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During the University of South Carolina’s 2013 Outback Bowl victory over Michigan, future No. 1 NFL draft pick Jadeveon Clowney made highlight reel history when he sent Michigan tailback Vincent Smith’s helmet into low-earth orbit with a stick for the ages.
It was arguably the high point of the Gamecock football program… which has pretty consistently defined mediocrity over the 131 years it has played pigskin.
Seven years later, however, Smith’s helmet was eclipsed in orbit – surpassed by another item that, in the words of pilot-poet John G. Magee Jr., “slipped the surly bonds of earth and danced in the skies.”
I’m referring, of course, to he clipboard (well, “call sheet”) of Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin.
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Remember that? South Carolina was in Oxford, Mississippi on a crisp, autumn evening playing what would wind up being its final quarter of football under former head coach Will Muschamp‘s Gamecock career. Leading 42-38 with just under thirteen minutes left in the game, Muschamp’s team – on the verge of a potentially season-saving win – had the Rebels backed up, facing a second and seven from their own nine yard line.
Pressured only a three-man rush, quarterback Matt Corral dropped back and pump faked to wideout Jonathan Mingo on a stop-and-go route down the right sideline. Having frozen the defense, which was apparently anticipating an array of crossing routes, Corral – standing on his own two-and-a-half yard line – pivoted to the left and unleashed an absolute dime down the middle of Hollingsworth Field that traveled more than fifty yards in the air to a wide open Elijah Moore.
Actually, “wide open” doesn’t even begin to describe Moore’s status behind the South Carolina defense…
“None of the Gamecocks’ four defensive backs were even in the same area code as the receiver,” I noted at the time.
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TO THE HOUSE ?
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 15, 2020
? | https://t.co/wLTkKtxiN3 pic.twitter.com/e9ywHJJPch
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The play covered 91 yards and broke South Carolina’s back. Adding insult to injury, Kiffin’s team scored two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter en route to a 59-42 rout.
What hurt the most about the play, though? The clipboard… err, call sheet… hurled heavenward in exultation by Kiffin. Set flying before Corral’s deep bomb had even reached its apex, the call sheet soared as high or higher as the touchdown throw – while Kiffin beat several Gamecock defenders as he sprinted sixty yards down the sideline with his arms raised in jubilee.
“Usually you can’t throw them that far, but that thing really traveled,” Kiffin said after the game. “I’ve probably done that, but it’s never gone into the stands, that’s for sure.”
The clipboard throw immediately part of college football lore. Sports Illustrated even wrote an article about the physics of the toss in the hopes of determining exactly how high it flew and how far it traveled.
Meanwhile, not long after the game Muschamp was fired.
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Gamecock fans have long-detested Kiffin – dating back to his unsuccessful attempt to lure St. Matthews, S.C. wide receiver Alshon Jeffery to Tennessee during his brief tenure on Rocky Top in 2009. According to Jeffery, Kiffin told him he would wind up “pumping gas for the rest of his life” if he attended the University of South Carolina (Jeffery, of course, rewrote the Gamecock receiving record book en route to a ten-year career in the NFL which included a Super Bowl championship).
Carolina and Ole Miss meet for the first time since the clipboard toss this Saturday (October 5, 2024) at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C. Kiffin’s Rebels have gone 35-12 (.745) since that game – becoming a fixture in the national rankings – while the Gamecocks have, well, been mediocre. South Carolina is 23-22 (.511) post-clipboard, although for the moment the program is exceeding preseason expectations in its fourth year under head coach Shane Beamer.
In fairness, the Gamecocks (3-1, 1-1 SEC) really should be entering this showdown undefeated – and nationally ranked. Beamer’s team was screwed by the officials out of an upset win over LSU back on September 14. Meanwhile, Kiffin’s team is coming off a shocking home loss to Kentucky – an upset that knocked the program from No. 6 to No. 11/12 in the national rankings.
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RELATED | REFS STEAL UPSET FROM USC
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South Carolina is not ranked in either national poll, but has climbed to No. 25 in ESPN’s latest Football Power Index (FPI).
Despite last week’s upset loss, Ole Miss enters the game as a 9.5-point favorite on the road against Carolina, which will get starting quarterback LaNorris Sellers back after missing a game-and-a-half with an ankle sprain. This betting line has not budged since opening early Sunday morning… meaning the Vegas oddsmakers appear to have accurately gauged the prevailing expectations. According to Oddshark, Ole Miss will win and cover the spread.
While Kiffin’s antics continue to draw headlines, this year’s Rebel team is driven by defense.
Entering Saturday’s game, Ole Miss leads the entire nation in rushing defense – giving up only 46.2 yards per game. Opponents are averaging just 1.35 yards per carry (also lowest in the nation) against the Rebels’ front – and have scored precisely one rushing touchdown through five games. Thanks to this stoutness, Ole Miss ranks No. 5 nationally in scoring defense and No. 13 nationally in total defense (one spot ahead of South Carolina, as fate would have it).
On offense, the Rebels have a ton of talent at wide receiver – including former Gamecock star Antwane “Juice” Wells. South Carolina’s 2022 leader in receptions (68), yardage (928) and touchdowns (6), Wells transferred to Oxford after missing most of 2023 with a foot injury. So far, Wells has 14 catches for 274 yards and four scores this season – although he was held without a catch in last week’s loss to Kentucky.
Kickoff at Williams-Brice this Saturday is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. EDT with ESPN providing national coverage. South Carolina fans have been encouraged to wear garnet, which you can read more about in this pre-game release from the school’s athletics department. Ole Miss fans have been encouraged to wear powder blue, which you can read more about in the Rebels’ pre-game release.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the owner and founding editor of FITSNews. Prior to founding his own news outlet, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina, bass guitarist in an alternative rock band and bouncer at a Columbia, S.C. dive bar. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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