September 3, 2014 • Volume 36 • Issue 11 • $1.50
Still in the
Running
Gamecocks leave tough opener behind; get ready for Pirates
2 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
Gamecocks fall to Aggies in season opener by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com Ninth-ranked South Carolina’s season opener did not go as planned as 21st-ranked Texas A&M came away from WilliamsBrice Stadium with a 52-28 win. The Gamecocks were able to generate some offense, but it would not be enough to keep up with Texas A&M’s powerful passing attack. The loss snapped the Gamecocks’ nation-best home winning streak at 18 games. “They out-coached us, out-played us, they were better prepared, they knew what they were doing. They put up 680 yards,” Gamecock head coach Steve Spurrier said. “We had to try to throw the ball way too much to try and make some yards. We didn’t run well at all and didn’t have a chance to stay on the field very long … that’s the way it happened. Give A&M credit; their coaches, their players. They knew what they were doing. “Offensively we had a few plays here and there that we might could’ve hit, but we hit some plays too. If we don’t hit the long passes, then we don’t make hardly anything tonight. Give them credit … but we’re going to regroup and come back and try to fight against East Carolina,” Spurrier continued. South Carolina (0-1, 0-1 SEC) was able to put up 433 yards of offense and 28 points thanks to the arm of Dylan Thompson and the hands of Nick Jones. Thompson went 20-of-40 for 366 yards and a career-high four touchdowns, which included hitting Jones for five catches, 113 yards and two touchdowns. Pharoh Cooper and Damiere Byrd also tallied touchdown catches. “I don’t know if there are many positives. Dylan threw some good balls and Nick Jones is a good receiver, but other than that we’ve got to regroup and come back … we’ve got to regroup and see if we can field a competitive team next week,” Spurrier commented. Texas A&M finished the game with 680 total yards on 99 plays with 37:39 time of possession. Quarterback Kenny HIll tallied 511 passing yards and three touchdowns, going 44-of-60. Malcome Kennedy had 14 catches for 137 yards to lead all receivers and Tra Carson added three touchdowns on the ground to lead the Aggie offense. “Well I think it’s got to start with me as a coach,” defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward said after the game. “Obviously I didn’t have the guys ready to play like I thought I did. We’ve got to take responsibility for our players as coaches and it was our fault that we didn’t have them ready to play … we’ve got to get better if we’re going to have a chance to win some ball games this season.”
Texas A&M took an early 10-0 lead, but the Gamecocks were able to answer back with a quick strike to cut the lead to 10-7 with 3:44 left in the opening quarter. The Gamecocks hit on a big play from Thompson to Jones that went for 69 yards and a touchdown. The touchdown capped a threeplay, 75-yard drive. The teams each traded touchdowns to put
75-yard drive capped by a Hill’s second touchdown pass to push the lead to 24-14 with 7:07 before the break. After a Gamecock punt, Texas A&M went 80 yards on 11 plays to add another touchdown to make the score 31-14 with 1:16 left before halftime. The Gamecocks had a promising drive with 1:16 left in the half, but an intentional grounding penalty forced a 54-yard field goal attempt that went wide left to keep the score at 31-14 at halftime. The Gamecocks racked up 216 yards, 188 through the air as Thompson went 8-of-18 in the opening half, but a 17:33 to 12:27 timeof-possession advantage for Texas A&M helped give the Aggies a halftime lead. Texas A&M’s offense put up 393 yards and 31 points as Hill led the Aggie offense by going 27-of-35 for 299 yards and two touchdowns in the opening half. The Gamecocks went three-and-out to open the second half and the Aggies took advantage by going on a touchdown drive to push the lead to 38-14. Texas A&M went 66 yards in eight plays capped with Hill’s third touchdown pass with 11:08 left in the third quarter. South Carolina answered back moving the ball down the field on an eight-play, 81-yard drive to stay in the game. Thompson capped the drive with a five-yard touchdown to Cooper that made the score 38-21 with 7:33 left in the third quarter. The Gamecocks attempted an onside kick following the touchdown, but Texas A&M recovered and went down the field. Tra Carson capped an eight-play, 42-yard drive with his third touchdown run of the game to push the Aggie lead to 45-21. South Carolina answered back with another touchdown drive to cut the lead to 45-28 with 2:38 left in the third quarter. The Gamecocks went 75 yards in six plays as Thompson found Jones for his fourth touchdown pass of the day from 10 yards out. It was Jones’ second touchdown reception of the game. The Gamecocks would then force an Aggie punt, but could not capitalize as Texas A&M forced the only turnover of the game by intercepting Thompson. Texas A&M was able to cash in on the turnover by going 83 yards in 10 plays with a touchdown to extend the lead to 52-28 which would stand as photo by allen sharpe the final score. “We won’t get much favorable press and the score at 17-14 with 9:47 left in the first that’s probably good for us … We’ve got half. The Aggies scored on a nine-play, 85-yard drive in 2:22 to take a 10-point lead some serious coaching to do before the next game to see if we can be a competitive with 11:56 left before the half, but another team,” Spurrier remarked. “We don’t have to quick strike by the Gamecocks cut the lead back to three points. Thompson found Byrd worry about any more win streaks. It was a for a 46-yard touchdown, capping a six-play, good one while it lasted and now we can go back to trying to be a decent team and not 73-yard drive with the touchdown. reading the paper too much hopefully.” The Aggies answered with an eight-play,
Spurs & Feathers • 3
September 3, 2014
Spurs & Feathers Published by Aiken Communications, Inc.
What’s Inside? - Table of Contents Gamecock Club chapter winners .............................5 Inside the Chart: ECU connections ..........................6
Something to crow about!
Postgame notes and quotes ......................................7 South Carolina’s inaugural SEC Network broadcast .........................................9-10
Contact Us: 301 Greystone Blvd. Columbia, SC 29210 (803) 335-1399 To subscribe: Please call 800-559-2311; annual subscription price is $50 Ellen Priest Publisher Aiken Communications, Inc. Tim O’Briant General Manager tobriant@spursandfeathers.com (803) 335-1400 Ext. 500 Brian Hand Executive Editor bhand@spursandfeathers.com (803) 335-1399 Ext. 506 Mike Kucharski Reporter mike@spursandfeathers.com (803) 335-1399 Ext. 507 Ed Girardeau Contributing Editor/Sales Account Executive ed@spursandfeathers.com (803) 646-9807 Dee Taylor Advertising Director (803) 644-2371 Kathy Boyette Advertising Sales Manager (803) 295-3654 kboyette@spursandfeathers.com Postal Information: SPURS & FEATHERS (USPS 12779) (ISSN 7454368X) is published 26 times annually. The frequency is monthly from December to July and weekly from the third Wednesday in August to the fourth Wednesday in November. SPURS & FEATHERS also publishes three slickpaper magazine issues — one in January, one in July and one in August. The annual subscription price is $50 for non Gamecock Club members. Members of the Gamecock Club receive a discounted subscription as a member benefit. Spurs & Feathers is published by Aiken Communications, Inc., 326 Rutland Drive NW, Aiken, SC, 29801-4010. Periodicals postage paid at Columbia, SC Postmaster: Send changes to SPURS & FEATHERS, PO Box 456, Aiken, SC, 29802.
SEC Nation displays conference flavor ................11 Charlotte chapter check-in ......................................12 South Carolina/East Carolina rosters.............. 16-17 Recruiting Roundup ...................................................18 Inside Look with Glenn Snyder ...............................19 Depth charts .................................................................20 Women’s golf looking to put together another record-breaking season ...........................21 2014-15 women’s basketball schedule ................22 Men’s golf begins chasing usual goals ................23 Tommy Suggs: A Gamecock for a lifetime ..........24 Aiken/Florence chapter check-ins .................. 25-26 Spartanburg chapter check-in.................................27 Darlington chapter hosts Gamecock legend Ryan Brewer .............................28 Upcoming events: Gamecock Club ......................29 Augusta area chapter check-in ...............................30 Unique Views from Ed Girardeau ...........................31
Gamecock golf programs receive national acclaim The Gamecock men’s and women’s golf teams both showed up in the top-15 of preseason polls. Women’s golf: South Carolina women’s golf team is ranked No. 10 in Golfweek’s preseason countdown of the top-30 Division I women’s golf teams heading into the fall season. The Gamecocks are coming off one of the finest seasons in program history and a 13th-place finish at the 2014 NCAA Championship. South Carolina, who was No. 8 in Golfweek’s final 2013-14 rankings, returns three golfers from their postseason lineup in senior All-American Justine Dreher, sophomore and second-team All-SEC honoree Katelyn Dambaugh and junior Sarah Schmelzel. Head coach Kalen Harris also adds incoming freshmen Nanna Madsen and Ainhoa Olarra. Madsen is currently No. 4 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. South Carolina opens the year at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate in Reunion, Fla., Sept. 28-30. Men’s golf: The South Carolina men’s golf team is ranked No. 12 in the Golf Coaches Association of America Preseason Poll, the GCAA announced. The Gamecocks are one of eight SEC teams ranked in the poll, joining No. 1 Alabama, No. 5 Georgia, No. 9 LSU, No. 16 Vanderbilt, No. 19 Texas A&M, No. 20 Auburn and No. 21 Arkansas. South Carolina enters the year coming off one of the most successful seasons in school history. The Gamecocks finished ninth at the NCAA Championship last year, which is the second-best finish at the event in program history. During the regular-season, Carolina matched the school record with nine top-five finishes in 12 events, including three tournament wins. At one point during the season, the Gamecocks reeled off a school-record seven straight top-three finishes. The Gamecocks have seven golfers returning, including all five from last year’s postseason run. Carolina opened its season this past weekend at The Carmel Cup in Pebble Beach, Calif., at the historic Pebble Beach Golf Links. (Stories and photo courtesy of South Carolina Athletics Media Relations)
4 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
Nick Jones focused on getting Gamecocks back to winning ways by brian hand bhand@spursandfeathers.com
catches tied his career best in the category that he originally set in South Carolina’s game at Georgia last year. Prior to the start of the 2014 season, South After South Carolina’s season-opening Carolina starting quarterback Dylan Thomp- loss to Texas A&M, Jones fully understood son made sure everyone knew that he felt he did some good things in the contest, but senior wide receiver Nick Jones was going to it was not in the least what he was worried have a breakout season. about. One “It’s kind of hard to take away the result game because it’s a team sport and I’m a team into the type of guy,” the Moore, S.C. native said. season it “Even what I did, it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t Nick Jones looks like enough for the team, so I didn’t do enough. KeenanSuggs ThompIt’s hard to think about (individual perforPlayer of the Wek son’s mance) right now.” thoughts Thompson was asked after the Gamecock are on point loss about the Byrnes High School product. as Jones put together arguably his best game A fellow Upstate native and a product of in a Gamecock uniform in the season opener Boiling Springs High School in Boiling against Texas A&M. Springs, S.C., Thompson remarked “I think Jones corralled five catches for a careerNick is a great player. Our coaches have best 113 yards and two touchdowns in the some great plays for a lot of guys and it just loss to the Aggies. The two touchdown so happened that he was able to score on two
of them tonight. I thought our gameplan was good. I thought that coach (Spurrier) had a great plan. I just have to do a better job managing the offense and I’ve got to be efficient. We weren’t tonight.” Jones echoed Thompson’s assertions by relaying “we didn’t come out with the ‘W.’ Of course Dylan threw four touchdowns, but it still wasn’t enough. We got a couple of things done, but everything that we wanted to do, we didn’t do.” Even though the numbers might suggest otherwise, Jones was quick to point out that he did not think he had his best game against Texas A&M. “It was a pretty good game,” Jones mentioned. “I mean it wasn’t my best game because we didn’t get the ‘W’ obviously. I just want to keep pressing and hopefully we can get the win next week.” Jones pointed out that the season-opening loss to Texas A&M was a “huge wakeup call” for the Gamecocks.
photo by allen sharpe
“Everybody knew the hype we had coming into the season,” Jones elaborated. “We didn’t live up to that tonight, so we’ve got to get back to the drawing board, get back to the Xs and Os and get back to work.”
Spurs & Feathers • 5
September 3, 2014
Gamecock Club chapter winners honored
The Atlanta Gamecock Club was selected as the most improved chapter. all photos by allen sharpe
The Lexington County Gamecock Club was chosen as the chapter of the year.
The Florence Gamecock Club was awarded the director’s cup in the black division.
James Wolf of the Charlotte Gamecock Club was tabbed as the most valuable president.
The Cherokee Gamecock Club received the director’s cup in the garnet division.
6 • Spurs & Feathers
One has a close connection. The other had a close call. South Carolina’s next opponent, the East Carolina Pirates, will stir memories of what was and what could have been for Gamecocks offensive line coach Shawn Elliott and athletic director Ray Tanner. “It’s just a joy to be able to see all those guys,” says Elliott, now in his fifth year on the Gamecock staff. That may not sound like typical, stoic coachspeak on the week of a game. But Elliott’s relationship with ECU goes deeper than a team on the schedule. Though his coaching days are spent on the offensive line, Elliott’s playing days were spent on the defensive line at Appalachian State from 1992-95. His position coach was current East Carolina head coach Ruffin McNeill, who later became Elliott’s defensive coordinator. Elliott still cracks a smile at the burly, bullhorn-voiced coach who shepherded him from Camden High School in Camden, S.C., to play for the Mountaineers. “We have really similar personalities. We have a few loose screws. We could joke and we could really get serious. We had a great open relationship. I think he made my college career playing App State football as fun as it could be,” ElAndy Demetra liott said. Contributing He remembers Writer McNeill as an energetic coach, but someone who wasn’t above going blue. “He generates a lot of excitement and energy. He’s a fun guy. I won’t say he’s a coach’s guy, because God, he could be as hard on you as anybody. He really gets you motivated, and brings out the best in you. I knew that as soon as I saw him.” In turn, McNeill found a player who responded to his teachings.
September 3, 2014
“Shawn came in ready to go as a freshman. He was a leader from day one,” McNeill said in a 2012 interview, before ECU and South Carolina last played. “He could take butt chewings pretty well.
36-14. “I could pick up the phone today and call him and we could laugh about old times or old bus rides home,” Elliott said. Over at the Rice Athletics Center, Ray Tanner sees ECU’s purple and yellow uniforms and imagines a different fate for himself. Though baseball gave him his greatest claim to fame, the South Carolina athletic director was also a standout football player at South Johnston High School in Four Oaks, N.C. On offense, he led the Trojans as a slotback. On defense, he was a sturdy presence at defensive back. But where Tanner truly set himself apart was at placekicker. With a style that was straightforward, low on subtlety, yet undeniably effective, Tanner once kicked a 45-yard field goal in a game. “You ever heard of George Blanda or Tom Dempsey? That was me,” he once told me,
Both Elliott and Tanner agree on one thing: when the game kicks off Saturday, Ruffin McNeill will be just another coach. East Carolina will be just another opponent. What was and what could have been, will soon give way to what is: a chance for the Gamecocks to earn their first victory of the season.
Shawn Elliott media guide photo from his playing days at Appalachian State
all submitted photos
South Carolina AD Ray Tanner’s (No. 12) high school football team picture from 1975. He took challenges well.” That included a humorous standoff over Jogging In A Jug, a cider vinegar-based Gatorade knockoff that claimed to give people a boost of energy. Elliott’s mother sent him bottles of the elixir his junior year. He soon had the entire defense taking swigs of it before practices and games. Jogging In A Jug, with Elliott as its zealous pitchman, became a phenomenon in the Appalachian State locker room. Then App State lost at Georgia Southern, allowing more points than they had in their last four games combined. McNeill, in the most colorful language possible, declared the Jogging In A Jug era over on the bus ride home. Losses were an exception during McNeill and Elliott’s time together. With McNeill guiding the defense and Elliott his co-captain, Appalachian State won the Southern Conference title in 1995. Elliott made all-conference at defensive end his senior year. He was the first player in ASU history to appear in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs in four straight seasons. In four years, McNeill and Elliott had a combined record of
invoking the names of a pair of legendary toepoke NFL kickers. He still recalls the night of that 45-yard thunderclap in the fall of 1975. “I scored two touchdowns, kicked both extra points, and made that field goal. I scored all 17 of our points,” Tanner said of his team’s 17-14 win over the Clayton Comets. (No word on whether he swept the bleachers and helped a stranded motorist on his way home.) His leg was strong enough to draw a look from East Carolina, led by future Auburn head coach Pat Dye. The Pirates were also interested in Tanner for their baseball team. Had the interest been mutual, Tanner might have kicked against the Gamecocks - South Carolina faced ECU in October of 1977. Poetically, the Pirates lost by a field goal, 19-16. But the athletic director is quick to cut off any myth-making treatment. “I wouldn’t say I was a hot prospect,” Tanner admits. He instead went to N.C. State, where he embarked on a baseball career under Wolfpack head coach Sam Esposito. That’s one missed attempt Gamecock fans don’t regret.
