LSU Week...

The Record
3-0 (1-0 SEC East, 1-0 SEC), #12 AP Poll/#14 USAToday Coaches' Poll
#12? Really? #12? The 12th best team in the nation? The same University of South Carolina Gamecocks who played in Williams-Brice Stadium Saturday night? There are only 11 teams better than us? #12? This is gonna be a looooong week…

The Previous Week
Beat SC State 38-3 in Columbia
"I wasn't throwing the ball as well I can," Mitchell said. "I just played like crap really." You don’t say? When you set out to be a “Steve Spurrier Quarterback,” please try to be a little more Wuerffel, a little less Grossman. Blake was chucking the pigskin all over the field like Quincy Carter, but mercifully directing most of the giveaways deep downfield. However, when a team turns the ball over 5 times and still wins by 35, something had to be going right. The running game was unstoppable, chewing up chunks of yardage and moving us steadily down the field. The defense was incredible again, smothering the hapless SC State offense and getting the ball back to our manic-depressive offense early and often.

The Upcoming Week
Saturday versus LSU in Baton Rouge
They’ve been called the best team in the SEC, and possibly the country. They’ve also been called a gorilla with a chainsaw for a dick. But this week we’re calling them gracious hosts. After a long Friday night in New Orleans (see you at Patty O’s, Blake!), it’s off to Baton Rouge for a relatively early 3:30 game. As a fan, it sucks to miss out on a night game in Death Valley, but it’s gotta help our chances of winning. Since 1960, LSU is 202-59-3 at home in night games and only 19-22-3 in day games. We’ll take any advantage we can get.

The Team
Go ahead and laugh at our ranking and crack on our quarterbacks, but I really don’t care…we’re 3-0. No matter how rough we may have looked so far, we’re still putting together what might become one of our best seasons ever. This team is starting to take on the identity of one of those teams that runs the ball, plays great defense, and just manages to win. It may look ugly, but we’re dragging you down with us. It worked for Ohio State in 2002.

The Gamecock Nation
Is this the biggest game in USC history? It could be. If we win, we would vault into the top 10 and have realistic shot at being 8-0 heading in to Knoxville. But if we lose…what do we lose? Get blown out and it could be a very short stay in the rankings, but keep it respectable and we could hang around in the top 20. Hell, look at what LSU did to VT and the Hokies are already back up at #17. What’s the shame in losing at the #2 team in the country?

But why talk about losing when we can win this sucker? It’s not that far-fetched. As fans, we need to look at this game with confidence. Even if you’re not confident we’re going to win, you need to be confident that we can win. Don’t take too much away from the laughable SC State game. We were there, we were in the stadium, we saw our team stumble into a 35-point win. But let’s keep it on the downlow, nobody has to know.

As a program, I think we’re passed the days of getting romped on the road. This is a different USC team and we should expect a different outcome. It’s going to take a monumental effort from the Gamecocks, but this team can do it. The rest of the nation clearly didn’t watch the SC State game, because they vaulted us way into the top 15. And if that’s where they want to put us, then we should act like we belong. Starting today, the University of South Carolina Gamecocks are a top 15 program. So act like you’ve been there before…even if you haven’t.

SC State Pre-Game...

Contrary to the buzz around Gamecock Nation, we are not playing LSU this week. It's SC State, people, SC State. Focus!

The Game
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Williams-Brice Stadium
Columbia, SC
7:00pm

The Set-Up
Stuck between an emotional upset win in Athens and a looming opportunity of historical proportions in Baton Rouge, the SC State game sets up like a trap game if there ever was one.

The Bulldogs have been waiting 100 years to play this game…and who could blame them? It’s mind-boggling to think that we’ve never met SC State on the gridiron. Heck, we even played a boatload of games against The Citadel down in Orangeburg, yet we’ve never crossed paths with the hometown Bulldogs.

The SC State faithful will come to town ready to party. I went to an SC State/Furman game up in Paladin Stadium several years ago, and it was a raucous atmosphere…an atmosphere not frequently seen in the shadow of Paris Mountain, let me assure you. It was a culture clash for sure, but a fun time was had by all.

There’s no reason why this Saturday should be any different as we welcome our fellow South Cackalackians to Columbia. Rumors of turmoil surrounding the game are disappointing, and frankly, a little embarrassing. But if you, Mr. Confederate Flag at Gameday Guy, decide that this Saturday would be a dandy time to pull out your relic banner, you honestly deserve whatever comes to you.

This is a historic meeting between two proud fanbases that are separated by a handful of miles, but not by the undying love of their schools. I look forward to kicking-off a new era of competition between the Gamecocks and Bulldogs tomorrow night at 7:00pm. Oh, and halftime…that should be fun, too.

