Thursday Auburn vs South Carolina

Tommy · 09-28-06, 08:41 PM

Thursday Night College Football - Auburn vs. South Carolina

Are the South Carolina Gamecocks due for a letdown?

The loyal fans in Columbia must be feeling a little edgy these days. Coach Steve Spurrier has led the Fighting Gamecocks to a 3-1 record this year (2-1 against the spread), but those three wins came against overmatched opposition. The loss was an 18-0 kick in the teeth delivered by the Georgia Bulldogs, and things might be even uglier when So. Carolina meets the No. 3 Auburn Tigers Thursday night at Williams-Brice Stadium. The Tigers are 14-point favorites with a total of 37.5.

The Gamecocks have the unenviable task of trying to stop Auburn running back Kenny Irons. This will be a homecoming of sorts for Irons; he transferred from So. Carolina in 2004 and made a name for himself last year by rushing for 1,293 yards, the highest total for any tailback in the SEC. That performance included a pair of touchdowns against the Gamecocks in last year's 48-7 shellacking - Auburn was favored at home by 15.5 points in that affair.

Irons was held out at last week's relatively meaningless 38-7 win over Buffalo with a sprained ankle, although that injury isn't considered serious. The rest should give Irons that extra bounce in his step to slash through So. Carolina's highly-suspect run defense. The Gamecocks gave up an embarrassing 290 yards on the ground two weeks ago to Div-1-AA Wofford in a surprisingly close 27-20 So. Carolina win. There was no line on the game, thankfully for Gamecocks' supporters.

As excellent as the Auburn run attack is, coach Tommy Tuberville has told reporters that the passing game could use a little prep work as the Tigers prepare for the meat of the SEC schedule. "We've got a stretch with three very good conference games," Tuberville said, "and that's going to force us to throw the ball more." This could be excellent news for OVER backers. Although Auburn has jumped out to big leads in racking up a 4-0 record (3-1 ATS), the UNDER has gone 3-1 as the Tigers have chewed up the clock running the ball in the second half.

Kick-off is at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time with ESPN providing national coverage on cable.

Click here for Live Lines and a 20% bonus...

09-28-06, 08:41 PM	#1 (permalink)
Tommy 2008 World Champions! Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sportscapper Island Posts: 15,133	Thursday Auburn vs South Carolina Thursday Night College Football - Auburn vs. South Carolina Are the South Carolina Gamecocks due for a letdown? The loyal fans in Columbia must be feeling a little edgy these days. Coach Steve Spurrier has led the Fighting Gamecocks to a 3-1 record this year (2-1 against the spread), but those three wins came against overmatched opposition. The loss was an 18-0 kick in the teeth delivered by the Georgia Bulldogs, and things might be even uglier when So. Carolina meets the No. 3 Auburn Tigers Thursday night at Williams-Brice Stadium. The Tigers are 14-point favorites with a total of 37.5. The Gamecocks have the unenviable task of trying to stop Auburn running back Kenny Irons. This will be a homecoming of sorts for Irons; he transferred from So. Carolina in 2004 and made a name for himself last year by rushing for 1,293 yards, the highest total for any tailback in the SEC. That performance included a pair of touchdowns against the Gamecocks in last year's 48-7 shellacking - Auburn was favored at home by 15.5 points in that affair. Irons was held out at last week's relatively meaningless 38-7 win over Buffalo with a sprained ankle, although that injury isn't considered serious. The rest should give Irons that extra bounce in his step to slash through So. Carolina's highly-suspect run defense. The Gamecocks gave up an embarrassing 290 yards on the ground two weeks ago to Div-1-AA Wofford in a surprisingly close 27-20 So. Carolina win. There was no line on the game, thankfully for Gamecocks' supporters. As excellent as the Auburn run attack is, coach Tommy Tuberville has told reporters that the passing game could use a little prep work as the Tigers prepare for the meat of the SEC schedule. "We've got a stretch with three very good conference games," Tuberville said, "and that's going to force us to throw the ball more." This could be excellent news for OVER backers. Although Auburn has jumped out to big leads in racking up a 4-0 record (3-1 ATS), the UNDER has gone 3-1 as the Tigers have chewed up the clock running the ball in the second half. Kick-off is at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time with ESPN providing national coverage on cable. Click here for Live Lines and a 20% bonus...
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