SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS FOOTBALL

Sitting at 1-3 and winless in the SEC, the Gamecocks find themselves in another must-win game this week.

South Carolina hosts Kentucky (2-2, 0-2 SEC) at 7:30 p.m. on the SEC Network and will attempt to end a five-game losing streak to the Wildcats.

They come in on a two-game losing streak and are in desperate need of something good to happen to them before all bowl game homes start to slip away.

Before South Carolina tries to end the streak, here are five things to watch Saturday night at Williams-Brice.

Can the offensive line hold up?

Last week was probably the toughest performance of the year coming out of Missouri with Donell Stanley saying communication was an issue with Jordan Rhodes and Jovaughn Gwyn making their first road starts.

Also see: How Javon Kinlaw and Bryan Edwards became so dominant

They've been focused a lot on getting communication right for Saturday's game, and it'll be imperative to do it.

Coming home to a pro-South Carolina crowd will help since it'll be quieter on offense, and the Gamecocks will need to be better up front to establish any kind of offensive flow.

What will the game plan look like?

Speaking of offensive flow, Saturday's game plan will likely need to be better than last week's against Missouri if they want to score enough points to beat the Wildcats for the first time since 2013.

Will Muschamp talked about calling more solely run plays and deviating some from the RPO-based system the Gamecocks run with Bryan McClendon at the helm.

For as much as Muschamp talked about running the ball more throughout the week, it'll be interesting to see how much the Gamecocks come out and try to establish something on the ground with Rico Dowdle and Tavien Feaster.

Also see: Breaking down the keys to victory Saturday

Hilinski's bounce back

Whether it was play calling, his sore elbow or something Missouri was doing, last week was Hilinski's worst outing in three starts at South Carolina, going 13-for-30 with 166 yards passing.

His elbow is fine now and Muschamp said on his call-in show Hilinski took his standard first-team reps leading up to Saturday's game. Getting him back to his old self will be pretty important if the Gamecocks fall behind and need to throw the ball more downfield.

Will the defense continue to progress?

It wasn't all perfect against Missouri, but the Gamecock defense looked pretty good in the first half and all right in the second after getting gassed the first 30 minutes.

They'd limit the Tigers to just 3.6 yards per carry and sack Kelly Bryant twice. This week they're playing a Kentucky team that's averaging almost 37 rushing attempts per game and 4.8 yards per carry.

Saturday is a big measuring stick for South Carolina's run defense to see how far it's come since the opener against North Carolina.

Spinning at safety

The Gamecocks were dealt a pretty big blow at the safety position in terms of depth with Jamyest Williams entering the transfer portal, leaving just a handful of able bodies to play back there.

Also see: Full recap from Will Muschamp's call-in show

RJ Roderick and J.T. Ibe are the two likely starters but after that, it's something to watch to see who the Gamecocks trot out there.

Jammie Robinson is the team's third option at safety with Israel Mukuamu No. 4. If Mukuamu has to go back there, it means the Gamecocks will have to play a converted running back in AJ Turner or a true freshman (Cam Smith or Johnny Dixon) at corner.

Jamel Cook could also see time at safety, although Muschamp hasn't mentioned him when discussing the rotation.