South Carolina brings the SEC's top rushing offense to Gainesville

By Brenden Martin

No. 16 Florida in the AP poll faces the SEC's top rushing offense Saturday at 12:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network. South Carolina averages 256.0 rushing yards a game, No. 1 in the SEC and No. 7 nationally, according to South Carolina's game notes. Florida comes in after a game on Oct. 3 in which it allowed 220 rushing yards and gained 42.

What happened at Missouri

Missouri rushed 36 times for 220 yards, 6.1 a carry, in a 45-17 win, according to ESPN's box score. Jamal Roberts had 24 carries for 211 yards, three touchdowns and an 80-yard run. ESPN's box score shows Florida with 25 rushing attempts for 42 yards, 1.7 a carry. Jadan Baugh had 12 carries for 13 yards.

Florida's first four opponents rushed for 412 yards on 120 carries, 3.4 a carry, according to ESPN's box scores: Florida Atlantic 120, Campbell 62, Auburn 102 and Ole Miss 128. Missouri was the exception at 6.1. With that game included, South Carolina's game notes list Florida's opponents at 126.4 rushing yards a game and 4.1 a carry. By GatorBait's calculation from the box scores, Missouri's 220 yards are 220 of the 632 Florida has allowed on the ground this season.

Two runners

South Carolina's game notes show Matt Fuller with 71 carries for 433 yards, 6.1 a carry and five touchdowns. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers has 391 rushing yards and leads the SEC at 7.4 a carry, No. 6 nationally. By GatorBait's calculation from those figures, the two account for 824 of South Carolina's 1,280 rushing yards, about 64%. The notes also say Fuller has scored a rushing touchdown in all five games.

South Carolina has four games of 200 or more rushing yards, according to the game notes, one of nine FBS teams to do that this season. ESPN's box scores show 216 yards on 40 carries at Alabama, whose run defense entered No. 5 nationally at 53.0 yards a game, according to the notes. Against Kentucky on Oct. 3, South Carolina ran 37 times for 232 yards, and Sellers had 147 of them on 17 carries. The notes list the Gamecocks at 6.5 yards a carry, No. 2 nationally behind only UCLA.

Florida's side

South Carolina's game notes list Florida at 216.4 rushing yards a game and 5.4 a carry this season. By GatorBait's calculation from ESPN's box scores, the Gators ran for 1,040 yards on 177 carries, 5.9 a carry, in their first four games. Then came the 42 yards at Missouri, where ESPN shows Eric Singleton Jr. at minus-7 yards on one carry and Aaron Philo at 3 yards on seven.

Time of possession is one more number to watch. South Carolina's game notes list Florida at 32:55 a game this season and South Carolina at 29:16. At Missouri, ESPN's box score has Florida with the ball for 28:20 and the Tigers for 31:40.

South Carolina's opponents average 100.4 rushing yards a game, according to the game notes. Florida will want to show Missouri was an exception on defense, and that its own 5.4 a carry looks like the earlier games and not the Missouri one.