Obviously, there is disappointment and frustration around the program and anger from the fan base. Everyone knew going into this season that South Carolina would be facing one of the most difficult schedules in the country. This was thought of as Will Muschamp's best team heading into 2019, and despite this team showing it can play up to competition at times (a road win over Georgia, a close contest against a good Florida team), it's been a year filled with all kinds of setbacks. Yes, injuries have played a role, and the schedule is undoubtedly difficult to navigate even for a really good and healthy football team. Yet this is not where anyone wants to be, and that's made it difficult on folks around Columbia. There's a lot of talk with the season near its end about how to improve things, and the last few weeks could clear up the direction.

Feaster is not expected to play in this contest; Rico Dowdle had an excellent start to the season before going down with an injury that kept him out a while. He returned last week against Appalachian State and was ineffective, although South Carolina's did nothing in the run game regardless. Dowdle did not appear 100% in that game; Kevin Harris and Deshaun Fenwick are expected to factor in at running back as well. South Carolina may have to pass the football more, but that has not been a winning formula for the team. USC has to find a way to run the ball more effectively, which is going to be a key in this game.

There have been so many issues that one would have to go game by game to cover all of them. Against Missouri, it was Ryan Hilinski's first road start at quarterback and he was battling an elbow injury. He was erratic, and Missouri allowed nothing in the running game. The Tigers also had two defensive scores in that game, one of which was a pick six as South Carolina was driving for a possible touchdown in the red zone. Against Tennessee, the Gamecocks' defensive line was neutralized because the Vols opted to max protect and destroyed South Carolina in man-to-man plays through the air. USC also gave up two special teams touchdowns.

The defense has had some poor moments to be sure (two 90-yard drives late in the UNC game, a shock to everyone), the Alabama contest (the Tide receivers have hurt just about everyone), the Tennessee game in coverage, and Florida made plays (although two of the Gators' touchdowns featured clear penalties that were uncalled).

Yet this is a group that has still been the strength of the team overall. Kinlaw's had a very good year, and the front seven is playing much better, particularly against the run this season. It seems like, with the exception of the Tennessee game, that this is a group that's played better from the Kentucky contest onwards. It would be hard to say the group has met expectations overall because of some of the glaring issues, but the team has also played much better than anticipated depending on the game - see Georgia, for instance.

Given the way South Carolina is playing right now, it would be difficult to pick the Gamecocks, especially on the road against a quality opponent. The offense has had difficulty staying on the field and scoring, and Texas A&M's team strength appears to be its defense. With an offense struggling to move the ball and A&M's having a weaponized punter that will give South Carolina poor field position to operate from, that makes it a difficult proposition.It's hard to envision South Carolina getting a combination of scoring enough points, getting enough defensive stops, and perhaps forcing a turnover or two.