Carolina-Clemson: A Rivalry In Name Only

The University of South Carolina and arch-rival Clemson square off on the football field for the 107th time on Saturday, a series that has been dominated by the agriculturally-inclined institution from the Upstate.

First played in 1896, the Gamecocks and Tigers have met every year since 1909 – making this the third-longest uninterrupted rivalry in the nation (and the longest in the South).

The series record?  Clemson currently holds a 65-37-4 advantage – including a 25-9-1 mark over the last three-and-a-half decades.

The Tigers have also won ten of the last twelve contests, which is why we refer to the series as a “Rivalry In Name Only.”

Seriously, people … USC has brought two of the nation’s most successful, national championship-winning coaches to Columbia, S.C. only to watch the “Chicken Curse” cause them to choke.

Lou Holtz?  He went 1-5 against the Tigers, including the infamous 2004 game (above) which ended in a bench-clearing brawl that cost both teams an opportunity to play in a bowl game.

Steve Spurrier?  He’s 1-3 against Clemson, including last year’s 31-14 loss to “Dat Boy” Swinney and the Tigers in Death Valley.

Clemson – favored by a surprisingly small 3.5-point margin – comes into Saturday’s game ranked No. 15 in the nation in the AP poll.  The Tigers have won six straight games, a division championship and will play No. 7 Georgia Tech in Tampa on December 5 for the ACC title and a Bowl Championship Series (BCS) bid.

Carolina, on the other hand, is in the middle of its fourth consecutive season-ending collapse.

After starting the season 5-1, USC has dropped four of its last five games – including blowout losses to Arkansas and Tennessee.

Over the last four seasons, Spurrier’s teams have posted a 21-7 mark over the first seven games of the season, only to come unglued down the stretch – posting an atrocious 6-15 mark the rest of the way.

That figure includes a horrific 0-5 finish two years ago and an 0-3 collapse last season that saw them outscored 118-30 in their final three games.

Still, a whopping 63% of FITS readers say Spurrier should stick around even if he loses to Clemson.

Frankly, we’d have fired him two years ago … oh, and made these changes, too.

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