Recruiting: Week 10 – GamecockScoop: South Carolina Gamecocks Football & Basketball Recruiting

It's either the SEC or the Big 10 every week. No other conference has offered a must-see conference game so far in 2024. This week is highlighted by a top-four Big Ten battle between two coaches facing undue pressure to beat a top-five opponent. While the SEC doesn't have the big game, it still has a solid tripleheader highlighted by the Gamecocks and Aggies.

It has been several weeks since we had a specialist as a guest relations officer, (Ike Crofoot), and this week we have one of the best in South Carolina history. He made 33 of 44 field goals on 80 of 84 extra point attempts and was a three-year starter for the Gamecocks. He also had a rushing attempt for 12 yards and a first down on a fake punt against Georgia in Athens in 2009. After his time in Columbia, he spent part of five years in the NFL, appearing in 32 games for the Cleveland Browns and one for the Cleveland Browns to the Chicago Bears. In a win over the Vikings in 2013, this man became the first NFL player since 1968 to hit an extra point, punt and throw a touchdown pass. In the NFL, he averaged 44.1 yards per punt, recovered a fumble, made three tackles, completed 1-on-1 passing for 11 yards with the aforementioned touchdown pass, and was famously beaten by Antonio Brown kicked in the head when Brown tried to hurdle him on a punt return. We're talking about it Spencer Lanning. Lanning is a Rock Hill native who served in Carolina from 2006 to 2010. Spencer and his family now live in the Albany, New York area.

All game times are listed in EDT. The game lines were locked on Monday morning and may have been delayed until the release date.

This is the 49th meeting between these two Rust Belt powers. The Buckeyes hold a 24-14 lead, but OSU has dominated the Nittany Lions in recent history. Ohio State has won the last seven meetings and 11 of 12 against Penn State. Additionally, Ohio State is 7-1 in their last games in Happy Valley. PSU coach James Franklins is 2-7 against top-five opponents and 1-9 against the Buckeyes. Conversely, Ryan Day is also 2-7 against top-5 opponents. The Buckeyes dodged a bullet, with FOX calling it a 12 p.m. start. It will be loud at Beaver Stadium, but not as loud as it would have been under the lights. PSU QB Drew Allar was questionable during the week but is now expected to play.

Watch this game for Cam Ward. The Hurricanes QB is currently ranked third in the Heisman race. He ranks second nationally with 2,746 yards, seventh with 24 passing yards and second with 24 passing touchdowns. He only threw five picks in 281 attempts. I'm still not ready to announce that the U's are back, even though this team plays with an attitude. Still, Miami could have easily lost to Virginia Tech, Cal and Louisville. Clemson would be the betting favorite if the ACC Championship game were to take place this weekend.

At 6-2 overall and 2-2 in the SEC, a loss to Arkansas would nearly eliminate Ole Miss from the playoffs. The Rebels are second in the nation with 4.25 sacks per game. (Carolina is third with 4 sacks per game). Statistically, Ole Miss and Tennessee, two teams known for excelling on the scoreboard, have the best defenses in the SEC. Arkansas is coming off a game in which it gained 673 yards while its defense forced five turnovers, albeit against Mississippi State – more on that later in this column.

In case you were wondering, former Gamecock Juice Wells has 20 catches for 410 yards and four touchdowns this season. In three SEC games, Wells had six catches for 136 yards and no touchdowns and one fumble. He was injured and didn't play against Kentucky and went without a catch against LSU.

Iowa State has not won a conference championship in its 133-year program history. They've never started 8-0 either. The Cyclones scheduled after Tech are as follows: @ Kansas, Cincinnati, @ Utah and home game against K-State.

Texas Tech has suffered two straight losses after a 5-1 start and is in a four-way battle for fifth place in the Big XII. The Red Raiders blew a 17-point lead midway through the third quarter against TCU last week. Tech QB Behren Morton was injured while failing to throw last weekend and it is questionable whether he will go into this game. Without Morton, the Cyclones should be rolling.

It seemed like it was going to be a big game in September, but the 2024 Wolverines show why Jim Harbaugh quickly returned to the NFL after winning a National Championship. Michigan's offense ranks 110th in passing at 21.5 points per game, 129th in passing at 130 yards per game, and 110th in turnover margin at -0.75 per game. Oregon's QB Dillon Gabriel currently has the second-best Heisman odds behind Colorado's only two-way star Travis Hunter. Oregon was expected to play in the second round, with Gary Danielson's thoughts reflecting on his stay in Jacksonville.

Is this the week the Sword of Damocles falls on Billy Napier? The Gators played well in a loss in Knoxville and then beat Kentucky in their final game. You wouldn't think Billy would be in danger if the Gators could keep this game within two points. Losses to Georgia, Texas, LSU and Ole Miss would probably be enough even if the Gators beat the Seminoles in the season finale.

UGA travels to Oxford next and then hosts Tennessee, so it can't afford a slip-up against the rival Gators. The Dawgs have won six of the last seven Cocktail Parties, with only those wins coming by fewer than 19 points.

Toilet bowl game of the week:

Mississippi State still has a long way to go before it can be consistently competitive again in the SEC. The defense is by far the worst in the conference. However, this week's opponent, UMASS, is not in the SEC. The Minutemen also don’t have many SEC-caliber athletes. As a side note, Stone Blanton is MSU's second-leading tackler.

For Don Brown, turning UMASS around during his second time at the school was an incredible challenge. The Minutemen have played some close games, but have currently only defeated two FCS opponents. The fan base had hoped for a bowl game before the season and is already calling for the removal of Don Brown in just his third season.

We tried to warn against everyone writing off Clemson after its season-opening loss to Georgia. The Tigers aren't an elite team in 2024, but they're still really good. We think. Clemson is a very difficult team to judge as its six-game winning streak came against teams with an overall record of 18-29. The Tigers have yet to beat a team with a winning record. (Yeah, we know, neither does South Carolina). The next three weeks will give the nation a clearer picture of the Tigers with Louisville, followed by games at Virginia Tech and Pitt. If Clemson wins all three, they are in the ACC Championship and playing for a playoff bye. (Most likely Boise State could factor in if Clemson loses to South Carolina and the Broncos win in impressive fashion). Louisville is 0-8 against Clemson and 0-4 against Clemson.

South Carolina will be in the spotlight for the first time in SEC play in 2024. Williams-Brice should be electrifying as the Gamecocks look to face the Aggies for just the second time in school history. With this huge competition, baseball and basketball tournaments taking place over the next four days, you can't afford not to visit GamecockScoop several times a day.

Which of these two upstarts will want to challenge Miami and Clemson for ACC supremacy this season? If SMU wins this game, they will be double-digit favorites in their last three games. (BC, @ UVA and Cal). If SMU, Clemson and Miami all win, they will all remain undefeated in league play. Who will play against Charlotte? The answer is that the two teams with the highest ACC winning percentage of opponents combined. I can't imagine a scenario where the ACC would want SMU in the title game against Clemson and Miami. This selection process will be difficult if SMU secures a spot in the conference title game against the other two undefeated conference players.