East Carolina head coach Ruffin McNeill from his days as an Appalachian State assistant
Ray Tanner’s football yearbook photo from South Johnston High
Spurs & Feathers • 7
September 3, 2014
South Carolina-Texas A&M postgame notes/quotes south carolina athletics media relations
• Kenny Hill’s 511 passing yards is the most the Gamecocks have allowed to a single passer, surpassing the 485 by Georgia’s Eric GENERAL NOTES Zeier on Sept. 3, 1994. The Aggies’ 511 yards • South Carolina loses to Texas A&M 52-28, through the air tops the 402 given up to Floriits first loss in the season opener under Steve da on Nov. 11, 1995. Spurrier in 10 seasons. • Sophomore safety Chris Moody had eight • Captains for South Carolina were senior tackles to lead the Gamecocks. He had seven safety Brison Williams, senior quarterback in 12 games played during his redshirt freshDylan Thompson, senior offensive lineman man campaign in 2013. A.J. Cann and senior defensive lineman J.T. • Sophomore linebacker Skai Moore posted Surratt. his first solo sack when he corralled Kenny • Attendance for the Thursday night opener Hill in the third quarter. at Williams Brice Stadium: 82,847. • Sophomore safety Chaz Elder had six • The setback ends an 18-game home wintackles, a new career best. Sophomore cornerning streak, which was the longest in NCAA back Rico McWilliams’ five tackles also set a Division I. The loss was the first at home for new Carolina high. South Carolina since a 16-13 defeat against • Freshman cornerback Al Harris Jr. had Auburn on Oct. 1, 2011. five tackles and a pass break-up in his first • Texas A&M takes the first meeting becareer outing. tween the two schools. • Freshman linebacker Bryson AllenWilliams had three tackles and a quarterback OFFENSIVE NOTES hurry in his inaugural time in the Garnet and • Gamecock senior quarterback Dylan Black. Thompson completed two touchdown passes (69 to Nick Jones, 46 to Damiere Byrd) that QUOTES measured over 40 yards each in the first half, the first time a South Carolina QB has accom- Head coach Steve Spurrier plished that feat since Blake Mitchell found “It was obvious the odds makers don’t know Kenny McKinley for two 43-yard strikes in what they’re talking about. That team was the 2006 Liberty Bowl against Houston. so much better than us it wasn’t funny. They • Thompson’s four TD passes set a new out-coached us, out-played us, they were betcareer high and matches Connor Shaw’s four ter prepared and they knew what they were during the Mississippi State game a year ago. doing. We had to throw the ball way too His 366 yards is the most for a Gamecock much to try to make some yards. We didn’t since Connor Shaw tossed for 356 against run the ball well at all, and we didn’t have a Tennessee on Oct. 27, 2012. The 40 pass atchance to even stay on the field very long. We tempts were the most since his winning start got into a throw every down type of contest, at Clemson on Nov. 24, 2012. and we’re not good enough pass blockers, • Senior wide receiver Nick Jones made five or throwers to get into that. That’s the way it catches for a career-best 113 yards and two happened. Give Texas A&M, their coaches touchdowns. The two scores ties his career and their players credit. It was a mismatch best from Georgia last year. tonight. I don’t know what else you can say. • Sophomore wide receiver Pharoh Cooper If we played them again they’d be a threeset new career highs with three receptions for touchdown favorite. We tried everything we 58 yards and one TD. could to slow them down. Offensively we had a few plays here and there that we liked. Give DEFENSIVE NOTES them credit; they’re a much better team than • The Gamecocks’ halftime deficit of 17 we are. We’ll regroup, come back and try to points (31-14) stands as the worst for South fight again against East Carolina in nine days. Carolina since the 2009 Outback Bowl We’ll see if we can look like we know what against Iowa (21-0). The 31 points Texas we’re doing as coaches. We’ll try to put our A&M scored in the first half is the most South players in position. I think our players are betCarolina has allowed in a half since Georgia ter than what they showed, but I don’t know. tallied 31 on Sept. 12, 2009. We have no pass rush, coverage was so-so • The 52 points Texas A&M scored is the and they [Texas A&M] knew what they were most against a South Carolina team since doing.” Auburn compiled 56 in the 2010 SEC Championship Game (Dec. 4). The 680 total yards On what the problem was defensively… is the most South Carolina has allowed in his“From where I was watching, they [Texas tory, overtaking the 651 allowed at Arkansas A&M] threw the quick screen and they hit on Nov. 3, 2007. It’s only the fifth time South everything down field. We don’t have a pass Carolina has given up 600 yards or more in a rusher right now. I knew their offensive line game in recorded history. was pretty good. They mentioned that they
photo by jenny dilworth
Pharoh Cooper set new career highs with three receptions for 58 yards and one TD. have a really good O-line, and they look like they do. They have to play their schedule out, and we’ll play ours out and see how it goes from there. Obviously they look like a really good team.” On the offensive performance… “Offensively we didn’t play very well. Dylan [Thompson] hit a few good balls. [He] hit some long balls here and there. I think they [Texas A&M] were only rushing three or four and had guys come clean at him. Our protection scheme wasn’t very good, and our run blocking wasn’t very good. I think we popped one run for 10 or 12 yards. Brandon Wilds played pretty well.” Defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward On the biggest problem “I didn’t have the guys ready to play like I thought I did. In the end, we have to take responsibility for our players, as coaches. It’s our fault that we didn’t have them ready to
play.” On continuing to use the 3-4 defense against East Carolina “I don’t think it’s consistent. We’ve got to tackle. We’ve got to play the space and find a way to get to the quarterback.” Senior quarterback Dylan Thompson On overall performance “It honestly doesn’t matter how well I think I played. I mean, the scoreboard tells you that story. Just got to do better next week and come back ready to work. That’s about it.” Sophomore linebacker Skai Moore On what Texas A&M did that was so effective “They spread us out and threw the ball on the perimeter and had a fast pace. They just moved the ball up and down the field very quickly.”
8 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
South Carolina Gamecocks
2014
football Schedule 08/28/14 ..........vs. #21 Texas A&M # ........... Columbia, S.C. ..................... L, 52-28 09/06/14 ..........vs. East Carolina .................. Columbia, S.C. ...................7 p.m. ET
Standings SEC East
W-L PF
PA W-L PF PA
STRK
Florida
0-0 0
0 0-0 0 0
-
Tennessee
0-0 0
0 0-0 0 0
-
09/13/14 ..........vs. Georgia # ......................... Columbia, S.C. .............3:30 p.m. ET
Kentucky
0-0 0
0 1-0 59 14 W1
Vanderbilt
0-0 0
0 0-1 7 37 L1
09/20/14 ..........at Vanderbilt # ...................... Nashville, Tenn. ...........................TBA
Missouri
0-0 0
0 1-0 38 18 W1
Georgia
0-0 0
0 1-0 45 21 W1
09/27/14 ..........vs. Missouri # ......................... Columbia, S.C. .............................TBA 10/04/14 ..........at Kentucky # ........................ Lexington, Ky. ..............................TBA 10/18/14 ..........vs. Furman ............................. Columbia, S.C. .............................TBA 10/25/14 ..........at Auburn # ........................... Auburn, Ala. .................................TBA
South Carolina
0-1 28
52 0-1 28 52 L1
SEC West
W-L PF
PA W-L PF PA
Auburn
1-0 45
21 1-0 45 21 W1
Texas A&M
1-0 52
28 1-0 52 28 W1
STRK
11/01/14 ..........vs. Tennessee # ..................... Columbia, S.C. .............................TBA
Alabama
0-0 0
0 1-0 33 23 W1
Ole Miss
0-0 0
0 1-0 35 13 W1
11/15/14 ..........at Florida # ............................. Gainesville, Fla. ...........................TBA
LSU
0-0 0
0 1-0 28 24 W1
Mississippi State
0-0 0
0 1-0 49 0 W1
Arkansas
0-1 21
45 0-1 21 45 L1
11/22/14 ..........vs. South Alabama .............. Columbia, S.C. .............................TBA 11/29/14 ..........at Clemson ............................ Clemson, S.C. ...............................TBA
*Please note Tennessee had not played at time of printing/Florida opener was suspended*
The view from the Texas A&M locker room
by kyle heck Contributing Writer
It didn’t take long for Texas A&M sophomore quarterback Kenny Hill to make people forget about Johnny Manziel. Hill made the most of his debut as the Texas A&M starting quarterback, passing for a school-record 511 yards and three touchdowns in his first career start, leading the Aggies to a 52-28 victory over South Carolina. The record performance surprised even offensive coordinator Jake Spavital. “I wasn’t expecting that,” Spavital said. “It just goes back to what I’ve always said. You have to play smart football. If they’re going to load the box up, then we’ve got to be able to complete passes on the perimeter. They were doing that at times and I thought we took advantage of it.” All offseason, the question around Texas A&M was how the Aggies would handle the departure of the superstar Manziel, the Heisman-winning quarterback now with the Cleveland Browns. Hill silenced those questions with his dominating performance against the Gamecocks, completing 44 of his 60 pass attempts. The win snapped South Carolina’s 18-game home
winning streak. Hill broke the previous school record set by Manziel in 2013 when he passed for 464 yards against Alabama in 2013. The 44 completions were also a school record. “I was ready to go,” Hill said. “I’ve been ready for this my whole life and everybody was doubting us and I was just ready to show people they were wrong.” The lack of respect in regard to the Aggies before the game was a common theme for the players and coaches afterward. “Quite frankly there was a little chip on the shoulder,” head coach Kevin Sumlin said. “Basically no one gave us a chance to even be close in this game. All I heard last week was that if we could keep it close, it would be great. What we did tonight kind of shows we’re not a one-trick pony.” The Aggies used an up-tempo offense to keep the Gamecocks on their heels, racking up 99 plays, an amount that South Carolina defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward said he has never seen as a defensive coach. That allowed the Aggie offense to stay out on the field and wear out the Gamecock defense. “They were just tired,” said left tackle Cedric Ogbuehi. “That was the plan. Our tempo
was so fast.” Hill and the rest of the offense rode that momentum to a 31-14 halftime lead and never looked back. When he was being recruited, Hill said the coaching staff told him that he could be the guy that could replace Johnny Manziel. That was one of the main reasons that Hill came to Texas A&M. However, it’s Hill’s calm, cool and collected demeanor that separates him, according to teammates. “I saw no nerves in him,” said Ogbuehi. “He was confident and ready. He was talkative before the game. You could just tell he had a mission.” “He’s real poised back in that pocket,” Spavital added. “There was sometimes where they had good coverage and he extended the play and scrambled for some first downs. He was operating at a very mature level.” Now that Hill has proven that he can lead the Aggies to a road win against a top-10 opponent, Sumlin is confident they made the right decision by going with the sophomore over five-star freshman Kyle Allen. The Southlake, Texas native took advantage of a Gamecock defense that showed
photo by jenny dilworth
Texas A&M exactly what the Aggies wanted to see. “They came out pretty much how we expected them to come out,” Hill said. “I think coach Spavital came in with a great gameplan. They were leaving (the middle) open for us.” It was the perfect start to the season for Texas A&M, who won their first conference opener since joining the SEC. “I just had a feeling that this was our game,” Hill said.
September 3, 2014
Spurs & Feathers • 9
South Carolina turns page with firstever live SEC Network broadcast
by brian hand bhand@spursandfeathers.com
South Carolina’s very first on-campus broadcast on the SEC Network was a long time in the works, but to Brad Muller it was just like all of the other broadcasts that he has been a part of in his career in many ways. “Once it’s go time and once you go on the air and things like that, you just kind of flip a switch and you go,” Muller noted before going live for the contest at Stone Stadium between then No. 14 South Carolina women’s soccer and Samford. A graduate of the University of South Carolina and the current director of content for the Gamecocks, Muller’s play-by-play made him one of 26 individuals helping to make the first-ever live regular-season broadcast at South Carolina as part of the SEC Network a reality. Prior to the game between South Carolina and Samford those involved with making the SEC Network contests happen had worked for months to allow Muller to “flip the switch and go” in the inaugural broadcast. The network had even utilized two Gamecock men’s soccer exhibitions at Eugene E. Stone III Stadium the week before as practice for the inaugural first live broadcast that was aired on SEC Network+ through WatchESPN on Sunday, Aug. 24. That the live event was finally happening was not lost on South Carolina director of live operations David Cockfield. Cockfield has been working with South Carolina in a variety of roles since 1983, but when he transitioned into his current role with the University in May of 2014 it signaled the first time he moved full-time within the athletics department. In charge of video board operations at South Carolina since the old one was installed at Williams-Brice Stadium prior to the 1995 season, Cockfield worked for two months putting things in place before he was joined by associate director of live operations/engineering Mark Slice and assistant director of live operations/graphics Justin Stoll on July 1. The trio has been working day and night since that time to get ready for the South Carolina women’s soccer home season opener at “The Graveyard” as well as the other 120 events in numerous Gamecock sports they are hoping to broadcast over the course of the 2014-15 athletic year. Cockfield was visibly excited prior to kickoff that all their hard work was starting to
come to fruition. “We’re really excited,” Cockfield commented. “There are not many opportunities like this to be able to be part of a network startup to start something that hasn’t been done at the University. To do sports that’s a whole another thing. It’s a lot of fun. We’re just tremendously excited, but we are also scared to death.” Senior associate athletics director for external affairs Charles Bloom has overseen a great deal of the process to this point in time and he echoed Cockfield in his excitement for the night to finally be here. “A lot of work has gone into putting everything in place for the network for us (such as) purchasing the equipment, laying the fiber, hiring the staff, coordinating the workers who would be coming in,” Bloom elaborated. “A lot of the credit goes to the three people we’ve hired: David Cockfield, Mark Slice photo by brian hand and Justin Stoll. They’ve been the nucleus of Analyst Nancy Augustyniak Goffi and South Carolina director of content Brad Muller implementing the things we need to get the do the pregame standup for the first-ever live SEC Network broadcast on Aug. 24. broadcast off the ground and we feel pretty good about it.” As would be expected, Bloom is very proud of the fact that the first of the many live broadcasts is finally here, but he points out that it is just the beginning of a long year. “When you’re a part of something that takes so much work to get done it is a lot of pride to see it come to conclusion,” Bloom stated. “While it’s a conclusion in terms of getting the first broadcast in we plan on doing 120 of these. At the end of the academic year is probably a good time to gauge whether it’s been totally successful or not. We feel pretty good about where we are and the second broadcast will be better than the first one and the third one will be better than the second one, so hopefully if you are watching what we produce you’ll see a continued improvement throughout the year.” Cockfield is thankful for the efforts of Bloom and South Carolina chief operating officer Kevin O’Connell as they have given them the resources they need to be successful in their endeavors with the live operations. “Charles and Kevin have been really good to us,” Cockfield remarked. “They don’t want to put pressure on us, but they have asked questions and asked if they could help. Now it’s in our hands. We’ve got to give them a product they’re happy with, but so far it’s been great.” The 26 individuals involved in the firstever live broadcast on the SEC Network of a South Carolina production included roles ranging from on-air talent to video camera-
10 • Spurs & Feathers
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photo by brian hand
The view from the control room at Williams-Brice Stadium during the first-ever on-campus live SEC Network broadcast on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2014. The game aired on SEC Network+. work to sound and instant replay. The entire production is run out of a cosntrol room at Williams-Brice Stadium. There will not always be 26 people involved in a soccer broadcast, but as with everything else South Carolina wanted to step out on the right foot from the outset. “We will eventually get down to about 18, but for the first couple of events we’re bringing in some extra people,” Cockfield mentioned. “We should be able to do a game with 18, which also means that when we do a doubleheader like volleyball and soccer, there is 36 people involved. There’s a lot of manpower that the University is putting in to this.” Joined in the booth by former Clemson All-American, United States National Team member, professional soccer player and wife of South Carolina men’s tennis head coach Josh Goffi, Nancy Augustyniak Goffi provided the analysis for the first-ever live broadcast on SEC Network+. The team of Muller and Goffi will contribute analysis for the Gamecock home women’s soccer games during the 2014 season. South Carolina will have different broadcasting teams for each of the fall Olympic sports in men’s soccer and volleyball in
addition to women’s soccer. Since it is officially an SEC Network broadcast the broadcasters have been asked to be impartial. Prior to kickoff of the first live broadcast, Muller said that he was just hopeful his part was only a small cog in the overall production. “Hopefully at the end of the day people will have enjoyed the broadcast not so much for anything I’ve said in particular, but hopefully at least along the way they were entertained, informed and felt like they were watching a professional broadcast,” Muller explained. “That’s the important thing to me. The main thing is it is certainly not about the broadcaster. It’s about the game.” South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner feels all of this is moving in the right direction of where they want to be with their SEC Network broadcasts. “We made some changes internally and we made an investment to increase our quality of production with some fiber, with some cameras,” Tanner articulated. “We have three new full-time people on board to help us bring the best of Carolina athletics. We’re excited about where we are. We’re turning the page. You can’t stand still.
