South Carolina vs Illinois Preview & Picks
Illinois are tipped to cover the spread as Citrus Bowl underdogs.
South Carolina could be missing several key players due to opt-outs, so we like a battle-hardened Fighting Illini team who have covered consistently, both as an underdog and against ranked teams.
- Illinois are 3-1-0 ATS as single digit underdogs
- Illinois are 4-1-0 ATS against ranked teams this season
- The Under has hit in 4 of Illinois’ 5 games against ranked teams
- The Under has cashed in 3 of South Carolina’s 5 road games
Head To Head
- This is the first ever meeting between the two teams
South Carolina Form
South Carolina missed out on the College Football Playoffs, so they will settle for a place in the Citrus Bowl after a 9-3 regular season.
The damage to the Gamecocks was done early as they lost three of their first four conference games, albeit against ranked teams.
A 35-9 win over Oklahoma in early October breathed some life into their campaign, as it sparked a six-game win streak to close out the season.
South Carolina knocked off ranked SEC rivals in three straight games during this run, beating Texas A&M 44-20, Vanderbilt 28-7 and Missouri 34-30.
The Gamecocks closed out the season with a 17-14 victory at a Clemson team who went on to claim the ACC Championship.
Illinois Form
Illinois go into this Bowl Game having enjoyed a successful season that saw them go 9-3 and beat several ranked teams.
The Fighting Illini opened the season with four consecutive wins, beating Kansas 23-27 and Nebraska 31-24 during that run.
They cooled off over the next five games, losing three times, but two of those defeats came against top-10 opposition in Penn State and Oregon.
Illinois did upset Michigan, 21-7, during that sequence, and they ended the regular season in positive form thanks to three straight wins.
The Fighting Illini downed Michigan State in their final home game, 38-16, before heading out on the road to beat Rutgers 38-31 and Northwestern 38-28.