Steve Spurrier's Call-In Show
posted by Scott Hood, Monday, December 28, 2009
7:00 - We're awaiting the start of the show.
FIRST SEGMENT: USC has never lost a bowl game in a year when they beat Clemson. Trying to go to 3-0 in that category. USC played with a lot of effort v. Clemson and got some turnovers. Need better athletes on special teams. Attitude better after Clemson game? Tough to say. All the coaches on staff want to be here. Nobody is talking about leaving early, players or coaches, unlike last year. ERic Norwood and others are saying they want this to be the best game ever. Health-wise, USC is in good shape except for Robertson and Paulk. UConn is tough on offense. THey gain 400 yards abd give up 400 yards. SOS said he has to emphasize scoring on special teams.
SECOND SEGMENT: SOS said Norwood has had a "wonderful career." He played his biggest games on national TV. Made AP First-team All-American. Has been a very good captain this year. USC needs to crack the upper echelon onthe SEC. USC is "stuck" on 7 wins. Need to do better. SOS said the O-Line coach position has attracted a lot of attention and he may be "pretty close" to making a hire. However, no announcement will be made until after the bowl game. SOS likes Watkins and Johnson on the O-Line next season. Hopefully, the new O-Line coach will be able to get the most out of the players. USC still bottom in rushing and sacks. Coaching in the SEC can be all-consuming. Toughest loss for SOS here was 23-21 setback to Clemson in 2007 when USC allowed Clemson to escape a 3rd-and-18 and kick GW FG.
THIRD SEGMENT: USC is 1-0 when playing on Jan. 2. They beat WVU in the Carquest Bowl in 1995. Will Alshon Jeffery and Tori Gurley be onthe field at the same time? May not happen. Both play the same position. USC has sold its entire allotment of 10,000 tickets. Spurrier pointed to different interests inthe off-season as one of the secrets to longevity in coaching.
FOURTH SEGMENT: UConn plays a little like Iowa or Pittsburgh. They like to run the power offense with 2 backs. They ran it down ND's throat. They will try to run it all day long if they can. USC ran 30+ times 9 times this season. Won most of those games. The team that runs the ball the best usually wins.
FIFTH SEGMENT: USC should be ready to play its best game of the season. Garcia is much better prepared to play in the bowl game this year. Garcia has stayed healthy, which means he has taken most of the snaps. Reid McCollum is making progress but needs a lot more work reading defenses before he's ready to play. Garcia's best run of the year came when he leaped over a UK defender to make a crucial first down. Will Garcia receive pre-season accolades? Depends on the bowl game.
SIXTH SEGMENT: The defensive coaching staff has enjoyed another solid year considering USC is third in the SEC in total defense.
SEVENTH SEGMENT: It's going to come down to the USC offensive line. Have to play tough and physical. UCOnn will try to run the football.
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Steve Spurrier held a special bowl edition of his call-in show on Monday night. Here's a summary of what he said.
7:00 - We're awaiting the start of the show.
FIRST SEGMENT: USC has never lost a bowl game in a year when they beat Clemson. Trying to go to 3-0 in that category. USC played with a lot of effort v. Clemson and got some turnovers. Need better athletes on special teams. Attitude better after Clemson game? Tough to say. All the coaches on staff want to be here. Nobody is talking about leaving early, players or coaches, unlike last year. ERic Norwood and others are saying they want this to be the best game ever. Health-wise, USC is in good shape except for Robertson and Paulk. UConn is tough on offense. THey gain 400 yards abd give up 400 yards. SOS said he has to emphasize scoring on special teams.
SECOND SEGMENT: SOS said Norwood has had a "wonderful career." He played his biggest games on national TV. Made AP First-team All-American. Has been a very good captain this year. USC needs to crack the upper echelon onthe SEC. USC is "stuck" on 7 wins. Need to do better. SOS said the O-Line coach position has attracted a lot of attention and he may be "pretty close" to making a hire. However, no announcement will be made until after the bowl game. SOS likes Watkins and Johnson on the O-Line next season. Hopefully, the new O-Line coach will be able to get the most out of the players. USC still bottom in rushing and sacks. Coaching in the SEC can be all-consuming. Toughest loss for SOS here was 23-21 setback to Clemson in 2007 when USC allowed Clemson to escape a 3rd-and-18 and kick GW FG.
THIRD SEGMENT: USC is 1-0 when playing on Jan. 2. They beat WVU in the Carquest Bowl in 1995. Will Alshon Jeffery and Tori Gurley be onthe field at the same time? May not happen. Both play the same position. USC has sold its entire allotment of 10,000 tickets. Spurrier pointed to different interests inthe off-season as one of the secrets to longevity in coaching.
FOURTH SEGMENT: UConn plays a little like Iowa or Pittsburgh. They like to run the power offense with 2 backs. They ran it down ND's throat. They will try to run it all day long if they can. USC ran 30+ times 9 times this season. Won most of those games. The team that runs the ball the best usually wins.
FIFTH SEGMENT: USC should be ready to play its best game of the season. Garcia is much better prepared to play in the bowl game this year. Garcia has stayed healthy, which means he has taken most of the snaps. Reid McCollum is making progress but needs a lot more work reading defenses before he's ready to play. Garcia's best run of the year came when he leaped over a UK defender to make a crucial first down. Will Garcia receive pre-season accolades? Depends on the bowl game.
SIXTH SEGMENT: The defensive coaching staff has enjoyed another solid year considering USC is third in the SEC in total defense.
SEVENTH SEGMENT: It's going to come down to the USC offensive line. Have to play tough and physical. UCOnn will try to run the football.
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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 @.