You’ve got to continue to make progress and certainly at the University we’re going to be a part of that.” It may be the dawn of a new era with the first SEC Network broadcast, but Bloom like Tanner is most proud of the fact that all of this is about fully supporting studentathletes during their time at the University of South Carolina. “It’s a new day,” Bloom concluded. “We’re very fortunate at South Carolina that we’re able to put together a product like the SEC Network and not take away from the overall mission of the department of developing student-athletes to succeed in all phases of life.” That new day included a 2-0 victory for South Carolina women’s soccer over Samford to extend the Gamecocks’ home winning streak to a program-best 12 games. The Gamecocks were a perfect 11-0-0 last year at Stone Stadium. In what was her 198th career victory, South Carolina women’s soccer head coach Shelley Smith mentioned that she along with her coaching staff took the same approach as Muller into the first-ever South Carolina live on-campus SEC Network broadcast.
“We didn’t talk about it with the team because I don’t want them to think it’s any different than any other time, but we know it’s such great exposure for the program and for the University and to come out and play well and get a win, I am glad we could do that for our opening game (on the network),” Smith concluded.
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Spurs & Feathers • 11
SEC Nation to bring flavor of SEC to wider audience by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
of the finest in the business. He makes it easy for us and that’s been the biggest deal for me. I love Paul (Finebaum). Paul brings The SEC Network’s traveling pregame a different spice to the whole pregame show show SEC Nation will make an effort to dis- because he is so intricately detailed in everyplay a complete gameday experience from thing that goes on in the SEC as opposed to conference locations to a national audience. the actual game, so he brings a lot of aspects “SEC Nation” held its first live broadcast in that way,” Spears said. “Then being with from Gamecock Park prior to the South Tim (Tebow), it’s just two players talking Carolina-Texas A&M game with Williams- about football and getting it going. ObviBrice Stadium and numerous rowdy fans for ously we’ll have a bit of a different opinion a backdrop. because he played offense and I played The cast for SEC Nation will be made up defense, so I’m going to lean more heavily of host Joe Tessitore, analysts and former toward defense winning championships and SEC standouts Tim Tebow and Marcus he’ll probably say quarterbacks and skill Spears, the polarizing Paul Finebaum and players determine that. reporter Kaylee Hartung. ESPN Vice Presi“It will be a lot of fun and I think for mydent of Production Bob Rauscher noted the self it’s not really a nervous energy. I’m just group has “tremendous chemistry” already. ready to get going and show people what “We’re thrilled with the chemistry so far, we’ve been working on so hard,” Spears not only with Joe, Tim, Marcus and Paul added. Finebaum, but with Kaylee Hartung our Brett Austin, producer for SEC Network, reporter as well. The number of opportuniand Rauscher both said this group gives ties for them to be together in some previous them an advantage and they have the sucshows that we’ve taped, promo shoots and cessful ESPN College Gameday program to various PR functions throughout the ramp model after. However they each recognized up, of all the on-air teams that I’ve seen, this the need to differentiate from the successful group has clicked very early on. It’s great to brand. see,” Rauscher commented. “That’s one of the shows that is appointTessitore agreed that the group’s chemistry ment viewing for most college football fans. is great despite the fact that they have not We hope to be somewhere in that mix for done much live TV together, saying “we’ve SEC fans. We’re going to be a little different done a lot of multi-course dinners debating than College Gameday, but we’re going to football, we’ve crossed the country, we’ve bring a lot of the same things that College had speaking engagements, we’ve traveled Gameday does as far as heavy Xs and Os together, we’ve been hanging out together, coverage,” Austin said. “You are going to we’re texting every day and on the phone see a lot more flavor from the SEC schools every night. We feel like we’re good friends since we’re dedicated to the SEC, but Coland when you’re really good friends that lege Gameday is a great show. We’re not share a similar passion like we do - college trying to be College Gameday, we’re not tryfootball and SEC football specifically is our ing to replace College Gameday on the SEC passion - all you have to do is be the same Network. way you are any two hours of the week when “We’re just trying to provide a really you’re on the air and that will just come strong product for hardcore fans and fans through. That’s all we plan on doing. If you who want to see the pageantry, the passion were hanging out with us back at the trailer, and what makes the SEC special. I think as it’s the same two hours. We’re just talking people watch our shows, they’ll get a sense ball and being ourselves.” of what we’re about. Tapping into the energy He also noted he thinks Tebow and Spears of the SEC is a big part of it and that’s going will be superstars in the industry despite to be on display every single week,” Austin being new to television. Tebow said the continued. transition to television has been fairly easy “In effort to differentiate, we’ve decided because breaking down football is natural to come to the fans,” Rauscher echoed. for him. “We’re trying to bring to the viewer at home “I’m excited, but for me it’s just talking somewhat of a sense of envy and jealousy so ball. It’s something that I’ve done in my liv- they say, ‘I wish I was there. It looks like a ing room since I was six years old and some- great scene.’ On a weekly basis wherever we thing that I love to do. I love watching these are, we want the people at home to say, ‘that teams, studying them, talking to players and looks like so much fun, I wish I was there.’ coaches and just understanding what they’re “To that end we’re going to locations that trying to do in their game plan,” Tebow said. will have built-in crowds and we hope that Spears agrees there is fantastic chemistry experience will give the viewers at home a and credits the cast for creating that. sense of what it’s like to be on campus on the “Having the ability to work with great day of a game for SEC football,” Raushcer people makes this great. Joe Tessitore is one concluded.
photo by brian hand
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September 3, 2014
Charlotte Gamecock Club is extremely active by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
The Charlotte chapter of the Gamecock Club provided a multitude of successful events leading up to the season opener and plans to stay active throughout the year. On Aug. 18 the Charlotte Gamecock Club and MyCarolina Alumni Club of Charlotte hosted the Fifth Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament at the Golf Club at Ballantyne in South Charlotte with tremendous success. “We hosted 108 golfers, 15 volunteers, raised $7,200 for our scholarship, $100 for ALS through the Ice Bucket challenge with Cocky, hosted school officials such as our Athletic Director, Ray Tanner, Executive Director of MyCarolina Jack Claypoole, Associate AD Steve Eigenbrot, Gamecock Club Executive Director Patrick McFarland and Assistant Director Jay Brown,” chapter president James Wolf said. “It was a good cause and we had a lot of fun.” Wolf also noted that a number of former Gamecock athletes attended “such as Todd Ellis, Travelle Wharton, Kevin Melillo, Hutch Eckerson, Jamar Nesbit, Jose Mata Jr. and more came out. Former running back, Brian Maddox, flew all the way from Dallas to support our cause. He lived in Charlotte and got a job where he transferred to Dallas, then bought his own plane ticket to come in and play in the golf tournament. He said he had a blast, but we really want to give credit to our former athlete Brian Maddox for coming in for us.” Wolf said there were a number of sponsors for the tournament and great raffle prizes such as a suite at a Hornets’ game, pregame field passes for the South CarolinaTennessee football game and cash prizes just to name a few. He added that they provided a catered breakfast and lunch, a gift bag, an Under Armour dry-fit polo shirt along with plenty of other perks to draw participants out to the tournament. The chapter stayed busy by participating in the SEC Alumni Bash tailgate event with around 900 people in attendance - about 200 of which stopped by the Gamecock Club tent to hear Wolf speak the “Gamecock gospel.” He noted it was a great event, saying “it’s just SEC schools getting together and having some fun, then there’s a raffle with the proceeds going to the Ronald McDonald House. We raised $3000 this year at the SEC Alumni Bash which was great.” Next up for the chapter will be the Gamecock watch parties hosted at the Icehouse in Southend which will participate in a revenue share program to help raise money for the chapter. “Every year during viewing parties we do a revenue share … we are able to raise
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several thousand dollars just by going and watching the games at Icehouse,” Wolf explained. “We’ll have 500 people at our viewing parties which is pretty neat. We do Gamecock trivia and all kinds of stuff like that too. It’s great because you are guaranteed to watch the game, listen to the audio with free parking, free entry and it is right off the light rail.” Wolf said that the Charlotte chapter is planning to have the first-ever Gamecock women’s fashion show some time this fall with local boutiques donating Garnet & Black items and local Gamecock Club members who are models working the runway. “It’s kind of outside the box and more catered toward women, but women can be football fans too you know. It’s something that has never been done before and it’s a great way to recognize the women who are Gamecock fans,” Wolf remarked. There will be a number of other events upcoming as well and Wolf encourages Gamecock fans in the area to keep up-to-date with them by watching the Charlotte Gamecock Club’s social media accounts. You can like them on Facebook and LinkedIn as Charlotte Gamecock Club or follow them on Twitter and Instagram as @CltGamecocks. Wolf, who was honored at halftime of the Texas A&M game as the Gamecock Club’s Most Valuable President which he said “truly flattered” him, said that he tries to give options for Gamecocks in Charlotte to get involved in the community. He added that with factors like 300 students from Charlotte in the University’s freshman class, possible in-state tuition, an MBA program in Charlotte with the Darla Moore School of Business and the first football game of 2015 in Charlotte, they hope to have the University view the city as Charlotte, South Carolina. “Our focus is between the social, charity and professional events, we can raise money
for a good cause of the scholarships. How can we raise money and have fun at the same time without having the pressure of a fundraiser. We want it to be a FUNdraiser,” Wolf said. “I always tell people that there are 8,000 alumni here, but if we don’t bring people together, that’s just a number. We don’t care if you’re an alumni or not, but if you support us, then we’ll support you as well. “If you move to Charlotte, we’ve got
social, charity and professional events, so whether you’re 22, 52 or 82, we have something for you. Also the professional events can help you find a job. If you’re a Gamecock, we can plug you into the the community in Charlotte,” Wolf concluded. Wolf again mentioned to keep up to date with all the social media avenues for updates and added if there are any questions, feel free to email him at james_wolf@ ml.com.
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September 3, 2014
There are plenty of big games on the horizon “You got to play until the end. The only difference between a winner and a loser is a winner plays until he wins” - Big KRIT Everyone starts the season out the same zero wins, zero losses, from this standpoint everyone feels they can just go ahead and print their name on the championship T-shirt. This brings to mind “first day of school” anxiety or “first day on the job jitters.” Just because you have a terrible first day or a great first day you realize “one day,” “one game,” “one play” doesn’t make or break a career. It’s the accumulation of those perceived good or bad days that makes a career or season. To be honest our “first day of school” wasn’t a good one for Gamecock Nation. Being a former Gamecock defensive player it was disappointing to say the least. The absence of desire and “want to” we’ve been accustomed to seeing wasn’t there, not to mention the lackluster effort to secure tackles in our first big game of 2014. With high expectations comes the possibility of disappointment. The competition and the fight to prove yourself as a team/ organization is constantly tested in sports, This is especially true in the SEC and for the Gamecocks. The past decade the bar has been raised in all areas across the boards with Gamecock Nation. We’ve seen dominating performances against traditional SEC powerhouses from the Gamecocks (UGA, Florida and Bama). The Gamecocks have played the spoiler on the road (Mizzou comeback) and finished in the top-10 following 11 wins over the last three years. If you think about it the Gamecocks have won the big games before and still haven’t found their way to Atlanta. Those wins in the big games don’t always guarantee that your squad holds the hardware. In the year we did make it down I-20, we lost to teams we traditionally were favored against (Kentucky, Arkansas) and won games we should’ve been underdogs (beat No. 1 ranked Bama). Remembering the lessons from that season to “play it to the end” and to control what we could control (which is the next game) Langston Moore we might Contributing have missed Writer our opportunity worrying about past losses. This is something the 2014 squad will need to remember. Coach Spurrier has mentioned it several times that the SEC East representative usually has more than one or two losses in a season. Our past successes
in these games as well as the other 18 straight wins at home can be credited to those Gamecock squads treating all games as big games. Pushing what “could be” into “ what was” by upping the stakes with each win. I’ve been fortunate to play in some big games. These games are usually characterized by some underlying story or some high stakes for the winner. Soon after the nerves kick in, we realize the importance and “how big” the BIG game is. The big game is the big game because it’s the only game that can be played. It’s the only way NOW to do something about the future LATER. Talk to anyone who has achieved anything, I guarantee you will find a very special talent when it comes to achievement/success. It has has nothing to do with knowledge or skills, it’s their ability to scale things down to the most finite focus. They become oblivious to outside distractions and just focus on the old cliche “one game at a time.” It’s deeper than that though. You have to focus down to “one half,” “one quarter,” “one series,” “one snap” as the pressure and stakes rise. As in life when we look at the big picture it can become overwhelming to us even if the rewards are high! Regardless of all the girls, accolades, praises, free drinks awaiting the champ at the awards podium, that just isn’t enough to get you through the hard or adversity. How does this relate: it’s ALL A BIG GAME! And they get bigger and bigger the more you WIN. When Spurrier is asked to predict the outcome of future games his response is along the lines of: “who were playing this week is the biggest game because they’re who we play next.” Spurrier and his staff tries to implement this zen-like philosophy for all games into these players in attempt to keep them from “seeing too much.” The reason for this really shows how we cannot allow external things (even high expectations like past successes and preseason rankings, postseason rankings) to control our percep-
