I spent an hour with South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier Monday morning. With some coaches, there’s a script. Spurrier has no script.
He jumps from subject to subject, talking about getting closer to being able to compete in the SEC with Florida, Georgia and Tennessee, talking about the old days at Florida, talking about Clemson, about the garnet steam through which players will run onto the field at Williams-Brice Stadium this season and about his Uncle Bob.
Uncle Bob lives in Charlotte and Spurrier says I should call him. I tell him I will and Spurrier gives me Uncle Bob’s telephone number. Hi, Uncle Bob.
Out Spurrier’s window is the unlined field at Williams-Brice, the grass thick, pieces of the stadium newly painted. On his desk is an N.C. State media guide. The Gamecocks open the season at home against the Wolfpack. In the bookcase behind Spurrier are footballs commemorating victories past. Two jump out, and both come from his days as head coach at Duke. They are: Duke 21, Clemson 17, and Duke 41, UNC 0. It’s odd to see the higher number next to Duke and the lower number next to Duke’s opponent.
On the dry erase board to the right of his desk is a play that his son, Steve Jr., the receivers coach at South Carolina, diagrammed. He borrowed it from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Spurrier is a friend of Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden.
Oh, about Clemson, Spurrier says: “Well, I wish one of the sportswriters when they start picking everybody’s record this year would write how they’d do if Clemson played South Carolina’s schedule and South Carolina played Clemson’s schedule. They don’t do that.”
In Tuesday’s Charlotte Observer, I suspect that one sportswriter will.
I ask Spurrier what he’d write if he were me.
“Hope is still alive at the University of South Carolina,” he says.
Tell Steve if he is feeling unappreciated, try coaching Syracuse for a season haha. He does have it hard at USC playing SEC rivals and sometimes I think he enjoys stiring the pot with Clemson as well. I smell football in the air and I love it.
Posted by: Orange Chuck | July 28, 2008 at 07:11 PM
Tom, Uncle Bob is or was a member at the Dowd YMCA with us and in the late eighties a member of my bible study group there. He was a class guy and always talking about football and Steve Spurrier as player and coach.
Posted by: Bill Shelton | July 28, 2008 at 10:17 PM
The Old Ball Coach can suggest what the Gamecocks record might be if they played Clemson's schedule, but the only yardstick that really counts is head-to-head. Cry baby Steve is 1-2 versus Clemson since going to USC.
Posted by: Tiger Fan in GA | July 29, 2008 at 05:43 AM
At least he doesn't cry on camera or on cue. And the SEC is what counts to us. Yeah, it's nice if we beat CU, but I'd rather beat the SEC teams.
Posted by: Joanne | July 29, 2008 at 08:59 AM
How much does one get paid for a 300 word fluff piece on the decor of Spurrier's office? I'm hoping this is just his blog and he doesn't actually draw his entire paycheck on light-weight candy-articles like that.
Clearly, SC is better than Clemson because it has to play in the SEC. After all, if SC only had to play in the ACC every year, it would win almost every game.
This is clearly evidenced by the fact that SC consistently beats Clemson in football year in and year out...
Oh.
Posted by: Trevor | July 29, 2008 at 09:11 AM
Steve, Steve. The all time Clemson/USC record says it all.... 63-37-4. Clemson would easily better respresent any league that USC is in.
Posted by: Lee | July 29, 2008 at 12:56 PM
Clemson and its fans suck!!!!!!!!! Enjoy being the best football team in a basketball conference!!!!!!!! Yah
Posted by: Ciscokid_17 | July 29, 2008 at 02:33 PM
True! True!!
Posted by: Chuck | July 29, 2008 at 05:28 PM
Last I checked SC plays their schedule & Clemson plays their own schedule. Sounds like the ole ball coach is crying.
He shouldn't worry about who, when, & where Clemson plays until his team plays them.
Sounds like sour grapes. Last time I checked he's 1-2 versus Clemson & according to a lot of Gamecock fans (not all some are realistic, trust me I know Clemson has unrealistic fans as well)he was suppossed to dominate Clemson because you know he's GOD of Football!
I agree with the one SC fan on the board in an earlier post... Might want to worry about your conference opponents, and take one game at a time, and quit his cry baby ways.
Last time I checked if you work hard, and not look over your shoulder all the times worrying about Clemson - good things will happen. Sounds like he thought his repuation would just get him over hump, and would easily beat Clemson year after year. I guess ugly real facts have come and hit him square in the head!
Posted by: CD | July 29, 2008 at 06:58 PM
IF USC played Clemson's schedule???? USC was a charter/founding member of the ACC and left the conference. Please stop with the excuses and win a SEC championship in something...Only one team at USC was above .500 in the SEC conference last year. The last thing Carolina needs is a coach that uses the same excuses as the fans do.
Posted by: Malcolm | July 29, 2008 at 09:41 PM
Steve better stop worrying about Clemson and concentrate on The Citadel. Last time those two met it wasn't pretty for the yardbirds.
Posted by: Old ball choke | July 31, 2008 at 05:53 PM