Never A Dull Moment In Gamecock Nation
posted by Scott Hood, Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Consider everything that has happened over the last four days since the debacle in the Upstate:
1. One assistant coach was fired;
2. One assistant coach left voluntarily to join his brother-in-law in Knoxville and threw grenades at his former employer on his way out of town;
3. A redshirt freshman who didn’t even play in the final regular season game was named the starting quarterback for the bowl game;
4. The SEC bowl picture is a mess;
5. Steve Spurrier hired a new wide receivers coach and then, poof, the deal disappeared hours later.
Whew.
Let’s start at the beginning.
There’s no question the Clemson game was an important game for the South Carolina program. Unfortunately, some of the players had their minds elsewhere (NFL?) and, predictably, played poorly in the biggest game of the year.
The Gamecocks looked lethargic in pre-game warmups and it extended into the game. Enough mother boards have been sacrificed discussing the game, so anything I say here would merely rehash something that’s already been said a dozen times.
Based on the swiftness in which Steve Spurrier acted, it’s obvious the decision to fire John Hunt as offensive line coach had been made prior to the Clemson game.
Ironically, the USC offensive line afforded Chris Smelley adequate protection during portions of the Clemson game. But it was too late to save Hunt’s job.
When we last spoke with Hunt a few weeks ago, he seemed resigned to his fate. He was well aware of the exceptionally high level of his unpopularity among Gamecock fans.
Was it a good decision? Yes. Clearly, the offensive line has under performed the last couple of seasons. USC has finished last in rushing the last two seasons and next-to-last in sacks allowed. Even a first-grader knows that’s not a good combination.
As Spurrier told me, it was time for the offensive linemen to hear another voice. Hunt disagreed with the decision, as he should have, but respected Spurrier’s authority to make it as the head coach.
Former quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator David Reaves left just as quickly but, unfortunately, not as quietly.
Within hours after the Gamecocks arrived back in Columbia following the Clemson loss, Reaves was already packing up his office and preparing for the four-hour drive Sunday to Knoxville.
During the drive, or shortly after his arrival at Tennessee, Reaves began contacting recruits who had verbally committed to USC or were seriously considering the Gamecocks in an attempt to lure them to Volunteers.
Not a smart thing to do when you‘re a young coach. But, as they say, all’s fair in love, war and recruiting.
In short, Reaves didn’t just burn his bridges, he napalmed them.
Here's the kicker: Tenenssee has a strict anti-nepotism policy that will prevent Reaves from reporting directly to head coach Lane Kiffin. Intead, he must report to the director of football operations and then to a senior administrator in the athletic department. If Kiffin hires his father as defensive coordinator as some expect, the same policy would apply.
Since Reaves was the QB coach, that brings us to Stephen Garcia. The fact Spurrier quickly named him the starting quarterback for the bowl games proves three things: 1) Spurrier is angry over the way Smelley played against Clemson; 2) Spurrier believes he had to do something to re-ignite the passions of Gamecock fans after the Clemson loss; and 3) he’s trying like heck to get the bid to the Outback Bowl.
Garcia, as most of you know, grew up in Tampa, the city where the Outback Bowl will be played on Jan. 1. Will USC fans and the locals on the West Coast of Florida purchase more tickets to the game with Garcia guaranteed to play? Yes.
Speaking of the Outback, what are USC’s chances of landing in that bowl? Still better than 50-50, though the Capital One Bowl could mess things up for a lot of teams by selecting red-hot Ole Miss rather than Georgia.
If the Capital One takes the Rebels, Georgia could fall to the Outback and USC to the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta. Will it happen? Probably not, but it’s touch-and-go right now. Let’s just say the Capital One Bowl is thinking about it.
All of the above brings us, of course, to the events of the last 24 hours when it appeared Spurrier had hired Woody McCorvey as wide receivers coach. A number of media outlets, including Gamecock Central, reported the hire.
But 12 hours later, the deal was off.
What happened? It seems McCorvey expected to receive a multi-year deal, but USC doesn’t offer them to position coaches. Some people have pointed the finger at USC AD Eric Hyman, but it appears Spurrier blames it on a misunderstanding and the fact he was uncomfortable hiring a former coordinator to become a position coach.
Whatever the reason, McCorvey won’t be headed to Columbia.
Now you’re up to date.
But keep both hands on the steering wheel because you never know how bumpy the ride will be in Gamecock Nation.
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Here’s why I love this job: things are never dull in Gamecock Nation. Fall asleep for a few hours and when you wake up things are dramatically different then when your head first hit the pillow.
