Check out today's entry of "Inside the Chart" by Andy Demetra. You can check out the excerpt below and the full post here.

More on Wounded Warriors: Saturday's Wounded Warrior game holds extra meaning for Gamecock middle linebacker Rodney Paulk. His father, Leonard, spent 22 years in the military, reaching the rank of First Sergeant. Paulk was born in Savannah, Ga., and befitting a military brat upbringing, he lived in Columbus, Ga. (where his younger brother Leonard III was born), Hawaii, North Carolina, and the Mojave desert of California - literally criss-crossing the country four times - before moving to Columbia in the ninth grade. Rodney told me it took his family four days to drive from Ft. Irwin in California to their new home in Columbia.

A sixth-year senior, Paulk has graduated with a degree in one of the more unusual disciplines at South Carolina: marine science. This week, Paulk finally satisfied my curiosity on why he chose marine science as his major. His parents grew up in Miami, and when they'd visit their relatives, they'd always check out the wildlife in Florida. That, and a lifelong love of animals, spurred Paulk to his major. The years of study have served him well - few possess more animal instincts on the field than Paulk.

Sixth-year senior Rodney Paulk has a special connection to Saturday's Wounded Warrior game.

Family Tradition: It seems poetic that a star quarterback would raise a wide receiver son. Junior Emory Blake, the Tigers' top wideout, is the son of former East Carolina quarterback and 14-year NFL veteran Jeff Blake. The soft-handed Blake has caught a touchdown pass in seven consecutive games, the second-longest streak by an Auburn receiver in school history. If past is any prologue, the Gamecocks may torment the Blake family again. Jeff Blake played at Williams-Brice Stadium twice, losing both games by a combined score of 84-21. His numbers don't paint a rosy picture:

Jeff Blake passing numbers at Williams-Brice Stadium

In addition, the man who schemed against Jeff Blake in those blowout wins will try to do the same against his son. Brad Lawing, in his first tour of duty with the Gamecocks, coached the defensive line in both of those wins.

The Gamecocks will try to do to Auburn WR Emory Blake what they did to his father, former ECU QB and NFL veteran Jeff Blake.

Matchup to Watch: Though quiet last week (2 rec., 35 yds.), the sight of a Commodore tri-corner hat sends Alshon Jeffery into a froth. Over the last two seasons, Jeffery has the two highest receiving-yard games by an FBS opponent against the Vandy defense - by a wide margin.

Elon's Aaron Mellette caught 180 yards in the Commodores' season opener, but they were mostly inconsequential in a 45-14 Vanderbilt blowout.

Jeffery will likely oppose senior cornerback Casey Hayward, who finished third in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) with 17 pass deflections in 2010. If Vanderbilt blitzes as persistently as it did in its first three games, that could leave Jeffery in single-man coverages.

Did You Know Pt. I: Vanderbilt weakside linebacker Tristan Strong is the nephew of former Gamecocks offensive linemen Tami Tarbush ('75-77) and Ricky Payne ('74-75, '77). Tarbush and Payne lined up alongside each other at "quick guard" and "quick tackle" in Jim Carlen's triple-option offense. Tarbush married Payne's sister, meaning the Gamecocks had in-laws who played side-by-side on the O-Line. Strong's mother is Ricky Payne's sister.

No Give-and-Takes: The Gamecocks do not want some cheeky franchise owner in the West End to post a similar sign if South Carolina coughs it up against the Commodores. Vanderbilt's 3-0 record has come off a torrent of turnovers - the `Dores lead the SEC with a +6 turnover margin and lead the nation with 10 interceptions. The Commodores defense has scored as many touchdowns (3) as it has allowed (3).

That play has caught the attention of Steve Spurrier. "All 11 of their players are active and play well," Spurrier said this week. "They have good athletes back there. They play their assignments. When they get into a zone, they're spread out nicely across the field. They don't mess up. I'm impressed watching them play." Can the Gamecocks - who have been vexed by points off turnovers this season - cut off the spigot on Saturday?

Stat Showdown of the Week: They've had their stumbles - a Connor Shaw fumble, a goal-line interception by Stephen Garcia, a failed 4th-and-2 - but when the Gamecocks have crossed into the red zone, they've punched it home. South Carolina has 10 red zone touchdowns this year, compared to 0 red zone field goals. Translation: the Gamecocks' drives haven't stalled out, forcing them to settle for chip-shot field goals. Only Northern Illinois, San Diego State, Army, and Northwestern have as many red-zone TD's without a red-zone field goal.

They now face a Vanderbilt team that has allowed 1 red zone touchdown in 5 trips, a 20% rate that ranks 5th in the nation. Can the Commodores keep it close by forcing the Gamecocks to trade "7's" for "3's"?

Did You Know Pt. II: Vanderbilt defensive tackle Rob Lohr leads the Commodores with 5.0 Tackles for Loss (TFL). He may also be the only player South Carolina will face this year who was home-schooled.

Go "Inside the Chart" with Andy Demetra as he takes a look at the match-up with Vanderbilt this week in preparation for their Gamecock IMG Sports Network broadcast.

These aren't your father's Commodores.

Heck, these aren't even your older brother's Commodores.

Head coach James Franklin has engineered a rapid turnaround in his first season at Vanderbilt, already surpassing the Commodores' win total from 2010 (2-10). When he hasn't whipped up the masses for bowling trips, Franklin has whipped a formerly downtrodden outfit into a team that plays with energy, fire, and - clutch the pearls - swagger. It might even cause this woebegone Vanderbilt fan to change the name of his blog. Vandy's 30-7 beatdown of Ole Miss Saturday was its largest margin of victory in an SEC game since 1971. The Commodores lead the nation with 10 interceptions, three of which they've returned for touchdowns. With a lineup populated by redshirt upperclassmen, the Commodores have shown they aren't a team to be taken lightly. Steve Spurrier needs no reminder of that: though 4-2 against Vanderbilt as head coach of South Carolina, his average margin of victory is a mere 4.2 points.