photo by allen sharpe
tion of what’s “big,” what’s “small,” what’s a “good opponent” and what’s “bad opponent.” The bottom line is they all are big plays, big games.” As with most losses (be it losing a game or player) there is always an inkling to go back to what was, to hold on to pass success now. That’s the beauty of sports it forces us to play the hand that’s dealt regardless of personnel, injuries or even success. Especially with football the question is “how do you deal with loss?” No not those “losses” (forget the chicken curse), but the losses of the success of the program (24 players drafted in the last five years). We will all wish to go back to days of the recent past at times this season, especially with a group of young unproven starters. The men of Gamecock country have the opportunity to be a part of another big game, with the ECU pirates coming to town. Similar in offensive scheme to the Aggies, but this squad is accompanied by a stingy defense led by coach Ruffin McNeal. Just in time before the nation coins the next big game against UGA in two weeks. This ECU game is HUGE for us not only because of the need to rebound from the loss from Thursday night, but because it’s the next game! Gamecock Nation and myself included need to take a page out of coach Spurrier’s philosophy book and adopt this big game mind frame. In doing so we can start seeing a little and temper all the hype and questions from Thursday’s loss. With plenty more BIG games on the horizon fans, parents, current and former Gamecocks can enjoy the opportunities ahead as well with the results as long as we focus forward and don’t look “back at what could have been.” Here’s to a big game season: one game at a time! Follow Langston Moore on Twitter at @reMovetheChains #eat2win #YOBY #Justachicken
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South Carolina Gamecocks Football Roster # Name Pos. 1 Damiere Byrd WR 1 Rico McWilliams CB 3 Nick Jones WR 3 Chris Lammons CB 4 Bryson Allen-Williams LB 4 Shaq Roland WR 5 Darius English DE 5 Brendan Nosovitch QB 6 Connor Mitch QB 6 Chris Moody SS 7 Shon Carson TB 7 Wesley Green CB 8 Shamier Jeffery WR 8 Kaiwan Lewis LB 9 Deebo Samuel WR 9 Sharrod Golightly SPR 10 Skai Moore LB 10 Perry Orth QB 11 T.J. Holloman LB 11 Pharoh Cooper WR 12 Michael Scarnecchia QB 12 Brison Williams SS 13 Tyler Hull P 13 Grant Davitte QB 14 Shaq Davidson WR 14 Ali Groves CB 15 Austin Hails QB 16 Zack Cimaglia K/P 17 Chaz Elder FS 17 Dylan Thompson QB 18 Cedrick Cooper DE 18 Patrick Fish P 19 Terry Googer WR 19 Landon Ard PK 20 T.J. Gurley SS 21 Marcquis Roberts LB 21 Andrew Bunch WR 22 Brandon Wilds TB 22 Jamari Smith CB 23 Larenz Bryant SPR 24 D.J. Smith DB 25 Kadetrix Marcus FS 26 Jasper Sasser FS 28 Mike Davis TB 28 Jonathan Walton LB 29 Elliott Fry PK 29 Matrick Belton WR 30 Darius Paulk FB 30 Sidney Rhodes CB 31 Al Harris Jr. CB 31 Jordan Diaz FB 32 Rod Talley TB 33 David Williams TB 34 Jonas Price K/P 34 Mason Harris DE
Hgt. 5-9 5-11 5-7 5-10 6-1 6-1 6-6 6-1 6-3 6-1 5-8 5-10 6-1 6-0 6-0 5-10 6-2 6-1 6-2 5-11 6-4 5-11 6-2 6-3 5-11 5-10 6-2 6-1 6-2 6-3 6-2 6-0 6-4 5-9 5-10 6-1 5-11 6-2 5-10 6-0 5-11 6-1 6-0 5-9 6-0 6-0 6-4 5-8 5-10 5-11 6-1 5-10 6-1 6-2 6-3
Wgt. 170 184 168 172 231 176 241 221 211 210 201 176 198 228 192 187 213 204 234 201 189 208 207 180 170 187 220 170 195 218 225 194 210 178 194 216 173 222 197 220 189 194 203 223 228 165 215 199 182 162 236 201 214 165 235
Cl. SR RS SO RS SR FR FR JR RS SO RS SO RS FR RS SO RS JR FR RS JR JR FR RS SR SO RS SO RS SO SO FR SR RS SR RS FR FR RS FR RS JR RS SO RS SO RS SR RS JR RS SR FR RS JR JR RS SO RS SO RS JR SO SO FR SR RS FR JR SO SO RS SO RS SO RS SR FR RS SR RS SO RS FR RS FR RS JR
Hometown/High School/Last College Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek Hampton, Ga./Lovejoy Moore, S.C./Byrnes Sunrise, Fla./Plantation Ellenwood, Ga./Ceder Grove Lexington, S.C./Lexington Powder Springs, Ga./McEachern Allentown, Pa./Central Catholic Raleigh, N.C./Wakefield McDonough, Ga./Henry County Scranton, S.C./Lake City Lithonia, Ga./Martin Luther King St. Matthews, S.C./Calhoun County Pleasantville, N.J./St. Joseph Inman, S.C./Chapman Decatur, Ga./Southwest DeKalb Cooper City, Fla./University Ponde Verda, Fla./Ponte Verda/Florida State College Stone Mountain, Ga./St. Pius X Havelock, NC./Havelock Fleming Island, Fla./Fleming Island Warner Robins, Ga./Northside/Fork Union Military Mount Airy, N.C./Mount Airy/Guilford College Columbia, S.C./Irmo Gaffney, S.C./Gaffney Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson Collinsville, Ill./Collinsville Charlotte, N.C./Myers Park/North Carolina A&T Union City, Ga./Banneker Boiling Springs, S.C./Boiling Springs Lithonia, Ga./Lithonia Shelby, N.C./Burns Atlanta, Ga./Woodward Academy Rock Hill, S.C./South Pointe Cairo, Ga./Cairo Powder Springs, Ga./McEachern Mt. Pleasant, S.C./Bishop England/Presbyterian Blythewood, S.C./Blythewood Jacksonville, Fla./Fletcher Charlotte, NC./Vance Marietta, Ga./Walton Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson Jacksonville, Fla./Wolfson Atlanta, Ga./Stephenson Daphne, Ala./Bayside Academy Frisco, Tx./Prince of Peace Christian Columbia, S.C./Keenan/Hampton Columbia, S.C./Richland Northeast/North Greenville Easley, S.C./Wren/Western Carolina Fort Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas Hamilton, N.J./Hamilton West Laurens, S.C./Laurens/Gardner-Webb Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter Cockeysville, Md./St. Paul’s Fort Oglethorpe, Ga./Ridgeland
Coaches Steve Spurrier - Head Coach Deke Adams - Defensive Line Kirk Botkin - Linebackers/Spurs Grady Brown - Secondary/Assistant Special Teams Coordinator Shawn Elliott - Co-Offensive Coordinator/Offensive LIne G.A. Mangus - Quarterbacks/Tight Ends Joe Robinson - Special Teams Coordinator Everette Sands - Running Backs Jamie Speronis - Associate AD/Football Operations Steve Spurrier Jr. - Co-Offensive Coord/Wide Receivers/Recruiting Coordinator Lorenzo Ward - Defensive Coordinator Joey Blake - Director of Football Nutrition Robbie Liles - Director - Recruiting Operations Patrick Shine - Administrative Coordinator - Recruiting Scott Spurrier - Quality Control Coordinator (Offense) Shaq Wilson - Quality Control Coordinator (Defense)
# Name Pos. 35 Shannon James DB 39 Demetrius Smalls DB 40 Jacob August TE 41 Kyle Morini LB 41 Connor McLaurin FB 42 Jordan Diggs SPR 43 Benjamin Russell DB 43 Garrison Gist FB 44 Gerald Turner FB 44 Gerald Dixon DE 45 Brandon Sturdivant FB 46 Cedrick Malone SPR 47 Drew Williams LS 48 Nick McGriff TE 49 Garrett Shank SS 49 Devin Potter TB 50 A.J. Cann OG 51 Cody Waldrop OC 51 Devin Washington DE 52 Phillip Dukes DT 53 Corey Robinson OT 54 Clayton Stadnik OC 55 David Johnson DE 55 Na’Ty Rodgers OT 58 Ryland Culbertson LS 59 Coleman Harley LS 65 Brock Stadnik OG 69 D.J. Park OT 70 Alan Knott OC 71 Brandon Shell OT 72 Donell Stanley OL 74 Mason Zandi OT 75 Will Sport OG 76 Mike Matulis OT 77 Malik Young OL 80 K.J. Brent WR 81 Rory Anderson TE 82 Caleb Hines WR 83 Carlton Heard WR 84 Matthew Harvey WR 85 Kane Whitehurst WR 86 Kevin Crosby TE 87 Sean Odom WR 88 Drew Owens TE 89 Jerell Adams TE 90 Cody Gibson TE 90 Taylor Stallworth DT 91 Blake McClain DE 92 Gerald Dixon, Jr. DT 93 Deon Green DT 94 Kelsey Griffin DT 95 Michael Washington DE 97 J.T. Surratt DT 99 Abu Lamin DT
Hgt. 5-7 5-11 6-6 5-10 6-0 6-0 6-0 5-10 6-2 6-2 6-2 6-0 6-2 6-0 6-0 5-10 6-4 6-2 6-3 6-3 6-8 6-3 6-1 6-5 6-4 6-1 6-5 6-4 6-4 6-6 6-4 6-9 6-5 6-5 6-3 6-4 6-5 5-11 6-0 6-8 5-11 6-1 6-0 6-6 6-6 6-7 6-2 6-3 6-3 6-4 6-2 6-3 6-2 6-4
Wgt. 153 170 247 221 243 217 175 260 250 274 218 201 201 220 203 203 311 309 221 323 344 273 275 280 267 246 287 328 280 333 346 301 291 307 318 192 227 160 188 22 8 169 230 190 238 242 278 293 265 323 289 310 237 310 302
Cl. RS SO RS FR FR RS SR RS SR RS SO RS FR RS JR RS FR RS SO RS SO RS SO SO FR RS SO RS SO RS SR RS SO RS FR RS JR RS SR RS SO RS FR RS FR RS SR RS JR RS SO RS FR RS FR RS JR FR RS SO RS JR RS JR FR RS JR SR FR RS JR RS JR RS JR FR SO RS JR JR RS SR FR FR RS JR RS SO SO RS JR RS SR RS SO
Hometown/High School/Last College Florence, S.C./South Florence Bluffton, S.C./Bluffton Columbia, S.C./Cardinal Newman/Fork Union Warner Robins, Ga./White Knoll/Gray Military Raleigh, N.C./Garner Fort Myers, Fla./Island Coast Atlanta, Ga./Woodward Academy Rock Hill, S.C./Northwesterm Goose Creek, S.C./Goose Creek Rock Hill, S.C./South Pointe Fort Mill, S.C./Nation Ford/York Tech Camden, S.C./Camden/Coastal Carolina Irmo, S.C/Dutch Fork Gainesville, Fla./Gainesville Marietta, Ga./Lassiter Granite Falls, N.C./South Caldwell Bamberg, S.C./Bamberg-Ehrhardt Seffner, Fla./Armwood Orlando, Fla./Jones Manning, S.C./Manning Havelock, N.C./Havelock Greensboro, N.C./Western Guilford Lithonia, Ga./Lithonia Waldorf, Md./McDonough Laurens, S.C./Laurens Academy Aiken, S.C./South Aiken Greensboro, N.C./Western Guilford Dillon, S.C./Dillon Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek Goose Creek, S.C./Goose Creek Floydale, S.C./Latta Irmo, S.C./Chapin Milton, Fla./Pace Boynton Beach, Fla./Park Vista Pelzer, S.C./Woodmont Waxhaw, N.C./Marvin Ridge Powder Springs, Ga./McEachern Cornelius, N.C./Hough Athens, Ga./Clarke Central/Gardner-Webb Rock Hill, S.C./Rock Hill Duluth, Ga./Chattahoochee/Arkansas Bamberg, S.C./Bamberg-Ehrhardt Orangeburg, S.C./Orangeburg Prep Charlotte, N.C./Ardrey Kell Pinewood, S.C./Scott’s Branch Tallahassee, Fla./Lincoln Mobile, Ala./Murphy Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood Rock Hill, S.C./Northwestern Windermere, Fla./Olympia Buford, Ga./Mill Creek Allendale, S.C./Allendale-Fairfax/S.C. State Winston-Salem, N.C./Parkland Fayetteville, N.C./Trinity Christian/Fort Scott C.C.
Spurs & Feathers • 17
September 3, 2014
East Carolina Football Roster # Name Pos. Hgt. 1 Dayon Pratt LB 6-4 2 Justin Hardy WR 6-0 2 Xavier Smith DB 6-2 3 Travon Simmons DB 5-10 3 Anthony Scott RB 5-9 4 Malik Gray WR 6-1 4 Detric Allen DB 6-0 5 Blake Norwood DB 6-0 5 Shane Carden QB 6-2 6 Kurt Benkert QB 6-3 6 DaShawn Benton DB 6-0 7 Lamar Ivey DB 6-1 7 Isaiah Jones WR 6-1 8 Cedric Thompson WR 5-9 9 K’Hadree Hooker DL 6-1 9 Cam Worthy WR 6-3 10 Blake Kemp QB 6-1 10 Rocco Scarfone DB 5-11 12 Cody Purdie DB 5-11 12 Cody Keith QB 6-3 13 Jonathon Weymann QB 6-0 13 Pat Green LB 6-2 14 Travis Phillips DB 5-11 14 Warren Harvey PK 5-11 15 Brandon Bishop WR 5-11 19 Curtis Burston WR 6-1 19 David Thompson DB 5-8 20 Quay Johnson WR 5-10 20 Austin Teague DB 6-0 21 Ray Tillman LB 6-1 22 Chris Hairston RB 6-0 22 Terrell Richardson DB 6-0 23 Chris Love RB/WR 5-10 23 Desi Brown LB 6-2 24 Jamal Tillman RB 5-9 24 Brandon Williams LB 6-1 25 Breon Allen RB 5-8 26 Cory Hunter RB 5-10 27 Marquez Grayson RB 6-1 28 Josh Hawkins DB 5-10 30 Joe Carter LB 6-2 30 Trevian Hicks DB 5-11 31 Domonique Lennon DB 6-2 32 Christian Simmons DB 5-11 33 Drew Turnage DB 6-0 34 Devaris Brunson LB 6-1 35 Bobby Fulp DB 6-4 35 Greg Robinson DB 5-11 37 Jim Squatriglia P 6-2 38 Davis Plowman PK/P 5-10 39 DaShaun Amos DB 6-1 40 Worth Gregory P 6-3 41 Davonte’ Spruill LB 6-3 43 Drayvon Fairley LB 6-3 44 Zeek Bigger LB 6-2 45 Jake Geary LB 6-3
Wgt. 230 188 195 185 180 194 200 189 221 220 189 196 186 183 300 220 209 182 189 200 210 218 180 225 187 226 171 170 178 193 197 210 178 220 193 230 190 201 200 186 220 198 205 176 185 230 195 202 236 185 182 205 212 217 228 250
Cl. SO SR RS FR RS FR FR FR SR FR SR RS FR SO SR SO JR SO SR JR JR FR JR JR RS FR RS FR SR SO FR JR FR RS FR FR JR SO RS FR SR SO SR SR JR RS FR JR FR RS FR JR JR FR SO RS FR SR FR SO SO SO FR SO JR SR
Hometown/Previous School Washington, D.C. (Calvin Coolidge) Vanceboro (West Craven) Raleigh (Wakefield) Marietta, Ga. (Hillgrove) Virginia Beach, Va. (Green Run) Inman, S.C. (Chapman) Norwood (South Stanly) Pensacola, Fla. (Pensacola) Houston, Texas (Episcopal) Cape Coral, Fla. (Island Coast) Atlanta, Ga. (Grady) Mebane (Eastern Alamance) Austin, Texas (Stephen F. Austin) Kings Mountain (Kings Mountain) Kinston (NC State) Blair, S.C. (Yuba CC) Chandler, Ariz. (Mesa CC) Greensboro (Northern Guilford) New Bern (New Bern) Charlotte (Cheshire Academy) Charlotte (Myers Park) Winston-Salem (North Forsyth) Montpelier, Va. (Patrick Henry) Greenville (J.H. Rose) Snow Hill (Greene Central) Apex (Middle Creek) Garner (Garner) Knightdale (Knightdale) Lexington (West Davidson) Lithonia, Ga. (Miller Grove) Winston-Salem (Parkland) Raleigh (Southeast Raleigh) Wake Forest (Wake Forest-Rolesville) Webster Groves, Mo. (Webster Groves) Charlotte (West Charlotte) Rock Hill, S.C. (Hargrave Military) Daytona Beach, Fla. (Snow) Fuquay-Varina (Fuquay-Varina) Lexington (Lexington) Winston-Salem (Glenn) Ponte Vedra, Fla. (Ponte Vedra) Ayden (South Central) Suffolk, Va. (Nansemond-Suffolk Academy) Winston-Salem (Glenn) Ayden (Ayden-Grifton) Lake City, S.C. (Lake City) Midlothian, Va. (Clover Hill) Fayetteville (Seventy-First) Huntersville (Fork Union) Roswell, Ga. (Texas A&M) Midlothian, Va. (Manchester) Fort Mill, S.C. (Alabama) Plymouth (Plymouth) Red Springs (Red Springs) Gastonia (Ashbrook) Hillsborough (Cedar Ridge)
Coaches Ruffin McNeill - Head Coach Kirk Doll - Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs Coach Brandon Jones - Offensive Line Donnie Kirkpatrick - Recruiting Coordinator/Inside Receivers Dave Nichol - Outside Receivers Duane Price - Outside Linebackers Lincoln Riley - Asst. Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Rick Smith - Defensive Coordinator/Secondary John Wiley - Associate Head Coach/Inside Linebackers Marc Yellock - Defensive Line Kyle Chase - Defensive Staff Assistant Ryan Dougherty - Special Teams Staff Assistant Bobby Harward - Defensive Staff Assistant Garrett Riley - Offensive Staff Assistant Jeff Connors - Assistant AD/Strength and Conditioning Brian Overton - Director of Football Operations/Player Personnel Harold Robinson - Director of High School Relations Dale Steele - Director of Football Administration
# Name Pos. Hgt. 46 Yiannis Bowden LB 6-5 47 Jeton Beavers LB 6-5 48 Maurice Falls LB 6-3 49 Masaddiq Walton LB 6-3 50 C.J. Struyk OL/DS 6-2 50 Shaun James DL 6-4 51 Montese Overton LB 6-3 52 Kirk Donaldson LB 6-3 53 Cole Pickard LB 6-0 54 Terry Williams NT 6-1 55 Larry Williams OL 6-4 55 Cameron White LB 5-11 56 Garrett McGhin OL 6-6 56 Demetri McGill NT/DE 6-1 57 Joe Allely LB 6-1 58 Isaiah King DL 6-1 59 Reece Speight LB 6-3 60 Charlie Coggins DS 6-3 61 Colton Oliver DS 6-3 62 Brandon Smith OL 6-8 64 Des Barmore OL 6-6 65 J.T. Boyd OL 6-4 66 Terrell Stanley DE/NT 6-2 66 Erik Lenzen OL 6-5 67 Will Foxx OL 6-2 68 Tre Robertson OL 6-5 69 Ike Harris OL 6-7 70 Kyle Erickson OL 6-4 71 Dontae Levingston OL 6-4 72 Quincy McKinney OL 6-4 72 Christian Matau OL 6-3 74 Taylor Hudson OL 6-5 75 Bladen Gatling OL 6-2 76 Stewart Hinson OL 6-7 78 Messiah Rice OT 6-5 80 Bryce Williams WR/TE 6-6 81 Darren Dowdell TE 6-4 81 Jimmy Williams WR 5-11 82 DaQuan Barnes WR 6-1 83 Jacen Murphy WR 5-10 84 Jonathan Stanley WR 6-2 85 Davon Grayson WR 6-2 86 Steve Baggett TE 6-5 87 Terrell Green WR 6-4 87 Beau Huffman TE 6-2 88 Trevon Brown WR 6-2 89 Dwayne Duckett WR 5-10 90 Randall Anderson DE 6-4 91 Markel Winters LB/DL 6-3 92 Mike Myers NT 6-0 93 Chrishon Rose NT/DE 6-4 94 Johnathon White DE 6-4 95 Terry Biles DE 6-2 97 Demage Bailey DL 6-5 98 Alex Evans DE 6-6 99 Fred Presley DE/NT 6-3
Wgt. 215 263 247 245 296 235 220 255 220 353 337 213 310 310 239 275 236 200 271 336 284 302 266 265 313 310 304 286 293 311 315 285 323 296 255 250 228 180 190 180 200 196 225 190 193 206 175 254 226 288 303 292 278 250 215 300
