It’s a big week for the Kentucky Wildcats, who will host South Carolina at 3:30 PM ET today in the SEC opener for both programs.

The Gamecocks come into the game with a 1-0 record, but their win over Old Dominion was anything but impressive. Kentucky is currently an 8.5-point favorite, and a victory is crucial for setting up a successful season and potentially hosting College GameDay for the first time since 2007.

Here are the five keys to victory for the Cats this weekend:

1. Offensive Line Play

The offensive line struggled against Southern Miss last weekend, though their opponent did feature a potential NFL Draft pick on their defensive line. South Carolina, however, boasts two future draft picks: Dylan Stewart, a true freshman and former 5-star recruit who forced a fumble last weekend, and Kyle Kennard, who also forced a fumble in the red zone against ODU. For Kentucky to succeed, the offensive line—especially Gerald Mincey and Marques Cox—needs to deliver a strong performance.

2. Put Pressure on the Freshman QB

LaNorris Sellers, a redshirt freshman quarterback, appeared overwhelmed in the pocket against ODU. With Kentucky’s defensive line strength, this game is huge for J.J. Weaver and Deone Walker. I expect that Kentucky’s defense will apply significant pressure, potentially leading to a pick-six. Brad White is one of the greatest defensive minds in College Football, and this will show that off to the country.

3. Consistency from the Run Game

With Ohio State transfer Chip Trayanum sidelined, Demi Sumo-Karngbaye, Jason Patterson, and Jamarion Wilcox will carry the load. Wilcox, in particular, showed promise last weekend and will need to continue his strong performance to support the offense.

4. Win the Special Teams Battle

Kentucky struggled with punting last season, but Wilson Berry is reported to have improved significantly. South Carolina has a history of solid special teams play, including a punt return touchdown last season. Kentucky must aim for touchbacks on kickoffs, make field goals, and provide good field position for their defense. If they can average 40+ yards per punt and pin South Carolina’s offense inside their 20-yard line, Kentucky will gain a substantial advantage.

5. Make Explosive Plays

Bush Hamdan demonstrated a willingness to stretch the field in game one, with Brock Vandagriff throwing for 169 yards in just 36 minutes of play. With playmakers like Barion Brown, Dane Key, and Ja’Mori Maclin, Kentucky has the potential for explosive plays. I expect Vandagriff to throw for over 300 yards and rush for over 50 yards in this game.

In summary, I fully expect Kentucky to have a strong performance this weekend. They should apply pressure to the freshman quarterback, protect Vandagriff, and make plenty of explosive plays to secure a big win.

Score Prediction: Kentucky 38, South Caroline 14

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Sports betting apps like Prize Picks, DraftKings, and FanDuel have made it easy for bettors in 38 states, including North Carolina, to bet anywhere like your car.

But if you were to drive south and cross over into the Palmetto state—you wouldn’t be able to make a bet on anything. One South Carolina lawmaker is hoping to change that with another push to legalize sports gambling.

“It’s one of those bills that is a revenue generator for the state, a very significant source of revenue,” says Dorchester Republican representative Chris Murphy.

This would be the third attempt at legalizing betting in South Carolina. Murphy says his reason for bringing it back up—money and momentum. He believes his college and professional sports gambling bill would generate at least $100 million in revenue for the state—80% of that would go to the general state fund.

“The fact of the matter is, it’s taking place right now illegally,” Murphy says.

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Murphy’s bill will mirror North Carolina and Tennessee, two recent states to come into the gambling world.

Of the 38 states participating in the gambling world, they’ve brought in more than 2.5 billion dollars in tax revenue from an industry that generates $11 billion in revenue. Regardless, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster does not support any sports gambling bill.

“It’s interesting to note that when North Carolina’s legislation went live,  there were over a million bets, attempted to be placed in South Carolina on the North Carolina apps. So it just shows you that there that it is happening,” Murphy said.

Right now, bettors can legally bet on fantasy football on apps in South Carolina. Murphy still plans to add a sports gaming component and a fantasy sports component to the legislation.

