South Carolina versus Mississippi State is easily the most underrated game of the Week 3 slate, and it’s not particularly close. Mississippi State travels to South Carolina in a matchup featuring two freaks of nature at the quarterback position going head-to-head.

The winner of this game solidifies themselves as, at the bare minimum, a huge threat to the rest of the SEC in terms of playing the spoiler role.

I don’t think either of these programs is capable of winning the SEC. But both can absolutely take you out of college football playoff contention, and that makes this game matter far more than people are giving it credit for.

Kamario Taylor and the Bulldogs seem like everyone’s favorite, except for me

Unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock, Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor is one of the best young players in the entire sport. The Bulldogs just walked into Minnesota with P.J. Fleck and dominated, and they look like a team capable of putting up points on virtually anybody.

I’m making a prediction right now: a lot of people are going to be picking Mississippi State in this game. They see the result the Bulldogs had against a Big Ten program in Minnesota, and they’re going to assume the Bulldogs can put up points on anyone, and that South Carolina is no good.

On the contrary, I’m picking South Carolina to win this game.

Why the Gamecocks take this one

There are a couple different factors at play that bake into a South Carolina win. To start, the Gamecocks have a three-headed monster of Nyck Harbor, Dylan Stewart, and LaNorris Sellers. That’s a lot to like on their side, and with a couple years under our belt watching what Sellers could look like, the new offense gives South Carolina a ceiling it hasn’t had in a while.

I think South Carolina’s secondary is more equipped to handle that wide choice system we see from Mississippi State and contain Kamario Taylor along with the speed on the outside. Truthfully, Minnesota’s secondary is just outright not good. The Golden Gophers might have a good enough front seven, but if you can’t keep up with the speed on the outside, it frankly won’t matter. South Carolina can.

I also think offensively, the Gamecocks are going to exploit some weak spots for a Mississippi State program that has to travel on the road once again. And the last piece of context I’ll highlight: South Carolina hasn’t had to show any of their playbook yet. I think that is a huge piece to bake into why the Gamecocks win this football game.

Everything I look at points to South Carolina winning this game, so I’m confidently picking the Gamecocks. But if I’m wrong, get ready for the Kamario Taylor Heisman campaign, because it’s off to the races at that point.