College Football Week 13 Predictions: Gamecocks Will Take Down Clemson Tigers

In arguably the best matchup of the weekend, with the exception of a No. 1 LSU and No. 3 Arkansas meeting, the No. 12 South Carolina Gamecocks will take it to the No. 17 Clemson Tigers in what will be one of the more solid wins for the team on the season.

For one, the Gamecocks play this game in a tough environment at home that will in turn be a huge advantage for them in this football game.

The other big factor for the Gamecocks will be the fact that Clemson simply has played poorly as of late. This Tigers team is anything but the team that started the season 9-0 and handily beat three ranked opponents back-to-back-to-back midway through the season (Auburn, Florida State, Virginia Tech).

The Tigers have lost two of their three football games, with crushing losses both at Georgia Tech and North Carolina State. The game against North Carolina State was arguably the worst game the team has played all season, losing 37-13 in a blowout loss to a 5-5 team. The Tigers were held to just 34 yards rushing in the game.

The other factor, as indicated by the rushing yards from the NC State loss, is that the offensive line has suffered from injury as of late. Not to mention, this Gamecocks defense is red hot this season when it comes to putting pressure on offenses. The Gamecocks have forced 29 turnovers on the season.

It doesn't help that, as of late, Clemson has turned the ball over big time. In the past three weeks, the Tigers have turned the football over 11 times.

Be sure that South Carolina has studied game tape and will be ready to make plays from the start.

The final factor is simply how efficient the Gamecocks have played at home all season. With the exception of a loss at Auburn, the Gamecocks have been playing strong at home and boast an home record of 6-1. The team has won its last three home games.

Expect these Gamecocks to continue rolling at home, putting them at 10-2 to finish out the season.