“They came to me and wanted to be included in the legislation that I’ve been proposing because they want to be regulated and they want to keep the bad actors out,” Murphy said.

Drew Pechulonis supports the initiative, even writing a dissertation for a class at the University of South Carolina on the subject. In his paper, he suggests implementing a tax on gaming companies to help push the bill across the finish line.

“Just to encourage competition. The last thing that politicians want to do is raise taxes on their constituents. And so, they’re always looking for new revenue streams. South Carolina has a huge pension fund deficit. They’re pretty far behind on education in the country. The infrastructure is not as good as the surrounding states. It’s important for them to start looking at some other options to increase their tax revenue,” said Pechulonis.

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The College Football National Championship Trophy is on its tour across the country during college football season. One of its stops was in Charlotte at the Walmart on Pineville Matthews Road, just a few miles from the South Carolina border.

Shoppers had the opportunity to take pictures with the national championship trophy and talk about what sports betting has been like since North Carolina adopted gambling. It’d help college and professional football fans like these.

“Once everybody started doing it, I was kind of like ‘Hey, this is something fun to do.’ And definitely I know people who were on vacation in South Carolina and couldn’t get even though they’re from North Carolina while they were over there and they felt like they were missing out. And so it’s just something fun to be a part of. I’m betting on it for this week at Duke’s Mayo Classic and for NC State to win,” said North Carolina State and UNC Charlotte Alumuna Annie Turk.

Murphy says there won’t be a horse racing component to his bill. There will be a piece in the bill that sets aside money to help those who may have gambling addiction issues.

He plans to file the bill after the election.

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A lawyer representing the first death row inmate likely to be executed in South Carolina since 2011 has decided that he should die by lethal injection after the prisoner refused to choose between three different killing methods, saying that to do so would be “akin to suicide”.

Freddie Owens is now set to be executed using a fatal dose of the sedative pentobarbital. The prisoner had been given until Friday to decide between the three execution methods: lethal injection, the electric chair and the firing squad.

Owens had joined other death row inmates in objecting to both the electric chair and firing squad as cruel and unusual forms of punishment banned under the US constitution. He had also objected to signing the form that would decide between the three techniques on grounds that to do so would mean he were participating in his own killing – equivalent to suicide, he said, which is forbidden by his Muslim faith.

In the absence of a decision from the prisoner himself, Owens’ defense lawyer, Emily Paavola, to whom he had granted power of attorney, stepped in. She knew that if she failed to meet the Friday deadline, South Carolina would by default kill her client by electrocution; in that invidious position, she opted instead for lethal injection.

In a statement, Paavola said: “I have known Mr Owens for 15 years. Under the circumstances, and in light of the information currently available to me, I made the best decision I felt I could make on his behalf.”

Owens was sentenced to capital punishment for the 1999 murder of a petrol station worker, Irene Graves, during a string of robberies. He is the first of five prisoners who have exhausted all their appeals and now face execution after a period of 13 years in which the state’s death chamber has gone unused.

Much of that delay was caused by the difficulty South Carolina has had in procuring lethal injection drugs, given a global boycott by pharmaceutical companies unhappy with their medical products being used to kill people. The state has adopted tight secrecy laws that prevent the public from knowing where it is obtaining its lethal drugs.

Owens’ defense team is now hoping that it can delay the pending execution through last-ditch legal challenges. The lawyers are protesting that the state has provided insufficient information about the quality of the pentobarbital it plans to use, arguing that there could be dire consequences for the prisoner should the drug be faulty or ineffective.

His attorneys are also asking for the execution to be postponed to give more time for new evidence to be considered in his case. In a motion lodged with the state’s supreme court, they argue that a plea deal that was offered to Owens’ co-defendant has come to light that puts his conviction in doubt.

Steven Golden, Owens’ friend who was involved in the robbery, was the only eyewitness to the murder, and there is no other forensic evidence. The motion says that Golden was offered a plea deal whereby he would avoid the death penalty or life in prison without parole if he testified against his friend – a crucial detail that was withheld from Owens’ lawyers at trial.