South Carolina vs ODU Prediction 8-31-24 College Football Picks

The Old Dominion Monarchs and the South Carolina Gamecocks meet in week 1 college football action from Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday afternoon. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s an South Carolina vs ODU Prediction.

Old Dominion Team Preview

The Old Dominion Monarchs come into the 2024 season looking to take another step in the right direction after a second 6-6 season in their last three years under Ricky Rahne, ending the year with a 38-35 OT loss to Western Kentucky in the Famous Toastery Bowl. The Monarchs did have a 5-3 record in Sun Belt conference play. Grant Wilson is back at QB after throwing for 2,149 yards and 17 touchdowns but will need to take another step forward without his top receiver after Reymello Murphy transferred to Arizona. Kelby Williams returns as the deep threat in ODU’s offense and Isiah Paige returns after leading the Monarchs with 43 receptions.

Aaron Young transfers in from Rutgers to lead Old Dominion’s ground attack, but the running back room is arguably the weak link in the Monarchs’ offense. On defense, Denzel Lowry will anchor Kris Trinidad and Amarie Morrison on the ends up front while Jason Henderson is the leader at linebacker. The secondary was hit hard via the transfer portal, but Will Jones transfers in from USF and Angelo Rankin comes in from FCS Richmond to help in the transition.

Why the Old Dominion Monarchs will win

• The underdog has covered the spread in 11 of Old Dominion’s last 12 games.
• South Carolina has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five games against non-conference opponents.

South Carolina Team Preview

The South Carolina Gamecocks come into the 2024 campaign will try to bounce back from a frustrating 2023 season where the Gamecocks finished 5-7 overall, including 3-5 in SEC conference play, missing out on a bowl game for the first time since 2020. There’s a lot of question marks at QB for South Carolina, but LaNorris Sellers is expected to get the first crack at the QB1 job while Auburn transfer Robby Ashford and Davis Beville, who has had stops at Oklahoma and Pitt will be waiting for their time to shine. The running game improved from last year with Raheim Sanders transferring in from Arkansas with a clean bill of health and Oscar Adaway comes in from North Texas to add depth.

Where there is help needed is at receiver with some of the Gamecocks’ top options (Antwane Wells, Xavier Legette and Trey Knox) either transferring out or in the NFL. The Gamecocks do have some young, high-upside pass catchers though, and Jared Brown and Ahmari Huggins-Bruce come in from Coastal Carolina and Louisville respectively to add some experience. On defense, TJ Sanders leads the way up front and will get help via the transfer portal with Gilber Edmond and Kyle Kennard coming in from the ACC in Florida State and Georgia Tech respectively. Debo Williams is back at linebacker after leading the Gamecocks with 113 tackles while the secondary is mostly intact as well.

Why the South Carolina Gamecocks will win

• The favorite has won each of South Carolina’s last 13 games.
• Old Dominion has lost seven of its last eight games against non-conference opponents.
• The favorite has covered the spread in six of South Carolina’s last seven games at Williams-Brice Stadium.
• Old Dominion has failed to cover the spread in five of its last six games against non-conference opponents.

South Carolina vs ODU Prediction

I’m leaning towards Old Dominion, but it’s not my favorite Game on the board. This is just a lot of points for me to lay when I feel that there are a ton of question marks for the Gamecocks coming into this Game. Do they have the more talented lineup? I believe so, but especially in week 1, even against Old Dominion, there needs to be more than just the better team to be able to get the job done. Old Dominion has continuity at the most important position, and the Monarchs were really comPetitive against their two power conference opponents last year. Give me the Monarchs and the points.