South Carolina, No. 19 Florida vying for Gator Bowl berth
South Carolina (5-3, 4-3 SEC) vs. No. 19 Florida (6-3, 4-3, No. 15 CFP), noon EST (ESPN).
Line: Florida by 6.
Series record: Florida leads 26-9-3.
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
Quite possibly a spot in the Gator Bowl on New Year's Eve. Bowl president Rick Catlett says the winner of the game would be the clear front-runner to represent the SEC in Jacksonville.
KEY MATCHUP
South Carolina WR Bryan Edwards vs. Florida CB C.J. Henderson. Edwards caught four passes for 109 yards and a touchdown last week against Mississippi and leads the Gamecocks with 556 yards receiving and six touchdowns. Henderson is Florida's best defender, probably the team's best player.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
South Carolina: LB Bryson Allen-William, who leads the team with 10 tackles for loss and five quarterback hurries. Florida's offensive line had one of its worst games last week against Missouri.
Florida: QB Feleipe Franks, who was benched last week for the third time in two seasons. Franks also lost his starting job two other times in 2017. Franks is back under center this week, and coach Dan Mullen had no other choice after backup Kyle Trask broke a foot in practice Wednesday.
FACTS & FIGURES
South Carolina has won five of the last eight in the series. ... Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp, who grew up in Gainesville and spent four years as Florida's head coach (2011-14), is 1-1 against his former team. ... South Carolina has dropped eight straight against ranked teams. Its last win against a ranked opponent came Oct. 29, 2016, against Tennessee. ... The Gamecocks are 3-0 this season when they win the turnover battle. ... Florida was outscored by a combined 40 points in consecutive losses to Georgia and Missouri. ... The Gators have just three sacks in their last three games.