Cl. FR JR SR FR JR FR JR RS FR FR SR RS FR SO FR SO RS FR FR SO SR FR RS FR FR SO JR FR JR JR JR FR JR JR RS FR SR JR JR FR JR RS FR SO SO RS FR RS FR SO FR FR FR FR JR RS FR FR RS FR SR JR SR RS FR FR SO
Hometown/Previous School Kernersville (Glenn) Virginia Beach, Va. (Bayside) Belmont (South Point) Virginia Beach, Va. (Ocean Lakes) Morehead City (West Carteret) Virginia Beach, Va. (Green Run) Greenville (South Central) Charlotte (Vance) Walkertown (East Forsyth) Loganville, Ga. (Grayson) Wilmington (Laney) Apex (Middle Creek) Tallahasse, Fla. (Florida State HS) Virginia Beach, Va. (Ocean Lakes) Vienna, Va. (Oakton) Mount Airy (Mount Airy) Wilson (Beddingfield) Albemarle (Albemarle) Charlotte (Independence) Kernersville (East Forsyth) Columbus, Ga. (Hardaway) Fort Mill, S.C. (Nation Ford) Southport (South Brunswick) Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Cardinal Gibbons) Greensboro (Oak Ridge Military) Roxboro (Person) Irmo, S.C. (Dutch Fork) Fayetteville (Jack Britt) Los Angeles, Calif. (Santa Monica College) Columbus, Ga. (Hutchinson CC) New Bern (New Bern) Greenville, S.C. (Mauldin) Murfreesboro (Elizabeth City State) Monroe (Piedmont) Orangeburg, S.C. (Wilkinson) Winston-Salem (Marshall) Atlanta, Ga. (Grady) Washington (Washington) Wilmington (New Hanover) Wilmington (New Hanover) Hamlet (Richmond) Suffolk, Va. (Kings Fork) Beaufort, S.C. (Beaufort) Charleston, S.C. (Hanahan) Massillon, Ohio (Washington) Wilmington (New Hanover) Columbia, S.C. (South Carolina) New Castle, Del. (Fork Union) Tallahassee, Fla. (Rickards) Goose Creek, S.C. (Goose Creek) Washington, D.C. (Bishop McNamara) High Point (Central) High Point (Andrews) Clayton (Clayton) Silver Spring, Md (Springbrook) Snow Hill (Greene Central)
18 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
South Carolina Gamecocks
Recruiting Round-up USC 2014 signee DL Dexter Wideman of Saluda earlier in the month told his coach he was going to attend Fork Union Prep, Va. this semester and then enroll at USC in January. But Wideman posted new plans on his Facebook page over the weekend: “I will be leaving for school Sunday. Will be going to prep school at Camden military for 4 months. Then in January one of my dreams will come true… Playing for South Carolina Gamecocks, God please be with me.” Wideman likely is Phil Kornblut the most highly touted Contributing high school recruit to Writer attend Camden Military though in 2003 USC brought in WR D’von Hill who spent a semester at Camden Military after not qualifying for USC. Wideman, DL Dante Sawyer and DB Darin Smalls are the three non-enrolling carryovers from the 2014 class for USC. Sawyer is at East Mississippi JC and
By Phil Kornblut
Smalls will remain home in Summerville and if he gets a qualifying test score will enroll in January as a grayshirt. Sawyer hopes to get into USC next summer. That gives USC 14 initial enrollees for the 2014 class in which their limit was 22. That means 8 of their 2015 commitments can count back on the 2014 class if they enroll early. A former Summerville DB, Smalls committed to USC last year with an eye towards playing right away because he knew the Gamecocks needed cornerbacks this season. But those hopes were doused by torn knee ligaments in the third week of the season. And adding true insult to the injury, the NCAA prevented Smalls from enrolling this fall. Smalls says there was only a 50-50 chance he could play this season because he’s still recovering from the knee injury in which he tore his ACL and partially tore his LCL. But he still wanted to come in with his class. He made a qualifying test score but he made the mistake of improving too much, so the score was flagged by the NCAA and Smalls currently is being held as a Clearinghouse hostage. Smalls has not retaken the test because the NCAA is investigating
the validity of his test score and he’s not allowed to retake the test until that investigation is complete. If the NCAA validates the score, Smalls won’t need to take the test again. But if the score is not validated, he will have to retake the test and get a qualifying score to be able to enroll at USC in January. Smalls said he’s still 100% set with USC and is working out and running every day. “My first priority is conditioning,” Smalls said. “I know college ball has faster guys and you need the conditioning to run more. If I come in there conditioned, I’ll be fine. My knee is fine but it’s not 100% yet.” Smalls says he’s waiting on the NCAA’s report to come to him in the mail most anytime. In the meantime, he talks with Gamecock coaches every day to keep them up to date on his situation. It won’t be long now before LB Amonte Caban of Smiths Station, Ala. makes his college decision. Sunday night Caban said he’ll probably make the call in a little more than a week. Caban is down to USC, Mississippi State, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Louisville with the Gamecocks, Bulldogs and Vols the top three. He talked last week with USC recruiter Kirk Botkin. “We talked about me coming down for the Georgia game,” Caban said adding that he’ll probably make the trip but isn’t sure if it will be an official visit. He plans to give Botkin a call this week because his mom wants to talk to him. “She wants to know how much access she has to me and where I’ll be staying, what I’ll be doing and how much academic help I’ll get.” He also plans to talk with his Mississippi State recruiter this week about his official visit there. Caban said he will take some official visits to the schools other than the one he commits to. He said USC has been recruiting him the hardest but he considers his top three schools to be even with him at this point. Longtime Florida Atlantic commit, DB Rashard Causey of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. still has USC among his top three. Causey camped at USC but said the communication with USC coaches has been limited. He does plan to take an official visit. “I’m pumped up about South Carolina this season,” Causey said. “I really think they’re going to win the SEC this year. I can’t wait to see them play (in person).” He named USC, Florida Atlantic and Miami as his top three schools in no order. Causey plans to take official visits to each with Wisconsin and Michigan possible destinations for his final two. Asked if USC had a chance to flip his commitment, he responded, “Very much so.” Juniors: WR Tavares Chase (6-2 175) of Bradenton, Fla. has a USC offer and wants to visit for a game this fall. His other offers include Clemson, Florida State, Auburn, Georgia, Florida, Miami,
Sponsored by:
Kentucky, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Virginia Tech. Chase caught 26 passes for 406 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore and on defense had 43 total tackles and four interceptions. DL Christian Colon (6-4 292) of Charlotte has early offers from Wake Forest, North Carolina and NC State and is showing some interest in USC. Colon expects several more offers early in the season. “A lot of schools just want to see my first three games this year before they offer (me),” he said. “I’ve dropped some weight and gotten stronger, I think they will like what they see.” He named West Virginia, Notre Dame, Tennessee and Ohio State as some of the programs watching his progress. USC is one school he’s seen in person. “I went to South Carolina’s spring game and loved the atmosphere. I liked the facilities and I thought the campus was beautiful. They’re SEC football so that’s big time. If they offered me, they would probably move up my list.” Colon named Wake Forest and North Carolina his early leaders. USC is in an early battle with Georgia and Virginia Tech for DB Marlon Character, Jr. (6-0 175) of Atlanta. “Yeah, I definitely want to visit there,” he said. “I honestly don’t know much about South Carolina other than they’re awesome (at football).” His other offers are Georgia, Virginia Tech, Kentucky and Ole Miss but three stand out with him early in the process. “I’m definitely looking at Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia Tech,” Character said. As a sophomore he totaled 30 tackles, 3 interceptions and two touchdowns. Character did not name a favorite. OL Sean Pollard of Spruce Pines, N.C. had planned to announce a commitment last week then he announced that he is going to wait until next year to make a commitment. USC is among his offers. Basketball News: Spring Valley PG PJ Dozier has updated the scheduled for his official visits: Michigan 9/26; Louisville 10/3; Georgetown 10/17; UNC 10/24; USC 10/31. USC target 6-8 Chris Silva of New Rochelle, NJ took an official visit to Seton Hall Wednesday. He will visit USC Sept. 12. “They’ve been very active,” Silva’s coach at Roselle Catholic, NJ Dave Boff said of the Gamecocks’ recruiting efforts. “Matt Figger and coach Martin have done a great job recruiting him and we hear from them quite often.” Silva averaged 13 points and 9 rebounds per game last season. Silva also will take official visits to Villanova, Rhode Island and Kansas State. 6-5 Tevin Mack of Dreher has added Wake Forest to his final list joining USC, Clemson, VCU and Georgia.
Spurs & Feathers • 19
September 3, 2014
It’s still a great time to be a Gamecock
All week long there were two storylines for the South Carolina–Texas A&M football game. For Gamecock fans it was, “Hey, they don’t have Heisman Trophy quarterback Johnny Manziel or consensus AllAmerican wide receiver Mike Evans. We got this.” For Aggie fans it was, “Hey, they don’t have all-time winningest quarterback Connor Shaw or No. 1 NFL draft pick Jadeveon Clowney. We got this.” In one of the most impressive exhibitions of “gotcha” I have ever witnessed, A&M got all over Carolina in Thursday’s season opener, and I’m not sure Glenn Snyder the 52-28 score Inside is indicative of Look just how bad it was for the Gamecocks. I believe it was somewhere in the middle
of the Sparky Woods era that I quit living and dying over the outcome of a USC football game. Before that, after every disappointing loss I was kick-the-dog mad (which I never did) for days. After years of riding the roller coaster emotions of being a Gamecock fan and never really seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, I decided to lower my expectations, keep my emotions in check and just focus on writing as objectively (positively yes), about the program as my eternally-optimistic heart would let me. But as the Steve Spurrier era started to kick into high gear, high expectations became the norm. In the opener it only took a moment for my expectations to turn to dread. While I have learned to trust the resilience of the Gamecocks over the past four years, the way the Aggies marched 67 yards to score on their opening possession was way too easy. The Head Ball Coach said it best – “We got clobbered.” The Gamecocks did not have an answer for A&M on either side of the ball. When an opponent racks up 680 yards of offense, there is no defending the defense. What really hurts is that
the Aggies didn’t do anything unexpected. They threw the bubble screen, simple slant routes, and couldn’t get close to receiver Malcome Kennedy, who caught 14 passes for 137 yards. The offense was only marginally better. The offensive line I bragged about last week was totally inept at run blocking and inconsistent in pass protection. Coach was dead on when he said the Cocks were outplayed and out-coached in every phase of the game. Although this game didn’t hurt as much, it was just sad. In 10 years no team has scored at will on a Spurrier-coached USC team, or made the offensive game plan look ineffective. This was not just a disappointing loss, this was a step backward. As the score mounted, all I could think about was the things that weren’t going to happen. The nation’s longest home winning streak was not going to reach 19 games. This was not going to be Coach Spurrier’s 200th SEC win. The streak of months Gamecocks ranked in Top-10 was ending, and there would be no more talk of an undefeated season or a National Champion-
ship. Maybe it’s a good thing this was a Thursday game because the players and coaches can spend the weekend doing some serious soul searching before their return to the practice field to prepare for East Carolina. I have by no means given up on the Gamecocks. I really like these kids. I believe they are good football players. I trust this coaching staff more than any I’ve been around. I am going with the old cliché that “a team makes the most progress between game one and game two.” The Gamecocks desperately need to do that if this season is going to meet their expectations – and ours. I can tell you who I was proud of – Carolina’s students and the Gamecock Nation. I really expected them to bolt when the score reached 45-21 near the end of the third quarter, but they stayed in their seats until the Aggies got their final touchdown. I was excited about this game and I’ll be excited about Saturday’s matchup with East Carolina. Let’s just trust the Gamecocks to bring the excitement back to WilliamsBrice. It’s still a great time to be a Gamecock!
20 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
Depth Charts for September 6, 7 p.m. South Carolina OFFENSE: WR: 4 Shaq Roland 1 Damiere Byrd 8 Shamier Jeffery 14 Shaq Davidson WR: 11 Pharoh Cooper 80 K.J. Brent 9 Deebo Samuel WR: 3 Nick Jones 83 Carlton Heard 85 Kane Whitehurst 19 Terry Googer LT: 53 Corey Robinson 74 Mason Zandi LG: 50 A.J. Cann 75 Will Sport C: 54 Clayton Stadnik -OR- 75 Will Sport RG: 51 Cody Waldrop 70 Alan Knott RT: 71 Brandon Shell 55 Na’Ty Rodgers TE: 81 Rory Anderson 89 Jerell Adams 90 Cody Gibson 88 Drew Owens QB: 17 Dylan Thompson 10 Perry Orth
6-1, 176, Jr. Lexington, S.C. 5-9, 170, Sr. Sicklerville, N.J. 6-1, 198, Jr. St. Matthews, S.C. 5-11, 170, Fr. Gaffney, S.C. 5-11, 201, So. Havelock, N.C. 6-4, 192, Jr. Waxhaw, N.C. 6-0, 192, Fr. Inman, S.C. 5-7, 168, Sr. Moore, S.C. 6-0, 188, Jr. Athens, Ga. 5-11, 169, Jr. Duluth, Ga. 6-4, 210, Fr. Atlanta, Ga. 6-8, 344, Sr. Havelock, N.C. 6-9, 301, So. Irmo, S.C. 6-4, 311, Sr. Bamberg, S.C. 6-5, 291, Jr. Milton, Fla. 6-3, 273, So. Greensboro, N.C. 6-5, 291, Jr. Milton, Fla. 6-2, 309, So. Seffner, Fla. 6-4, 280, RFr. Tyrone, Ga. 6-6, 333, Jr. Goose Creek, S.C. 6-5, 280, RFr. Waldorf, Md. 6-5, 227, Sr, Powder Springs, Ga. 6-6, 242, Jr. Pinewood, S.C. 6-7, 278, Sr. Tallahassee, Fla. 6-6, 238, Jr. Charlotte, N.C. 6-3, 218, Sr. Boiling Springs, S.C. 6-1, 204, So. Ponte Verda, Fla.
-OR- FB: TB:
6 Connor Mitch 41 Connor McLaurin 31 Jordan Diaz 28 Mike Davis 22 Brandon Wilds 7 Shon Carson 33 David Williams
6-3, 211, RFr. 6-0, 243, Sr. 6-1, 236, Sr. 5-9, 223, Jr. 6-2, 222, Jr. 5-8, 201, Jr. 6-1, 214, RFr.
Raleigh, N.C. Raleigh, N.C. Hamilton, N.J. Atlanta, Ga. Blythewood, S.C. Scranton, S.C. Philadelphia, Pa.
DEFENSE: DE: 44 Gerald Dixon 34 Mason Harris DT: 97 J.T. Surratt 52 Phillip Dukes 93 Deon Green DT: 92 Gerald Dixon, Jr. 99 Abu Lamin 94 Kelsey Griffin DE: 5 Darius English 55 David Johnson 18 Cedrick Cooper MLB: 11 T.J. Holloman 8 Kaiwan Lewis 21 Marcquis Roberts WLB: 10 Skai Moore 28 Jonathan Walton 4 Bryson Allen-Williams SPUR: 9 Sharrod Golightly
6-2, 274, So. Rock Hill, S.C. 6-3, 235, Jr. Fort Oglethorpe, Ga. 6-2, 310, Sr. Winston-Salem, N.C. 6-3, 323, Jr. Manning, S.C. 6-4, 289, So. Windermere, Fla. 6-3, 323, Jr. Rock Hill, S.C. 6-4, 302, So. Fayetteville, N.C. 6-2, 310, So. Buford, Ga. 6-6, 241, So. Powder Springs, Ga. 6-1, 275, RFr. Lithonia, Ga. 6-2, 225, Jr. Lithonia, Ga. 6-2, 234, So. Stone Mountain, Ga. 6-0, 228, Jr. Mays Landing, N.J. 6-1, 216, So. Powder Springs, Ga. 6-2, 213, So. Cooper City, Fla. 6-0, 228, So. Daphne, Ala. 6-1, 231, Fr. Ellenwood, Ga. 5-10, 187, Sr. Decatur, Ga.
