South Carolina Gamecocks vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, Odds and Picks for Tuesday, 12/31/24

The South Carolina Gamecocks (9-3) will have an opportunity to win 10 games for the first time since 2013 when they meet the Illinois Fighting Illini (9-3) in the Citrus Bowl at Camping World Stadium in Orlando on New Years Eve. The Gamecocks were one of the hottest teams in the nation down the stretch, winning 6 straight games following their back-to-back losses to Ole Miss and Alabama in early October. Illinois was very good in the final half of the season as well, winning 5 of its last 7 games. However, it’s worth mentioning that only 2 of those wins were against teams 6-6 or better (Michigan and Rutgers), whereas all of South Carolina’s power conference wins down the stretch were against teams that finished .500 or better. The Gamecocks will be without star DE Kyle Kennard and stud RB Raheim Sanders as they prepare for the NFL draft, but they should be near full strength outside of those pieces. Illinois will be without its leading wide receiver in Pat Bryant, but like South Carolina, the Illini should be near full strength otherwise. 

Despite the absence of Kennard, I expect Dylan Stewart and the Gamecocks to get consistent pressure on Luke Altmyer, who will be playing behind an offensive line that isn’t particularly strong in pass protection. That doesn’t bode well for the Illinois offense, as Altmyer hasn’t been good under pressure. Per PFF, he has had 9 turnover-worthy plays and completes less than 47% of his passes when under pressure, in addition to carrying about a 20% pressure-to-sack rate. When the Gamecocks have the ball, look for LaNorris Sellers to create big plays with his legs against a defense that has not seen a quarterback quite with his skillset. The Gamecocks were 13th nationally in points per scoring opportunity over the last 5 weeks of the season, and that success in scoring situations should be repeatable against an Illinois defense that was 105th in finishing drives in that same span – as well as 91st in opposing red zone scoring percentage. For what it’s worth, the Gamecocks were equally as good defensively in opposing scoring situations towards the end of the season, allowing an average of 2.85 points per trip inside the 40-yard line – good for 9th nationally since Week 9. Look for South Carolina to win this one by double digits. 

South Carolina vs Illinois prediction: South Carolina Gamecocks -9.5 (-110) at the time of publishing. Playable to -10 (-110). 

Now you can bet any of our South Carolina vs Illinois predictions at FanDuel Sportsbook, which has a great new-customer offer to take advantage of. If you sign up for FanDuel right now, you earn a welcome bonus worth up to $250 if your first wager is a winner! Use this link 🔗 to join FanDuel right now and learn more.