambers

Randy has covered sports betting since 2014 and writes about everything from NFL to WNBA. Follow Randy Chambers on Twitter.

Related Articles

Back to top button