UNC Bowl Game: UNC vs South Carolina injury report, odds, how to watch
The North Carolina Tar Heels face off with the South Carolina Gamecocks on Thursday in the 2021 Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
The 6-6 North Carolina football program will take the field late Thursday morning for a matchup with the 6-6 South Carolina Gamecocks in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. As their records show, neither team had the kind of season they’d hoped to, finishing in the bottom half of their respective conferences.
But that doesn’t mean that nothing’s on the line for the flagship schools from bordering states.
Not only will Thursday’s bowl game ultimately determine which program will end their 2021 campaign with a winning record and which one will finish below .500, but it could be the last time we see standout junior quarterback Sam Howell in a college stadium.
Howell hasn’t made his decision official yet, but it’s widely assumed that he’ll pass on his final year of college eligibility and begin preparing for the 2022 NFL Draft following his graduation from the school in December.
The end of this season and the beginning of next also makes way for a tremendous incoming freshman class for the Tar Heels that ranks eighth in the nation and ahead of a number of the usual programs that recruit at the highest level year in and year out.
So, while this isn’t anywhere near the level of excitement or importance of the College Football Playoff or even a New Year’s Six bowl game, there are things on the line and things to look forward to.
UNC vs. South Carolina Injury Report
The Tar Heels are surprisingly healthy for this time of the season and have no significant injuries or illnesses to report. The Gamecocks, on the other hand, have at least 10 players currently listed as being out indefinitely, out for the season or questionable to play in Thursday’s bowl game against North Carolina.
Truth be told, the teams involved in the game and the fans of those teams will consider it a blessing if the game is simply played amid a slew of cancellations due to complications surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
UNC vs. South Carolina Odds: Spread, Over/Under & Betting Pick
WynnBET’s college football odds list the Tar Heels as 11-point favorites against the Gamecocks when the teams face off at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The money line has South Carolina at +300 and North Carolina at -380, while the over/under is set at 58.
North Carolina has had an up-and-down season, one that’s been particularly hard to predict. Just when we think we’ve seen the Tar Heels turn a corner in one game, they come out and look lost and lackadaisical in the next.
They’ve got a number of problems, many of which never seem to have been addressed throughout the course of the season. They begin on the defensive side of the football, as the Tar Heels surrendered 379 yards of offense and nearly 32 points per game to their 12 opponents this season.
Similar things can be said of the Gamecocks, though, as they’ve failed to win or lose consecutive games since Week 4 of the season. They’ve surrendered 40 or more points on three occasions this season and got shut out 30-0 by the Clemson Tigers in their final game of the regular season.
Three Gamecock quarterbacks have attempted at least 89 passes on the season, with sophomore Luke Doty throwing a team-high 143. He’s also got a team-high 86 completions, though he’s totaled fewer touchdowns and has a lower QB rating than either of the other two. Needless to say, there are plenty of question marks within the South Carolina football program.
All told, I like the Tar Heels to cover the 11-point spread and for the two teams to combine for more than the 58-point over/under.
What Channel is the UNC Game On?
The Tar Heels’ game against the Gamecocks will be broadcast live at 11:30 a.m. EST on ESPN.
UNC vs. South Carolina Live Stream
The Duke’s Mayo Bowl can also be streamed live on Fubo TV.
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Check back with Keeping It Heel for complete coverage of the Duke’s Mayo Bowl and all the latest on the UNC football program.