42 Jordan Diggs 32 Larenz Bryant CB: 12 Brison Williams 3 Chris Lammons 30 Sidney Rhodes SS: 6 Chris Moody 25 Kadetrix Marcus FS: 17 Chaz Elder 20 T.J. Gurley 26 Jasper Sasser CB: 31 Al Harris, Jr. 1 Rico McWilliams 7 Wesley Green SPECIALISTS:
6-0, 217, So. Fort Myers, Fla. 6-0, 220, So. Charlotte, N.C. 5-11, 208, Sr. Warner Robbins, Ga. 5-10, 172, Fr. Sunrise, Fla. 5-10, 182, Sr. Easley, S.C. 6-1, 210, So. McDonough, Ga. 6-1, 194, Sr. Stone Mountain, Ga. 6-2, 195, So. Union City, Ga. 5-10, 194, Jr. Cairo, Ga. 6-0, 203, RFr. Jacksonville, Fla. 5-11, 162, Fr. Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. 5-11, 184, So. Hampton, Ga. 5-10, 176, Fr. Lithonia, Ga.
KO: PK: P: KR: PR: SSN: LSN: H:
19 Landon Ard 29 Elliott Fry 29 Elliott Fry 19 Landon Ard 13 Tyler Hull 18 Patrick Fish 11 Pharoh Cooper 11 Pharoh Cooper 58 Ryland Culbertson 47 Drew Williams 18 Patrick Fish 13 Tyler Hull
5-9, 178, Jr. 6-0, 165, So. 6-0, 165, So. 5-9, 178, Jr. 6-2, 207, Sr. 6-0, 194, Sr. 5-11, 201, So. 5-11, 201, So. 6-4, 267, Sr. 6-2, 201, So. 6-0, 194, Sr. 6-2, 207, Sr.
CB:
4 Detric Allen 6 DaShawn Benton
Rock Hill, S.C. Frisco, Texas Frisco, Texas Rock Hill, S.C. Mount Airy, N.C. Shelby, N.C. Havelock, N.C. Havelock, N.C. Laurens, S.C. Irmo, S.C. Shelby, N.C. Mount Airy, N.C.
East Carolina OFFENSE WR: 9 Cam Worthy 15 Brandon Bishop WR: 7 Isiah Jones 8 Cedric Thompson LT: 69 Ike Harris 76 Stewart Hinson LG: 72 Quincy McKinney 67 Will Foxx C: 74 Taylor Hudson 50 C.J. Struyk RG: 68 Tre Robertson 65 J.T. Boyd RT: 71 Dontae Levingston 62 Brandon Smith QB: 5 Shane Carden 6 Kurt Benkert RB: 25 Breon Allen 22 Chris Hairston 27 Marquez Grayson WR: 2 Justin Hardy 80 Bryce Williams WR: 85 Davon Grayson 81 Jimmy Williams
6-2, 220, Sr. 5-11, 186, So. 6-1, 186, So. 5-9, 183, Jr. 6-7, 304, Jr. 6-7, 296, Jr. 6-4, 311, Jr. 6-2, 313, Jr. 6-5, 285, Sr. 6-2, 296, Jr. 6-5, 310, Jr. 6-5, 302, So. 6-4, 280, Jr. 6-8, 336, RFr. 6-2, 221, Sr. 6-3, 220, RFr. 5-8, 190, Sr. 6-0, 197, Jr. 6-1, 200, RFr. 6-0, 188, Sr. 6-6, 250, Jr. 6-2, 196, So. 5-11, 180, So.
Blair, S.C. Snow Hill, N.C. Austin, Texas Kings Mountain, N.C. Irmo, S.C. Monroe, N.C. Columbus, Ga. Greensboro, N.C. Greenville, S.C. Morehead City, N.C. Roxboro, N.C. Fort Mill, S.C. Los Angeles, Calif. Kernersville, N.C. Houston, Texas Cape Coral, Fla. Daytona Beach, Fla. Winston-Salem, N.C. Lexington, N.C. Vanceboro, N.C. Winston-Salem, N.C. Suffolk, Va. Washington, N.C.
DEFENSE DE: 94 Jonathon White 6-4, 292, Jr. 95 Terry Biles 6-2, 278, Sr. NT: 93 Chrishon Rose 6-4, 303, Sr. 56 Demetri McGill 6-1, 310, So. DE: 99 Fred Presley 6-3, 300, So. 9 K’Hardee Hooker 6-1, 300, So. SLB: 51 Montese Overton 6-3, 220, Jr. 1 Dayon Pratt 6-4, 230, So. 13 Pat Green 6-2, 218, RFr. MLB: 44 Zeek Bigger 6-2, 228, Jr. 55 Cameron White 5-11, 213, So. BLB: 24 Brandon Williams 6-1, 230, Sr. 34 Devaris Brunson 6-1, 230, So. WLB: 48 Maurice Falls 6-2, 247, Sr. 57 Joe Allely 5-1, 239, RFr. 45 Jake Geary 6-3, 250, Sr. CB: 28 Josh Hawkins 5-10, 186, Jr. 39 DaShaun Amos 6-1, 192, So. 10 Rocco Scarfone 5-11, 182, Jr. SS: 7 Lamar Ivey 6-1, 196, Sr. 26 Terrell Richardson 6-0, 210, So. FS: 31 Domonique Lennon 6-2, 205, Jr. 3 Travon Simmons 5-10, 185, RFr.
High Point, N.C. High Point, N.C. Washington, D.C. Virginia Beach, Va. Snow Hill, N.C. Kinston, N.C. Greenville, N.C. Washington, D.C. Winston-Salem, N.C. Gastonia, N.C. Apex, N.C. Rock Hill, S.C. Lake City, S.C. Belmont, N.C. Vienna, Va. Hillsborough, N.C. Winston-Salem, N.C. Midlothian, Va. Greensboro, N.C. Mebane, N.C. Raleigh, N.C. Suffolk, Va. Marietta, Ga.
6-0, 200, Sr. 6-0, 189, So.
Norwood, N.C. Atlanta, Ga.
SPECAILISTS PK: H: P: LSN: SSN: PR: KR:
14 Warren Harvey 38 Davis Plowman 40 Worth Gregory 7 Isiah Jones 40 Worth Gregory 38 Davis Plowman 60 Charlie Coggins 50 C.J. Struyk 2 Justin Hardy 81 Jimmy Williams 25 Breon Allen 7 Isiah Jones
5-11, 225, Sr. 5-10, 185, So. 6-3, 205, So. 6-1, 186, So. 6-3, 205, So. 5-10, 185, So. 6-3, 200, Sr. 6-2, 296, Jr. 6-0, 188, Sr. 5-11, 180, So. 5-8, 190, Sr. 601, 186, So.
Greenville, N.C. Roswell, Ga. Fort Mill, S.C. Austin, Texas Fort Mill, S.C. Roswell, Ga. Albemarle, N.C. Morehead City, N.C. Vanceboro, N.C. Washington, N.C. Daytona Beach, Fla. Austin, Texas
*These depth charts are taken from the listings from each team’s previous game. Spurs & Feathers goes to print shortly after the conclusion of each game. Please visit www.spursandfeathers.com over the course of the week for updated depth charts.
Spurs & Feathers • 21
September 3, 2014
Gamecocks looking to put together another record-breaking season by brian hand bhand@spursandfeathers.com The 2013-14 South Carolina women’s golf campaign was a special one for the program. The Gamecocks after last season have now made five straight NCAA championship appearances and they do not plan on resting on their laurels anytime soon as they enter their preparations for the 2014-15 season. “We had a phenomenal spring last spring,” South Carolina eighth-year head coach Kalen Harris remarked. “We had a fifth-place finish at our event (Darius Rucker Intercollegiate) and other than that we finished the whole spring either with wins or runner-ups in almost every event other than nationals, so that was a pretty remarkable spring “We had a record-breaking season last year with our 13-14 season and honestly we’re looking to have another record-breaking season, but we need to kind of do it one tournament at a time, one day at a time, one practice at a time … again we look at it like we do any other year. We get out there and we work hard and try and get better every day and let the results take care of themselves,” Harris continued. Harris is enthusiastic about the capabilities she has with her lineup as they look to continue their rise in women’s college golf in the 2014-15 season. “I’m really excited about the group we have this year,” Harris noted. “We lost obviously Samantha Swinehart and Suzie Lee, but we bring in two really solid freshmen (in freshman Ainhoa) Olarra from Spain and (freshman) Nanna Madsen from Denmark. (Ainhoa) I know she has a ton of international experience and then Nanna Madsen is currently ranked fourth in the world (in the World Golf Amateur Rankings), so we filled those shoes pretty well with what we lost. “Then we’ve got the core of our returnees from our spring season with Justine Dreher, our senior, (junior) Sarah Schmelzel and (sophomore) Katelyn Dambaugh and then (junior) Mary Fran (Hillow) was in our lineup a little bit last year and then (sophomore Jia Xin) Yang saw a little bit of time as well. We really return the core and then bring a lot of experience with our two freshmen that obviously haven’t played in NCAA events yet, but certainly come with good strong records. We’re looking to kind of start where we left off and get off on a good foot and see what we can do,” Harris elaborated. All the aforementioned golfers give Harris the opportunity to utilize the Gamecocks’ elite
photo by allen sharpe
depth. “Between last year and this year our depth has increased a tremendous amount, so I feel a lot more confident on that side,” Harris commented. “Certainly that core group is key to us. It’s nice to be able to go a couple players down. I know that last spot or two (in the lineup of five) is definitely going to be competitive.” Usually the Gamecocks get right into tournament action in the fall, but this year things are a little different with South Carolina opening the first of its four tournaments in the fall on Sept. 28 at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate (Sept. 28-30) at the Reunion Resort Watson Course in Reunion, Fla. A couple weeks later the Gamecocks will compete in the Tar Heel Invitational (Oct. 1012) at the UNC Finley Golf Course in Chapel Hill, N.C. before playing in the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship (Oct. 17-19) at the Cherokee Golf Club in Knoxville, Tenn. The Gamecocks will close the fall portion of their 2014-15 schedule at The Landfall Tradition (Oct. 24-26) at the Country Club of Landfall in Wilmington, N.C. Harris is looking forward to having more time with her team before their inaugural fall tournament. “We usually start a little bit earlier to be honest with you, but we have a player playing in the World-Am (Madsen in early September in Karuizawa, Japan) and we potentially (would have) had more than one playing in it, so I worked the schedule a little later to accommodate that, but it actually is going to be really nice,” Harris said. “Obviously we’re going to do a (team) qualifier prior to our first event. It’s going to give to give us some time to get them acclimated, especially our freshmen and we’ll be doing a lot of short game and really it’s going to be nice to have them and really work on some things before we just put them into competition.”
22 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
South Carolina Gamecocks
2014 - 2015 woMen’s Basketball Schedule
All Gamecock basketball coverage sponsored by Yesterdays
Date
Opponent / Event
Location
Time
Sun., Nov. 2.......... Coker (exhibiton).........................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Sat., Nov. 15......... Southern California .....................Columbia, S.C. .......................... TBA Thu., Nov 20......... Clemson .......................................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Sun., Nov. 23........ San Diego State.............................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Junkanoo Jam (Lucaya Division) Thu., Nov. 27..........vs. Wisconsin.................................... Freeport, Bahamas.................. 4:15 p.m. Fri., Nov. 28............vs. East Carolina/Syracuse.............. Freeport, Bahamas....................... 8 p.m. Mon., Dec. 1......... NC Central....................................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Thu., Dec. 4.......... Charlotte.......................................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Sun., Dec. 7.............at Duke (ESPN2).............................. Durham, N.C............................... 1 p.m. Sun., Dec. 14........ Savannah State..............................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Wed., Dec. 17.........at Hampton....................................... Hampton, Va...................................TBA Gopher Classic Sat., Dec. 20............Central Michigan............................. Minneapolis, Minn.........................TBA Sun., Dec. 21...........Liberty............................................... Minneapolis, Minn.........................TBA Fri., Jan. 2............. Auburn* (SECN)...........................Columbia, S.C......................... 7 p.m. Sun., Jan. 4..............at LSU* (ESPN2).............................. Baton Rouge, La........................... 3 p.m. Thu., Jan. 8..............at Alabama*....................................... Tuscaloosa, Ala............................ 7 p.m. Sun., Jan. 11......... Kentucky* (ESPN2)......................Columbia, S.C......................... 1 p.m. Thu., Jan. 15............at Missouri* (SECN)........................ Columbia, Mo.............................. 9 p.m. Mon., Jan. 19..........at Florida* (SECN)........................... Gainesville, Fla............................. 7 p.m. Mon., Jan. 26........ Texas A&M* (ESPN2)...................Columbia, S.C......................... 7 p.m. Thu., Jan. 29......... Alabama*......................................Columbia, S.C............................ TBA Sun., Feb. 1.............at Ole Miss* (ESPNU)..................... Oxford, Miss............................ 4:30 p.m. Thu., Feb. 5.............at Georgia* (SECN)......................... Athens, Ga.................................... 7 p.m. Mon., Feb. 9............at Connecticut (ESPN2).................. Storrs, Conn....................................TBA Thu., Feb. 12......... LSU* (FSN)...................................Columbia, S.C......................... 7 p.m. Sun., Feb. 15......... Vanderbilt* (ESPNU)...................Columbia, S.C.......................... Noon Thu., Feb. 19...........at Arkansas* (SECN)....................... Fayetteville, Ark........................... 9 p.m. Mon., Feb. 23....... Tennessee* (ESPN2).....................Columbia, S.C......................... 9 p.m. Thu., Feb. 26......... Mississippi State* (FSN)...............Columbia, S.C......................... 7 p.m. Sun., Mar. 1.............at Kentucky* (ESPNU/2)................. Lexington, Ky.............................2/5 p.m. Bold......................indicates home game * ...........................indicates SEC game All Times Listed as Eastern and are subject to change Television outlet listed in parentheses – FSN is Fox Sports Net; FSCR is Fox Sports Carolinas; SPSO is SportSouth; SEC TV is SEC over-the-air syndicated package
photo by allen sharpe
Spurs & Feathers • 23
September 3, 2014
Talented Gamecocks enter year chasing after usual goals by brian hand bhand@spursandfeathers.com
Collegiate Challenge Cup at The Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs, Tenn. (Sept. 19-21) and the Camden Collegiate Invitational The 2013-14 South Carolina men’s golf camat the Camden Country Club in Camden, S.C. paign was one of the best in program history. (Oct. 18-19) in the fall. The 2014-15 season could conceivably be even McDonald believes that his 2014-15 squad had better. a fairly solid summer individually in preparaAnything can happen over the course of a tion for the fall campaign. season, but with South Carolina men’s golf head “I feel really good,” McDonald remarked. coach Bill McDonald returning all five starters “(Senior) Will Murphy winning the Sunnehanoff last year’s team that ended last year ranked na (Amateur) was huge. By winning the Azalea 14th by Golfstat big things are expected. (Invitational) back in March he had already “The team we had last year was statistically opened a lot of doors for his summer play, but the best ever here at Carolina and they’re all I think he hit a little bit of a wall. He played a back and they all had good summers,” McDon- bunch of weeks in a row … but he seems to be ald noted. “They’re going to get us started with refreshed and his game’s coming back around. the season, but with that being said there’s a lot (Junior) Matt (NeSmith) was a little bit up and of responsibility that goes with being picked like down. He hit kind of a low point in the NCAAs, that. You’ve got to continue the performance, but in the long run it’s going to be good for him you’ve got to be a good teammate, you’ve got to as he’s making some changes now that I think do well in the classroom; all the things that we will definitely pay off. look for.” “If you look at our other three (starters from The Gamecocks commence their 2014-15 NCAA championships), (junior) Will Starke campaign with four events during the fall of had a really solid summer and so did (senior) 2014. The fall portion of the 2014-15 schedule Caleb (Sturgeon) and (sophomore) Ben Dietrich gets underway with The Carmel Cup at the played well too. Nobody really light it up except Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Ca- for Murph at the beginning, but all five of the relif. Aug. 29-31. The Gamecocks will also play in turning starters played well and they’ve looked the Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept. 5-7) at The good in the little bit of time I’ve been able to Farm Golf Club in Rocky Face, Ga., the Dick’s see them since they’ve been back,” McDonald
continued. McDonald feels that the work put in during the summer by his golfers is important, but it is also different for each individual golfer. “It’s a little bit particular to the kid,” McDonald commented. “When I first got here, tournament golf in the summer wasn’t taken very seriously. A lot of kids played in some state events and kind of just hung out, but they looked at it almost as a vacation I felt like.” The Gamecocks definitely now take their summer golf seriously, but according to McDonald his golfers still have to find the right balance in the summer. “It’s a lot like junior golf as if they play better they almost have too many opportunities and the tendency is it can get a little bit crazy. I don’t have any control over their schedule like I do now, so my concern is they don’t either play enough or they play too much. It’s hard finding the balance I think, but it’s a great time for them to not have worry about school and work on different aspects of their game.” Coming off the strong season for the Gamecocks last year, McDonald said for the most part he is just looking for a continuation of that play as they begin their fall season. “Golf’s one of those sports where unless you’ve been like an Alabama or a Cal the last couple of years, you don’t win every time you
south carolina athletics media relations
go out, so (I’m looking) for top-3s, really solid play,” McDonald stated. “When we had our first meeting the other day, I told them the thing I’m most proud of and emphasized that we need to do again this year is try to do everything we can to peak at the right time. The whole goal is to play well every week obviously, but (also) to try and be ready in the spring to make a run. I’m not putting a lot of pressure on these guys. I just want them to have some pride and continue what we established last year.” McDonald believes that with redshirt junior Sean Kelly returning from a wrist injury, Blaine Woodruff being a fifth-year senior, freshman Keenan Huskey being one of the top-ranked juniors and with freshman Alex Handy having been part of a state championship team in high school that the Gamecocks have more depth than they have probably ever had. The Gamecocks will begin their upcoming season with the same goals that they have had for the past few years now.
