National predictions ahead of South Carolina-Clemson rivalry game

This Saturday, South Carolina (4-7; 1-7) will be at home for the Gamecocks’ final game of the season. As usual, USC will take on the rival Clemson Tigers (6-5; 4-4) in the annual Palmetto Bowl.

Carolina has beaten Clemson in two of the last three meetings, including a 17-14 thriller last year in the Upstate. However, the Gamecocks haven’t won at home since 2013.

Shane Beamer’s team enters the game following a 51-7 beatdown of the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. Dabo Swinney’s group also won big against an in-state foe, dispatching Furman by a score of 45-10.

Despite both teams being in the top 10 earlier this season, South Carolina and Clemson have fallen completely out of the ranking conversation over the last two months.

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Even with the two teams’ struggles in 2025, the rivalry is important in the Palmetto State, and national predictions are plentiful. Most have sided with the Gamecocks.

South Carolina is a 2.5-point favorite, according to BetMGM. The over/under is 46.5 points, implying a final score of 24.5-22 in favor of the home Gamecocks.

Based on ESPN’s FPI Matchup Predictor, South Carolina has a 63.5% chance to win on Saturday. The ESPN SP+ model is a little lower on the Gamecocks’ odds, pushing them down to 49%. The analytics projection lists a rounded score of 24-24 as the most likely final outcome, meaning it projects Clemson as a favorite by mere decimal points. SP+ also predicts an “over” hit on the over/under.

Labeling both teams a “disappointment” compared to preseason expectations, Saturday Down South’s Connor O’Gara said that the Palmetto Bowl is difficult to pick. Even so, he went with Clemson to win, 24-17.

CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford picked South Carolina to earn a rivalry victory and to cover the 2.5-point spread with a 24-20 win. His colleague Chris Hummer picked Clemson to win outright, 27-24.

The Cover 3 Podcast crew declined to pick the game at all. Instead, they dubbed the contest “The Anxiety Bowl” and predicted some offseason sadness for the winner and additional offseason sadness for the loser.

97.7 The Fan Upstate’s Cole Bryson went with South Carolina to win and cover the spread.

College Football News’ Pete Fiutak picked Clemson to win, 24-23, but didn’t place much confidence in that selection.

Southeastern 16’s Jay Greeson picked South Carolina in a game he deemed a matchup between teams from the “Pissed Off State,” instead of the Palmetto State. His colleague Brian Edwards agreed, citing near-wins against Alabama and Texas A&M as support for his USC pick.

Another pick for the Gamecocks came in from Action Network’s George Stuckey. Stuckey also believes that the garnet and black will cover the 2.5-point spread on Saturday.

Fox Sports’ AI pick (yes, that is artificial intelligence) picked the Gamecocks to win and cover, 26-21.

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If the national predictions hold, South Carolina would move to 5-7 on the season and stay at 1-7 in the SEC. That would lead the Gamecocks into the offseason with a losing record for the second time in three years.

There is still a small chance that USC could be chosen for a bowl game. Some years, 5-7 teams are needed to fill out the bowl selections. Those extra bowl participants earn their spots based on four-year Academic Progress Rate scores. It is unclear exactly where the Gamecocks sit in the four-year standings, but they were 12th in the SEC for the 2024-2025 school year. That won’t matter, though, unless Carolina wins on Saturday.

Kickoff for the 2025 Palmetto Bowl has been set for noon. SEC Network will carry the television broadcast, while the ESPN app streams that contest.

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