South Carolina Gamecocks vs. UCF Knights: Three keys and a prediction

Three Keys to Victory:

1. Lorenzo Nunez. We got a glimpse of how dynamic the true freshman can be in garbage time of last week's game. He's a speedy runner who just might be able to spark the ground game and open up the offense for a few effective play-action calls. He'll have plenty of opportunities this week. I'm excited to see what kinds of plays they draw up for him against the UCF as Spurrier attempt's to spread the ball around on offense.

2. LOL Defense. The defense has been very very bad for much of the season, but head-scratchingly competent in small bursts. They aren't All-Americans (Except Skai, maybe), but they should be better than they've played 80% of the time. Saturday's game is a downright gift for this defense. They won't likely face a worse opponent all year, and it's a golden opportunity to work out their issues and improve at game speed. If a strong performance can get this team back on track, this is their best chance.

3. Steady as she goes. Just like us fans, the football team and staff are hopefully taking a step back to assess the program's current situation and adjusting expectations accordingly. The season's not lost, even if a trip to Atlanta or a decent bowl in 2015 might be. Hell, a trip to Shreveport might be a stretch at this point. This was meant to be reassuring and wow I'm so sorry. South Carolina Football 2015: 'We might not have to travel to Shreveport, y'all! (because we didn't win six games)'

This should be a great opportunity to get back to basics, execute, and cobble together four quarters of effective football on both sides of the ball. We should expect things to go according to the Gamecocks' plan Saturday. Things probably won't, because football, but the team will still look a whole lot better than they did last weekend.

Prediction:

UCF--coming off a loss to Furman, and bitten by the injury bug as badly as just about anyone--is on track to be an FBS basement dweller in 2015. After a lackluster start to the season, this match up is just what the Gamecocks need to build some momentum and get a decisive victory.

South Carolina 38 - UCF 19