Consider everything that has happened over the last four days since the debacle in the Upstate:
1. One assistant coach was fired;
2. One assistant coach left voluntarily to join his brother-in-law in Knoxville and threw grenades at his former employer on his way out of town;
3. A redshirt freshman who didn’t even play in the final regular season game was named the starting quarterback for the bowl game;
4. The SEC bowl picture is a mess;
5. Steve Spurrier hired a new wide receivers coach and then, poof, the deal disappeared hours later.
Whew.
Let’s start at the beginning.
There’s no question the Clemson game was an important game for the South Carolina program. Unfortunately, some of the players had their minds elsewhere (NFL?) and, predictably, played poorly in the biggest game of the year.
The Gamecocks looked lethargic in pre-game warmups and it extended into the game. Enough mother boards have been sacrificed discussing the game, so anything I say here would merely rehash something that’s already been said a dozen times.
Based on the swiftness in which Steve Spurrier acted, it’s obvious the decision to fire John Hunt as offensive line coach had been made prior to the Clemson game.
Ironically, the USC offensive line afforded Chris Smelley adequate protection during portions of the Clemson game. But it was too late to save Hunt’s job.
When we last spoke with Hunt a few weeks ago, he seemed resigned to his fate. He was well aware of the exceptionally high level of his unpopularity among Gamecock fans.
Was it a good decision? Yes. Clearly, the offensive line has under performed the last couple of seasons. USC has finished last in rushing the last two seasons and next-to-last in sacks allowed. Even a first-grader knows that’s not a good combination.
As Spurrier told me, it was time for the offensive linemen to hear another voice. Hunt disagreed with the decision, as he should have, but respected Spurrier’s authority to make it as the head coach.
Former quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator David Reaves left just as quickly but, unfortunately, not as quietly.
Within hours after the Gamecocks arrived back in Columbia following the Clemson loss, Reaves was already packing up his office and preparing for the four-hour drive Sunday to Knoxville.
During the drive, or shortly after his arrival at Tennessee, Reaves began contacting recruits who had verbally committed to USC or were seriously considering the Gamecocks in an attempt to lure them to Volunteers.
Not a smart thing to do when you‘re a young coach. But, as they say, all’s fair in love, war and recruiting.
In short, Reaves didn’t just burn his bridges, he napalmed them.
Here's the kicker: Tenenssee has a strict anti-nepotism policy that will prevent Reaves from reporting directly to head coach Lane Kiffin. Intead, he must report to the director of football operations and then to a senior administrator in the athletic department. If Kiffin hires his father as defensive coordinator as some expect, the same policy would apply.
Since Reaves was the QB coach, that brings us to Stephen Garcia. The fact Spurrier quickly named him the starting quarterback for the bowl games proves three things: 1) Spurrier is angry over the way Smelley played against Clemson; 2) Spurrier believes he had to do something to re-ignite the passions of Gamecock fans after the Clemson loss; and 3) he’s trying like heck to get the bid to the Outback Bowl.
Garcia, as most of you know, grew up in Tampa, the city where the Outback Bowl will be played on Jan. 1. Will USC fans and the locals on the West Coast of Florida purchase more tickets to the game with Garcia guaranteed to play? Yes.
Speaking of the Outback, what are USC’s chances of landing in that bowl? Still better than 50-50, though the Capital One Bowl could mess things up for a lot of teams by selecting red-hot Ole Miss rather than Georgia.
If the Capital One takes the Rebels, Georgia could fall to the Outback and USC to the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta. Will it happen? Probably not, but it’s touch-and-go right now. Let’s just say the Capital One Bowl is thinking about it.
All of the above brings us, of course, to the events of the last 24 hours when it appeared Spurrier had hired Woody McCorvey as wide receivers coach. A number of media outlets, including Gamecock Central, reported the hire.
But 12 hours later, the deal was off.
What happened? It seems McCorvey expected to receive a multi-year deal, but USC doesn’t offer them to position coaches. Some people have pointed the finger at USC AD Eric Hyman, but it appears Spurrier blames it on a misunderstanding and the fact he was uncomfortable hiring a former coordinator to become a position coach.
Whatever the reason, McCorvey won’t be headed to Columbia.
Now you’re up to date.
But keep both hands on the steering wheel because you never know how bumpy the ride will be in Gamecock Nation.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
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Scott Hood. Since February of 2005, Scott has covered the South Carolina football, men's basketball and baseball programs for GamecockCentral. He may be reached by email at scottblog(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.