First-year head coach James Franklin has Vanderbilt playing inspired.

After a 3-0 start, the Commodores will try to (Franklin) mint a win over the Gamecocks. South Carolina will try for the complete game that has eluded them this season. Your father, your older brother, and the rest of the family will be watching.

More notes from our broadcast prep:

Third's The Word: Franklin had a built-in advantage when he arrived at Vandy after a stint as offensive coordinator at Maryland: Vanderbilt returned 21 starters, tops among Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. Thick on experience, they've proven quick studies in Franklin's system.

However, Vanderbilt also has some statistics that defy gravity:

Columbia, SC                                Channel 27
Florence, SC                                 Channel 28
Myrtle Beach, SC                          Channel 26
Summerville(Charleston), SC     Channel 27

Pleading the Third: There's clutch, there's extremely clutch, and there's Alshon Jeffery clutch. Of his 10 catches this season, 9 have gone for a first down or touchdown. Jeffery's greatest attributes - his strength, his body control, his airborne dominance - come together in devastating harmony on third downs. Since his breakthrough game against Kentucky in 2009, Jeffery has caught a 3rd- or 4th-down pass that gave Carolina a first down in 23 of his last 24 games. 

Jeffery has made some phenomenal catches to move the chains, but the Gamecocks need other receivers to step up and become threats. While Jeffery has 9 catches for first downs or touchdowns, his teammates only have 3 combined (2 Sanders, 1 Lattimore). Also, take a look at how many 3rd-down catches Jeffery has made to extend a drive, compared to his teammates, over the last two seasons:

Alshon Jeffery has caught a 3rd- or 4th-down pass that gave Carolina a first down in 23 of the last 24 games.

Catches that have resulted in a first down (any down):

% of 3rd- or 4th-down passing plays that resulted in 1st down:

Columbia, SC                                Channel 26
Florence, SC                                 Channel 29
Myrtle Beach, SC                          Channel 25
Summerville (Charleston), SC     Channel 26

"Never one for aesthetics or the box score, Garcia has always just gotten the job done for Spurrier. He got the job done last year vs. Alabama when the Gamecocks shocked the Crimson Tide 35-21 in Columbia. He got the job done down the stretch last season with a gutsy performance with an SEC East title on the line in The Swamp. And he got the job done Saturday evening, with the weekend's biggest upset quite legitimately staring his squad of bigger-name superstars square in the face. Having completed only seven passes all evening -- to only four different receivers -- Garcia didn't exactly fill it up on the stat sheet.

But, after entering the game with his Gamecocks in a 17-0 hole, Garcia quickly had South Carolina up 42-21 entering the fourth quarter."

If there's anyone who can offer some insight on our East Carolina opponent, it's Jeff Charles, the Pirates' play-by-play announcer for 24 years now. He also knows the South Carolina program pretty well, having watched several match-ups over the years and becoming good friends with Bob Fulton while working at Furman in the early 1980's.

Going into the game, I asked Jeff to share his thoughts on keys to the game and East Carolina players to keep an eye. Check out some of what he had to say below and be on the lookout during the game!

KEYS TO THE GAME:

-Quality Depth:
Jeff says: "When you get into the second half vs. an SEC team like South Carolina, if you're ECU you have to be aware of the depth situation wearing you down. South Carolina has more quality players than ECU does at most positions. Often times you'll see a team like ECU play a really good half or even into the 3rd quarter against a team like south Carolina, hang right in there, but 4th quarter comes and they get worn out a little bit, defense has been out on the field too long and the game just swings the other way. The Pirates are going to have to play very well, play sound football, not making mistakes in coverages and letting guys behind them for big gains and passes."

PIRATES TO WATCH:

Dominique Davis - QB #4 - 6-3, 210 lbs.
-Accounted for 46 of the Pirates' 60 offensive TD's last year, ranking second behind only Auburn's Cam Newtown for the top point producer in the country. He led the country in completions per game and was among the top QB's in the country in several other statistical categories.

Jeff says: "Dominique Davis is a very fine quarterback. I think he'll have a chance to get a good look next year in the NFL.  And he's the trigger guy, he's the most important guy out there and he's back for his senior season.  So if you're a Pirate fan, you've got to feel good about that."

Reggie Bullock - RB #28 - 5-9, 176 lbs.
-First game as a Pirate, after transferring from Arizona Western Community College where he was the NJCAA Player of the Year last season after leading the NJCAA in rushing yards, yards per game, rushing touchdowns, and scoring.

Jeff says: "He is not a really big guy, but he is extremely quick so they'll try and get the ball in his hands to start the game.  He's a guy that the Pirates are hoping is going to be a big part of the offense this year."

Lance Lewis - WR  #1 - 6-3, 209 lbs.
-Lewis set the ECU single-season record with 14 touchdown receptions last season. He is a pre-season all-conference selection for Conference USA and on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List. Much like the Gamecock who wears #1, Lewis is the Pirates top "go-to" receiver.

Jeff says: "He'll be basically playing in his hometown. He is from Concord, North Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte.  Lance had 89 catches last year and he'll be a big part of the offense on Saturday and also for this year, we're hoping."

Bradley Jacobs - SS #3 - 5-10, 210 lbs.
-ECU's defensive back of the year in 2010 and a candidate for Conference USA honors this season

Jeff says: "He's a headhunter. He's a big hitter back there in the back end of their defense. He had a really good year last year."