The Deciding Factor
Talent. Skill. Speed. Honestly, there’s no way this should even be close. App State, App State, App State…yeah, I know. But SC State isn’t even close to the same level as Appy, or even Wofford, within the FCS. There is a talent gap here of epic proportions. When you’re playing with Clemson’s rejects, you know you’ve got problems.

I have a lot of respect for Buddy Pough, but he just doesn’t have the weapons to keep up in the arms race that will be going on in The W-B Saturday night.

The Final
South Carolina, 42
SC State, 14

Gamecock Gazette: USC band gets a beatdown

(Click the image for a larger version or click here for a printable PDF)

It's been a while, but finally here's a new Gazette. And for the record, I have nothing but love for the band.

Enjoy.

SC State Week...

The Record
2-0 (1-0 SEC East, 1-0 SEC), #17 AP Poll/#23 USAToday Coaches' Poll
Two wins. Zero losses. You can't ask for a better start to the 2007 season. This also marks our first appearance in the polls this season.

The Previous Week
Beat Georgia 16-12 in Athens
You know the facts...if we beat UGA, we have a good year. If we lose to UGA, we struggle to make a bowl. So go ahead and check this one off our to-do list. That's one down on our slaughterhouse road schedule for this season, with LSU, Tennessee, and Arkansas still to come. I didn't know many USC fans who were counting on a win down Between the Hedges, so I'm considering this one a steal. Either way, we won, it's in the books, and we're moving on.

The Upcoming Week
Saturday versus SC State in Columbia
SC State comes to town, bringing with them the mysterious force known as the Black College Football Experience. You and I know there is no way we should lose this game, no matter what coachspeak you hear this week. But let's not rule anything out here, lest we become Michigan. We are South Carolina, after all. Our disappointment knows no bounds.

The Team
We're in a good place right now. To say we came out of Athens with a win against #11 Georgia is an accomplishment...and we didn't even play that well. It was really only Mitchell's first game and he already seemed on track. Our running backs were tough and picked up yards when we needed them. We're still looking for some receivers to help out McKinley, but it's only a matter of time before our young WR corps gets up to game speed.

Our defense? La-La game notwithstanding, they looked pretty tough. If we keep up that same intensity we saw down in Athens, we might just have a chance in Baton Rouge in two weeks.

The Gamecock Nation
Saturday's win was probably far more monumental than just a road upset against a highly-ranked rival. It wasn't just a harbinger of a good season, it was a milestone for the entire Gamecock Football program that can be traced back to the day the Furman Paladins kicked our asses 44-0 on December 24, 1892. On that day, our program started off 0-1, and we've seemingly been playing catch-up ever since.

We are not a bad program, we a mediocre program. And a stunningly consistent one at that. For going into this season, the University of South Carolina Gamecock football program had compiled a record of 515-517-44. If you haven't done the math by now, I'll just go ahead and tell you...we are now a .500 program. It's taken years to scratch and claw back from the disastrous records of the 60s and 90s, but now we're here...back at even.

All indications point to nothing but progress from here on out. And hopefully, by about 10:00pm Saturday night, the University of South Carolina will officially be a winning football program.

Have you ever been Xperienced?

Black College Football: The Xperience...the video game you've been looking for if that plain old "White College Football Experience" just isn't fulfilling enough.

Seriously, this is a new video game coming out this November. Aside from the obvious racial head-scratchingness, I have a few other questions. Does my attendance at the USC/SC State game count as a "Black College Football Xperience"? When does Latino College Football: Las Xperiencia come out?

Hopefully, all questions will be answered once we get some hands-on gametime with non-honkey features like (per the game website):

• Nerjyzed - There's that time when your senses are heightened. You block out everything, but what matters. You forget your insecurities, your fears and the limits of nature. Run faster. Feel stronger. Smile with fierce determination as you realize the machine you have become. You are Nerjyzed and the crowd is going wild.

Finally...a video game that has enough street cred to overcome the insecurities of its players! NCAA 2008 is just way too emo.

• Interactive Halftime Battle of the Bands - You need a break from that first half, but there's no time to rest. A game is on the line and its up to you to lead the band. You step into the boots of the drum major as the crowd anxiously awaits your high stepping entrance. The routine plays through your mind -the cues, the notes. It's a complexity you feel at home with and you wouldn't trade it for a thing. You take the stage, knowing the momentum of the game is in your hands now. Out perform. Out awe. And you just might give your team the boost it needs to walk away with the win.

Now this is a feature every Carolina fan can appreciate, as we all know that the band's performance on the field and in the stands has a direct impact on the outcome of the game. The press release does not indicate whether an "Earth, Wind, & Fire" or "Chicago" medley is available for rocking out to.

Clearly, I am far too white for this game.