24 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
Tommy Suggs - A Gamecock for a lifetime by brad muller South Carolina Director of Content
If you follow South Carolina football, you know Tommy Suggs. Regarded as one of the school’s all-time greatest quarterbacks who played for the garnet and black from 19681970, Suggs may be more familiar to generations of fans as the color analyst for South Carolina’s radio broadcast for the last 40 years. As he begins his fifth decade behind the microphone, the 65-year-old president and CEO of KeenanSuggs still has as much passion and excitement for South Carolina as the student section bouncing around to “Sandstorm.” “It’s a lot of fun when you’re winning 11 games three years in a row,” Suggs said. “But it’s always fun. Over the years I’ve seen a lot of tremendous wins, gut-wrenching losses, great venues, and all the special things that keep you engaged.” Suggs and his wife, Jane, have been involved in philanthropic efforts for the university for many years, and there is a mutual respect between he and university administrators. “He’s a part of the family,” said athletics director Ray Tanner. “If Tommy wants to share something with me, question something that’s going on, or compliment something that’s happening, then I want to hear about it. It’s very much appreciated. I take the opportunity on occasion to ask him how he feels about certain things or get his perception of difference situations.”
it work. As a player and broadcaster, Suggs has seen eight different head coaches patrol the sidelines for the Gamecocks, and he has been a part of some of the greatest moments in South Carolina football history. “The two most emotional years of my career were George Rogers’ last year and Steve Spurrier’s first year,” Suggs said. “They proved that you could win the Heisman here A Part of History and you could win a lot of football games Suggs led the Gamecocks to the 1969 ACC here.” Championship and a berth in the Peach Last year’s overtime win at Missouri is Bowl. He was named MVP of the 1970 also among his recent favorites, while the Blue-Gray All-Star Classic and was in2005 victory over Florida during Steve ducted into the University’s Athletic Hall of Spurrier’s first season with the Gamecocks Fame in 1989 and South Carolina State Hall also sticks out because Suggs felt it quieted of Fame in 1983. Suggs may also be famous critics who doubted whether the Head Ball for something fans won’t find in any of the Coach could win at South Carolina. Looking record books as he explains he first pitched further back, the Heisman Trophy year for the idea for the iconic “2001” entrance for Rogers in 1980 provided numerous lasting the Gamecocks after seeing Elvis Presley memories. enter the stage to theme music at a concert in “Beating Michigan in Michigan with the Carolina Coliseum in the 1970s. George Rogers was something special,” Sug“I initially brought the idea to coach (Jim) gs said. “We had about an hour and half rain Carlen,” Suggs said. “He liked it. So for delay coming home. When we finally came coach Carlen’s last year, in the final two through the airport, it was just pandemogames, the marching band played `2001,’ but nium with thousands of fans out there. That nobody really heard it.” same year, we played at Southern Cal. We Following Carlen’s departure, Athletics didn’t win the ball game, but you had George Director Bob Marcum liked the idea, but the Rogers on the field for South Carolina, and P.A. system at the time didn’t lend itself to Marcus Allen and Ronnie Lott on the field create the intended effect, so it was put on for Southern Cal. I remember George breakhold until Joe Morrison took the reins for ing it off tackle in the fourth quarter for a the Gamecocks and they were able to make score, and a lot of folks would say later that it
selves too seriously.”
Deep Roots at South Carolina For all that he has done on the field and in the broadcast booth, Suggs has been a great contributor behind the scenes for the university. He was instrumental in leading fundraising efforts for South Carolina’s ‘Garnet Way’ campaign, and is always looking for ways to make his alma mater stronger - on and off the field. “No matter what Tommy does in his broadcasting career, that will be minimal compared to what he has given back to this university,” Ellis said. “He’s been a massive part of fundraising and planning and served as a sounding board for many people at the university. He’s interested in any building going up on campus and anything that shapes the game day experience. He thinks about the average fan at Williams-Brice Stadium and what can we do to help these people have a great experience.” Tommy and Jane Suggs are always willing to engage others in philanthropy for the university, and he’s a man of action on anything south carolina athletics media relations that affects the university - no matter how was the run that sealed the Heisman Trophy small. When a recent lightning strike forced for him because it got the west coast press on the removal of a tree on the Horseshoe, Suggs donated a new tree. his side.” “It bothered me that the tree was missing,” Suggs said. “My son, Dan, came up with the The Football Family For many folks, the opportunity to witness idea. So I called the University, and we gave all of those great moments would be enough, a tree. It had nothing to do with athletics. The university doing well academically and but Suggs explains that the most rewarding athletically is very important to us, Columpart of his job is all about the athletics fambia and our state. I don’t think I’ve done anyily of which he has had the privilege to be thing any different than a lot of other people a part for so long. That family included the out there who care about where they went to late Bob Fulton, the legendary play-by-play voice of the Gamecocks for 43 years. Suggs school. The university has been a big part of takes pride in working with Fulton for more my life and it always will be.” than 20 years. “He was special,” Suggs said. “He was a great mentor of mine and was very patient with me in my beginning years on the radio because I didn’t know what I was doing. He helped me a lot. We became really good friends and had a lot of fun. Bob had a great sense of humor, and he loved Carolina.” Suggs begins his 12th year sharing the booth with another former Gamecock signal caller, Todd Ellis, and the two share a mutual admiration. “Tommy has a great understanding of current Carolina football success and how it got here because he’s such a historian of the program,” Ellis said. “He has a wonderful perspective, and the history lesson he is able to give every week is a great strength for our broadcasts. He helps me relax and have a good time. It’s important for me to do well, but he’s taught me that we can’t take oursouth carolina athletics media relations
September 3, 2014
Spurs & Feathers • 25
Aiken County ready for season by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
“We pretty much keep the same format and Over the summer, Fulmer and his wife Kathy get a lot of the same folks coming out. A lot of got to use their barbecue skills as well - the people are talking about it and once a year ev- Fulmers are part of the award-winning tailThe Aiken County Gamecock Club provided erybody knows it’s going to happen. They love gate team the Ultimate Tailgaters - to feed the a family-friendly Kickoff Party to start the fall coming out and doing it,” Fulmer continued. Gamecock football team. He said they got to season with strong attendance. Some of the more family- and kid-oriented know Director of Football Nutrition Joey Blake “It’s a great crowd and we always have good features were a magic show by Franko the Ma- through working a party for Director of Footsupport. It obviously helps beating Clemson gician and an appearance from ball Strength & Conditioning Joe and winning the Capital One Bowl. We have fan favorite Cocky. Connolly. great support here in Aiken and I love seeing “We’ve got the big magic show “Joey really enjoyed the food and everybody bring their kids out. We try to make and we want to make it familysaid ‘I need to get you up here to it family-oriented,” chapter president Chris oriented. I know it’s expensive to feed the team.’ I thought he was Fulmer said. “We don’t charge any admission, do things now days and we want joking because with him being the it’s all free. If you want to buy some raffle tick- people to bring out their kids. A nutritionist, how nutritious is barets they’re available. We sell some sandwiches lot of times kids can’t see Cocky, becue, but he said they like to once to try and make a little money, but we try to so it’s a great chance for kids to in awhile mix it up and blow it out make it’s family friendly.” see Cocky,” Fulmer said. “This is for the players,” Fulmer explained. A special guest at the Aug. 25 event was a great chance to see Cocky and “So we actually got to come up South Carolina’s live mascot, Sir Big Spur, who get pictures taken. There’s probthere and they enjoyed it. We did a is a live gamecock who resides in Aiken and is ably going to be a dozen Christphoto by brian hand bunch of pulled pork and barbecue owned by Ron Albertelli and Mary Snelling. mas cards with pictures taken chicken, smoked sausage, baked “Sir Big Spur is here,” Fulmer said of the here tonight with Cocky. So that’s neat.” beans and macaroni and cheese. They pigged minor changes to the event. “I think we’ve had Recently Fulmer help to host the Aiken out. I’ll tell you those guys can really eat. him a couple of times before, but it’s been three County Carolina/Clemson Golf Classic at “It’s pretty interesting watching how he takes or four years. We’ve got Sir Big Spur out, we Houndslake Country Club. He said there was care of them … it’s amazing how about every have Spurs & Feathers here to come speak, but a great turnout of about 100 players, 25 teams, player had certain guidelines. There were some you know we don’t change too much. If it ain’t that was successful enough that Fulmer said players that he wanted to gain weight and they broke, don’t fix it. they will hold it again next year. could get two plates. He pretty much knew
their weight within a pound or two, so that’s pretty cool seeing them get really technical with the kids not only with weightlifting and working out, but also with the nutrition aspect. You can tell it when you see the players because they’re lean and looking good,” Fulmer expounded. Fulmer said that he hopes to get to feed the team again, but he is looking forward to heading to all the games this year and setting up his tailgate saying, “we’re looking forward to a great season and we’ll be at all 12, 13, 14, hopefully all 15 of them so we can go all the way.” Fulmer said there was plenty of excitement at the kickoff party and everyone was counting down until the season kicks off. “We’re looking forward to it and it’s looking to be another promising season. They’ve had continued success and it’s been a heck of a run, so hopefully they can keep it going,” Fulmer said. “Of course as successful as the football team has been recently, it kind of goes hand in hand. Everybody is excited and it’s kind of like a pep rally before the first game where we just have a lot of fun.” To learn more about the Aiken County Gamecock Club, like them on Facebook for updates.
26 • Spurs & Feathers
September 3, 2014
Florence building excitement with Kickoff Luncheon by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com The Florence County Gamecock Club Kickoff Luncheon helped raise the level of excitement with football season arriving while also giving back to the University. Chapter president Michael “Scat” Scaturro said that guest speaker Tony Morrell was knowledgeable about the Gamecocks and got the attendees fired up for football, but they were also able to do some rewarding things for the Gamecock Club. “As far as our Gamecock Club parts, we talked about the William Rhea Golf Tournament. It was the most successful one in our history,” Scaturro said. “From that we were able to donate a total of $17,500 back to the University. We had $10,000 go to the signage and Block C on Williams-Brice Stadium, we donated $5,000 to Dawn Staley and the women’s basketball discretionary fund - basically we committed $15,000 over three years to that fund - and then we sent $2,500 to the cheerleaders. “That was the good part; $17,500 is the most that we’ve been able to do and hopefully next year we’ll be able to give $20,000,”
submitted photo
The Gamecock Club announced that the Florence County Gamecock Club was awarded the 2014 Director’s Cup for the black division of 500 members or more. Board members pictured are (l-r): Rod Jernigan, Keith Buckhouse, Scat Scaturro, Wade Crawford, Mark Buxton and Rocky Rietkovich. Absent were Trey Ridgeway, Rob Goff and Rick Havekost. Scaturro added. Scaturro noted that the chapter was also able to honor their Gamecocks of the Year at the meeting as well.
“It was the first time that we’ve done a couple, Mark and Sheila Buxton, so that was neat and kind of unique. Sheila was one who a few years ago when we had coach (Steve)
Spurrier here and she made him a birthday cake. She’s always contributing and helping out at the registration tables, doing those kind of things, so it was really neat to be able to give that out as well,” Scaturro commented. Next on the docket for Florence County is their first fall meeting with the date to be determined, but likely on a Thursday at the Floyd Conference Center in Florence, S.C. The chapter will host South Carolina baseball head coach Chad Holbrook and his staff, men’s basketball head coach Frank Martin and hopefully women’s basketball head coach Staley. Scaturro noted that details would be released once they are finalized. As far as the fall kickoff, Scaturro said the excitement is palpable as Gamecock football gets under way. “I’ve been in the Gamecock Club for a long time and the excitement this year is as big as I’ve seen it. In years past I think a lot of the old guys like us were cautiously optimistic, but I think that Coach Spurrier has really gotten us to a different level,” Scaturro remarked. For more information on the Florence County Gamecock Club like them on Facebook.
Spurs & Feathers • 27
September 3, 2014
Gamecock Radio/Television Information The Gamecock Sports Network from IMG College counts 23 affiliate stations for the 2014-15 season. For Sirius/XM subscribers, follow the Gamecock Radio Twitter (@ GamecockRadio) page for weekly updates on channel information for Gamecock broadcasts. The weekly Carolina Calls show will air from 7-8 p.m. on the flagship station of the Gamecocks, WNKT-FM (107.5 FM), and over the Internet at www.GamecocksOnline. com. The show takes place each week at Wild Wing Café, located at 729 Lady Street in the Vista. Wild Wing Café, which is South Carolina’s home for the best wings south of Buffalo, has 12 locations in the Palmetto State. Visit www.wildwingcafe.com for more information.
Inside the Roost
South Carolina Athletics Director Ray Tanner and Derek Scott from the Gamecock Sports Network from IMG College host an hour long radio show every Monday night at 7 p.m. from Hilton Columbia Center in the Vista. The show is broadcast on 107.5 FM and features discussions on current issues with Ray Tanner and interviews with coaches and athletics department staff.
South Carolina-East Carolina television
The game will be televised on either ESPN2 or ESPNU. Please check local listings.
