Feels So Good
Two years ago, a 26-20 loss to Arkansas at Williams-Brice stadium caused head coach Steve Spurrier’s frustrations to spill over.
“That’s why we’re losers around here,” Spurrier said after watching his team commit several costly mistakes against the Razorbacks. “We don’t do the little things right.”
Last year in Fayetteville it got even worse – the Gamecocks didn’t do anything right.
Arkansas rolled up an unheard of 541 rushing yards against the South Carolina defense that year -including an SEC-record 323 yards from star running back Darren McFadden, the Heisman Trophy runner-up. Second-string tailback Felix Jones added 163 yards and three touchdowns.
Those painful memories prompted Spurrier to bring in new defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson, who has turned South Carolina’s once-porous defense into the SEC’s elite unit, a fast, hard-hitting squad that excels at defending both the run and the pass.
In fact, with Spurrier’s “Cock-n-Misfire” offense sputtering for most of the season, it has been Johnson’s defense that has carried the load.
Yesterday, however, Spurrier’s offense put up some decent numbers for a change – including hitting the 30-point mark for just the third time this season.
Alternating quarterbacks Chris Smelley and Stephen Garcia throughout the game, Spurrier got just enough production out of the rotating signal-callers to move his team to 7-3 (4-3 SEC) on the season and have at least a shot at New Year’s Day bowl game.
Neither quarterback was particularly impressive, but it was enough for a 34-21 win – equaling the most points Carolina has scored in a game all year.
Smelley hit on 9 of 19 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown. Garcia, meanwhile, hit on 4 of 11 throws for 71 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also ran for a 14-yard score.
After the game, Spurrier said he went with the rotating QB approach because neither Smelley nor Garcia had earned the job, and because it facilitated play-calling and off-field instruction.
“Stephen can’t get the signals, anyway,” Spurrier said of Garcia.
Next week, South Carolina heads to “The Swamp” in Gainesville for a showdown with Florida, which is currently the hottest team in all of college football.
The Gators stomped Vanderbilt 42-14 last night, clinching the SEC East title and setting up a Dec. 6 showdown against No. 1 Alabama in the SEC Championship game.
Since losing to Ole Miss two months ago, Florida has reeled off five blowout wins in a row, outscoring its opponents 243-57 over that stretch.
And the Gators haven’t been playing patsies, either – chomping Top Ten opponents LSU and Georgia by a combined score of 100-31.
For some great pics from yesterday’s game, click on any of the high resolution images below, all courtesy of our good friend Travis Bell over at Sideline Carolina.