2014-15 Radio Affiliates
City Call Letters Frequency Football Abbeville WZLA-FM 92.9 X Johnston/Aiken WKSX-FM 92.7 X Allendale WDOG-FM 93.5 X Anderson WRIX-FM 103.1 X Camden WPUB-FM 102.7 X Camden WCAM-AM 1590 X Charleston WWIK-FM 98.9 X Chesterfield WVSZ-FM 107.3 X Columbia WNKT-FM 107.5 X Florence WHYM-AM 1260 X Florence WFRK-FM 95.3 X Gaffney WZZQ-FM 104.3 X Gaffney WZZQ-AM 1500 X Greenville/Spartanburg WROO-FM 96.7 X Hilton Head WVGB-AM 1490 X Hilton Head WVGB-FM 94.5 X Myrtle Beach WSYN-FM 103.1 X Newberry WKDK-AM 1240 X Rock Hill WRHM-FM 107.1 X Seneca WSNW-AM 1150 X Seneca WSNW-FM 94.1 X Sumter WIBZ-FM 95.5 X Union WBCU-AM 1460 X
Gamecocks in Spartanburg kick off football season by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
“The trophies are good to see, but when Cocky comes in the whole mood starts changing. The little kids start squealing and they The Spartanburg County Gamecock Club want pictures with him and the cheerleaders,” held its “Cocktails Kickoff” celebration at the Cox noted. Wild Wings in downtown Spartanburg on Aug. Cox gave credit to the Gamecock football 14 with a strong showing of Garnet & Black in team for helping increase attendance at the the Upstate. annual kickoff events, saying “winning helps, “We had about 120 people come out and you that’s for sure. Our attendance continues to could call them a very jubilant and boisterous grow at this and we have a good time, but wincrowd. We had a good time. We watched the ing definitely helps. Everybody is excited about highlight video about three times and kept the season this year.” cheering at certain points of course,” chapter The Spartanburg County Gamecock Club president Glenn Cox commented. “Everybody will host its first meeting with a featured speakis excited about the season, so everyone just er on Sept. 18, 2014 at the Downtown Marriott kind of wanted to get a jump start on it and get at 7 p.m. The speaker is still to be determined. in that festive mood. That’s the way we bring The chapter also tentatively has watch parties them in for the kickoff.” planned for the Kentucky and Auburn games at Special guests at the event were Cocky and either the Wild Wings or the Hickory Tavern, the cheerleaders, the Gamecock baseball naboth in Spartanburg. More details for all events tional championship trophies and Marcus Lat- will be released as they are known. timore’s parents, Vern and Yolanda Smith, to To find out more about the Spartanburg discuss the Marcus Lattimore Foundation. The County Gamecock Club, like them on Facechapter also raffled away football tickets and book or follow them on Twitter as @upstategaautographed memorabilia. mecock.
submitted photo
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Gamecock legend kicks off football in Darlington County by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com The Darlington County Gamecock Club hosted Gamecock legend Ryan Brewer to celebrate its Football Kickoff Party in style. About 200 people attended to hear from Brewer in a strong turnout at the Springwood Country Club in Hartsville, S.C. on Aug. 25. “This was really nice to have everybody come out tonight. We’re glad to see it full like this with pretty much every seat filled,” chapter president Jimmy Griffin said. “It’s great to have Ryan out here. We’re glad to have (Gamecock Club Assistant Director) Jay Brown come out and update us on facilities and the Gamecock Club as well. “It was a really good turnout and we’re all pumped up for the season. We had a good football update from Spurs & Feathers and the people are all ready to see our boys take the field,” Griffin continued. Brown emceed the event and began by telling all the accomplishments of the Gamecock Club over the past year, including setting the membership record for the third consecutive year with over 17,000 members. Brown also discussed the Gamecock Club’s commemorative brick project for around
photo by Mike kucharski
Williams-Brice Stadium and updated the progress on facilities before passing off to the guest speakers. Brewer was clearly the highlight of the event as he told stories of the his time at South Carolina, including remembering his performance in the 2001 Outback Bowl and how it was playing against Ohio State after not being recruited by the Buckeyes despite being named Mr. Football for Ohio in high school. “Coach (Lou) Holtz was really on me leading up to the game after a story that had
photo by allen sharpe
The East Carolina game East Carolina (1-0, 0-0 AAC)
Site: Columbia, S.C. in Williams-Brice Stadium Time: 7 p.m. TV: ESPNU (check local listings) Radio: Gamecock IMG Sports Network Series: South Carolina leads, 12-5 The Pirates opened their 2014 season with an easy 52-7 victory over North Carolina Central. The Pirates entered the 2014 season coming off
a 10-3 2013 season that featured a victory in the Beef O’Brady’s Bowl led by quarterback Shane Carden. East Carolina will try to throw the ball around Williams-Brice Stadium, which will again test the young Gamecock secondary, but the turnover on the Pirates’ offensive line could be exploited if the Gamecocks can generate a pass rush. South Carolina’s offense should have more than enough talent to exploit the Pirate defense and put up points. While East Carolina may be one of the favorites in the AAC, the talent and depth of South Carolina should be enough to take care of business against the Pirates at home.
appeared over Christmas … he knows how to push the guys to get the best out of them and he knew that if he would get in my face before the game, I would blow up,” Brewer recalled. “I blew up. I got in that game and I just wanted to destroy everything that was possible and it was awesome. I was on kickoff team, kickoff return, punt team, punt return and starting running back, so I got to do that a lot. “First play of the game was the kickoff I went down and made the tackle and it was just on from there. They let me tote the rock,
let me go at it and I ended up with three touchdowns, 219 all-purpose yards and just had a blast … the next day coach John Cooper was relieved of duties as Ohio State football coach. I think it may have had a little to do with me and a lot to do with losing to Michigan,” Brewer continued. Brewer concluded his time by thanking those in attendance and Gamecock fans for all they do for the University. “I look at what is going on at the University now with the facilities and the fan support with 80,000-plus of you all out there cheering. It’s because of you that this success is all possible and I want to thank you all for your dedication, your money to support the Gamecocks and your undying support in those stands … I came from Ohio, but I’m from Columbia now and I will always bleed Garnet & Black,” Brewer concluded. Griffin concluded the event by thanking all the Gamecock fans for attending and looking forward to the season getting under way. “We are so thankful that everyone took the time to come out here tonight and get us ready for kickoff in just a few days. It was a great night and now we’re just counting down to kickoff like all the other Gamecocks out there,” Griffin added.
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Upcoming Events: Gamecock Club NYC Gamecocks Game Watching Party When: Every time the Gamecocks play football this season Where: The NYC Gamecock Club home, The Mason Jar, at the intersection of 30th St. and Park Ave. Come out and enjoy Gamecock Football with the best NYC Gamecock fans you will ever meet. Enjoy drink specials, giveaway items, cool raffle items, great food and dozens of TV’s with only Gamecock Football! Wear your game day gear, take a photo with our inflatable Cocky mascot and be proud to be a Gamecock in NYC! If you are not at Williams-Brice, you want to be here! Charlotte Gamecock Club Watch Party When: Every time the Gamecocks play football this season Where: Icehouse in Southend; 2100 South Blvd., Charlotte, N.C. 28203 Guaranteed to watch the game, listen to the audio with free parking, free entry and right off the light rail. Come watch the game with plenty of Gamecocks with Gamecock trivia, specials and a revenue share to help the University! 21st Annual Border Bash When: Friday, September 12, 2014; 4 p.m. Where: Augusta Common Tickets are $10 Advance/$15 at gate – Kids 12 & Under are free. Available Friday, July 25 at BorderBash.net. Performances by: Kristian Bush of Sugarland and the Joe Stevenson Band. As always the University of South Carolina and University of Georgia cheerleaders as well as mascots Hairy Dawg and Cocky will be on hand throughout the evening performing and taking pictures with fans. All of this plus great vendors, food, drinks and fun games make Border Bash the place to be with your family and friends on Friday, September 12. Spartanburg Gamecock Club First Fall Meeting When: Thursday, Sept. 18; 7 p.m. Where: Downtown Marriott in Spartanburg, S.C. The featured speaker is TBD with details
to be released when known. Make sure to attend the first fall meeting for the Spartanburg chapter. Nashville Gamecock Club Vanderbilt Weekend When: Sept. 19-20 Friday, Sept. 19 from 7 p.m.-11 p.m.: Vandy Game Pre-Party at Tin Roof Demonbreun with Musical Guest Ricky Young. Local South Carolina Alum and diehard Gamecock Ricky Young will be headlining. They have a lot of drink and food specials set up as well, including from 7-10 p.m. $5 Chick Dilla, $5 build you own Nachos, $40 Crowd Control (bucket of Wings/Nacho combo) and from 7-11 p.m. $2 domestic drafts, $3 craft drafts and $6 Gamecock shot. Please feel free to stop by, where you will be given a wristband so you can enjoy specials and the evening. Saturday, Sept. 20, All Day: Vandy Game Tailgate at Jed’s off West End. They will have music, tents, and all sorts of other events set up in the lawn outside. You ARE allowed to bring your cooler to this event, but you cannot take alcohol that you bring outside the fenced in area or inside Jed’s. You are also allowed to purchase drinks from Jed’s, but you cannot take them outside to the tailgate area. Vanderbilt Parking Information Terrace Place & Wesley Place Garages: Park at no charge in the garages located just off of 21st Avenue and then enjoy a scenic 15-20 minute walk through the heart of campus to Vanderbilt Stadium. Additional Parking: Fans can park for $10 per game in the 25th Avenue Garage, located at the corner of 25th Avenue and Jess Neely Drive. RV Parking: The Nashville Fairgrounds offers RV parking. Parking is $35 per night and no reservations are required. Please call (615) 862-8980 or (615) 862-5016 for more information. No RV parking is available on campus. Jacksonville Gamecock Club Florida Weekend When: Nov. 14-15 The Jacksonville Gamecock Club invites all Carolina fans to Jacksonville to prepare to beat the Gators again! November 14 &
15, 2014. Reserve your bus tickets and party tickets now! Friday night party starting at 7 p.m. at Jacksonville Marriott @ Southpoint; cost is $20 per person with The Sensational Epics performing. Game day bus ride on Nov. 15 five hours prior to kickoff; leaving from Jacksonville Marriott @ Southpoint with a coast of $40 per person, does not include ticket to game. Hotel accommodations at Jacksonville Marriott @ Southpoint, Gamecock Club rate
$79/night. (904) 296-2222. Make checks payable to Jacksonville Gamecock Club, 2948 3rd Street South #328, Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250-5847. Please include email for confirmation. Any questions call: Belk Ingram: (904) 254-5969, bingram@pbclubrealty.com; Rod Brace (904) 755-4041, rrbrace@gmail. com; Dane Hall (904) 591-4877, dhall88@ comcast.net; Rick Williamson (904) 6997952, rwilliamson1301@yahoo.com
Gamecock fan photo submissions
Pictured above are Connor and Jackson Viola. Mike Viola and Melissa Murdaugh Viola are the proud parents and Melissa is a 2006 University of South Carolina graduate. Below is Cole Keefe, 6, with Jadeveon Clowney before the 2014 Capital One Bowl.
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Augusta Area Gamecocks kick off the season submitted photo
by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
on Friday, Sept. 12, with the gates opening at 4 p.m. to allow South Carolina and Georgia fans to get together the night before the The Augusta Area Gamecock Club held its football game. The proceeds raised from the Sixth Annual Football Kickoff event with a event are donated to local children’s charities strong turnout at Logan’s Roadhouse. in the Central Savannah River Area. “They gave us a private room there and we “You can think of it as one big tailgate parhad about 75 people out. We’re in the middle ty with great music, the Georgia and South of Bulldog country, so we can’t always get Carolina cheerleaders and Hairy Dawg and 100, 200, 300 people out there,” chapter Cocky, not to mention all your friends,” president Tom Rogers said. “For being a Rogers said. “It is always a good time and chapter in Georgia, that’s pretty good. We we can raise some money for a good cause. had a good turnout for us and it’s always This year should be good with Kristian Bush a little bit tough for us Gamecocks over in of Sugarland and the Joe Stevenson Band Georgia, but we had a good time. both performing. Everyone should plan to “We had Tony Morrell come out and talk come out to Augusta Common to get fired about the football team and recruiting and he up for the game the next day.” answered all the questions anyone had too. Rogers said to learn more about Border We gave away some raffle prizes and about Bash, visit www.borderbash.net. He added everyone left with something. We also had that more information is available on the the 2014 Gamecock football posters and help chapter’s Facebook page, so like them as Aufrom the Gamecock Club in Columbia, so it gusta Area Gamecock Club. Communicawas a really good meeting,” Rogers contintions secretary Tiffany Padgett serves as the ued. administrator for the Facebook page, sends Rogers noted that the excitement level was out e-vites for all their events and has been extremely high with football season beginextremely valuable according to Rogers. ning and everyone said they enjoyed the Rogers said that he was happy with the meeting. turnout at the event and they will plan to “This was our Sixth Annual Kickoff meet- hold the Seventh Annual Kickoff event next ing and it went well again. It’s something fall after seeing so much Gamecock passion that we really enjoy doing and the fans like at the event. to get out and talk Gamecocks when all “We are just glad that the season is here they may be hearing about around town is and we’re looking forward to hosting Border Georgia. It also helps us to talk a little about Bash in a couple of weeks. We hope it’s gothe upcoming Border Bash,” Rogers coming to be a really good season and we should mented. have a lot to talk about as Gamecocks in The 21st Annual Border Bash will be held Georgia country,” Rogers concluded.
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Unique views sponsored by Unique Expressions
In the aftermath of Thursday’s opener, there’s not much that can be said to make anybody feel better. It is an understatement to say that it was a disappointing and humbling experience. Not only did the Gamecocks lose. It was how we lost. To be honest, if we had lost by one point we would be disappointed, but a 52-28 beat down, that really was worse than the score indicates, was quite a surprise. Even the Texas A&M team and fans were surprised at the ease in which they moved the ball up and down the field, from the opening drive to the final seconds. Kenny Hill, starting his first career game, had a performance such that he looked like the second coming of Peyton Manning. And make no mistake, Texas A&M played very well. As coach Spurrier pointed out, USC Ed Girardeau was outcoached Contributing and outplayed. Editor No excuses, they were just better than the Gamecocks. In the end, let’s hope that the Aggies and Kenny Hill are as good as they looked. So where do we go from here? First of all
there is no need to panic. The same coaches that won 33 games the last the three years are still here and I think we are in pretty good hands. Adjustments will be made and the team will play better. Think back one year. USC lost the second game of the season and still went on to an 11-2 record. Georgia in 2011 lost their opener to Boise State (in their Dawg Power Ranger uniforms no less) then the second game to Carolina. The Dawg “faithful” howled for Mark Richt to be banished. They proceeded to win every game for the remainder of the regular-season and went on to win the SEC East. The same could happen here. Take care of business, run the table and we win the East. However, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There is a lot of work to get done and a lot of wins to get before we can realistically think about a long win streak. Anybody who saw the SEC Network opener would say that. I’m also reminded of a trip to Athens in 2005, the HBC’s first season. Georgia was coming off a win over Boise State who was supposed to be good, had mauled them and were ranked No. 9 in the country. USC opened with a not so impressive win over UCF and the Dawgs were big favorites. I had the pleasure of going to the game and “tailgating” with a group of, well, let’s just say over exuberant Dawg fans (if you’ve been to Georgia, you know what I really mean). At some point a 12-year-old kid started going around the room getting
predictions for the game. They yuked it up with scores like 31-3, 44-14 and 52-0. The young man got to me, and my score was 2824. He wrote it down, turned to go away, but stopped. “Who do you think is going to win,” he asked? “You don’t think I came here to lose do you?,” I replied. His father said, “how do you think South Carolina will win this game, Ed?” My answer, “We’re not as bad as you think we are, and you, my friend, are certainly not as good as you guys think you are.” You could’ve heard pin drop. We had our chances that day, but lost a close one 17-15, but I was right. The same applies here. You are never as good as you think you are after the first game and you’re not as bad as it may seem. That is true on any level: high school, college or pros and basically in any sport. It’s why they have a “season” and a lot can happen from week to week. There was one thing I was proud of Thursday night. The fans hung in there! Sure some people went home and left before the end. But there was still a good crowd there as the final seconds ticked off and the student section, which has been much maligned in the past, on a hot, muggy night (which may be an understatement), had to have had at least three quarters of the end zone still occupied. I’m sure it didn’t go unnoticed by their fellow classmates on the field.
photo by Jenny dilworth
And I thought the effort by our team was still good. Sure they will have to regroup and get better, but there was never a point where I felt like the players quit. They hung in there and tried to get better. It could have easily have been 59 points, but the defense at least kept playing. East Carolina will be good enough to win, so the SEC can wait. Our overall record against East Carolina is 12-5. All five were tough to swallow. The two missed field goals in ’92 to lose by 2 and the 56 points they scored in ’94 come to mind. This Gamecock group needs a win and to get some confidence back, particularly the defense. Time to start a new streak and you want to say you were there when it started. Still a great time to be a Gamecock!
Collenton County extending its reach
by mike kucharski mike@spursandfeathers.com
The Colleton County Gamecock Club held a season-kickoff Gamecock Happy Hour and a freshmen send-off leading up to the start of fall to keep members active and engaged. “We really had a good turnout. We really have a good group down here,” chapter president Lori Beard said. “We had a freshman send-off right at the end of the summer which was a lot of fun. We had some freshmen come out and they were very thankful the Gamecock Club was there. We had a lot of positive feedback on that. “It gives us the opportunity to involve them early because we want them to join the Gamecock Club when they graduate for sure. I did that and I’m so glad that I started back then … if you start early you can really build your way up,” Beard continued.
submitted photo
The Gamecock Happy Hour also had great attendance at Fat Jack’s Grillin’ And Chillin’ in Walterboro, S.C. for Gamecock fun and fellowship. Beard said they were able to raffle off two items that were donated, one of which was won by one of the
newest Colleton chapter members Steven Padgett. “It was kind of a kickoff for the year. We’re trying to switch things up a little bit because we’re trying to bring in some different groups of people. We expanded our
board who bring in their families and their friends. We’ve tried to extend our reach and be active in the community more than just having our meetings as well,” Beard explained. She added that she was extremely appreciative of the support from the University and the Gamecock Club in getting Cocky, coaches and representatives to events. “I think the people really like to see the University present. They see our Gamecock Club staff present … we just have great involvement from our Gamecock Club because they want us out here to know that they’re there, which is nice and very evident,” Beard remarked. Beard said the chapter plans to have some viewing parties for away football games and the details will be determined and released once decided. To find out more about the chapter, like them on Facebook as Colleton County Gamecocks.
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