February 2012 – Page 2 – The Rubber Chickens Blog

OK, I’ve been really hesitant to go to this place, because Andy Demetra seems like a nice enough guy, and there’s no doubt he loves what he’s doing. The Gamecock Nation seems to be really neutral towards him. I honestly never see anything written about him anywhere, good or bad.

But following him on Twitter is a maddening exercise in positivity overload, and it came to a crescendo last night with this:

The fact that this was retweeted 14 times and favorited twice notwithstanding, WHAT THE HELL?!?

I love Scott Wingo, he’s one of the great Gamecocks of all time, and I’m a diehard Gamecock fan as evidenced by the fact that I write for free about it on an independent blog (looooooserrrrrr).

BUT MR. WINGO WOULD NOT BE SHOWING MR. MANNING INTO ANYTHING. MR. WINGO WOULD BE PARKING MR. MANNING’S CAR BECAUSE MR. WINGO HAD NOT PLAYED A SINGLE GAME AT SOUTH CAROLINA WHEN MR. MANNING WAS WINNING HIS FIRST SUPER BOWL!!!

I know, I know, it’s harmless. Because of his employment situation, Andy is a Gamecock superhomer and into pandering. I have accepted that. But sometimes the fact that Mike Morgan is no longer our play-by-play guy hits me and I get a little flustered.

I’ve calmed down…wait, he tweeted WHAT?!?

I think (Horn) is doing a fine job. South Carolina’s hard. Hard deal to get going. That’s why you’ve got to stick with a guy, and you’ve got to give him seven, eight years, and let him get it going.

– John Calipari, University of Kentucky Head Coach

We should really thank Coach Cal for his opinion, even though he appears to be trying to wave down a train that left the station about a month ago. And it’s pretty easy for a guy like him to chime in: secure in his job; secure for life financially; leading one of the premiere programs in the country; able to look at the top 20 high school players in America and say, “OK, I’ll take him, him, him, annnnd the 6’10” guy over there who can step on campus and average 15 and 10 every night.”

In last night’s post game, after Kentucky’s 86-52 win over South Carolina (the score makes the game look closer than it really was, folks), Calipari continued to lobby for Horn by saying something to the effect, “If South Carolina or its fans want to restart every three or four years that’s their business but that’s not how I would run things.”

Thanks Coach, but it’s obvious you’re trying to protect one of your own. Trying to single-handedly stabilize the college coaching profession. Your effort is noble and appreciated, but the defense of Darrin Horn is growing weaker by the game.

First of all, nobody associated with the Gamecock program WANTS to restart every three or four years. Prior to Horn, Eddie Fogler had eight years and Dave Odom had seven years at the helm. Both guys had moderate success, but followed that success with average to poor seasons that led to their respective retirements. Enter the young guy, the hot coaching prospect fresh off a Sweet 16 with Western Kentucky to bring long-term stability to our program.

But anyone with eyes can see that things have gone in the tank for our program at lightning speed under the leadership of Darrin Horn, and when you look ahead to 2012-2013 and beyond I’m not sure it makes us feel better that this is the proverbial “young” team. Allow me to rehash a few tidbits from the end of last year until now:

Ramon Galloway, one of our top returning players, mysteriously transfers out of the program. I don’t know if anyone knows the real story of why he left, but he would be a nice piece to have on this team. Currently averaging 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists for LaSalle.
Murphy Holloway, in one of the more bizarre transfer stories of all time, transfers to USC from Ole Miss, sits on our bench and practices with us for an entire season, then decides to transfer back to Ole Miss. Currently averaging 10 points and 9 rebounds for Ole Miss.
November brings losses to Elon on the road and Tennessee State at home
In December our top two commitments for 2012-2013, Ian Baker and Carlos Morris, jump ship due to perceived instability with the program
Currently ranked 284th in the country in points per game
Currently ranked 289th in the country in rebounds per game
Currently ranked 328th in the country in assists per game
Currently ranked 266th in the country in shooting percentage

Besides those facts, just watching our team gives you the sinking feeling that we’re either a) sorely lacking in talent or b) not coached very well. I’m certainly not here to bash the players. I appreciate those guys, that they chose to attend USC, and that they pour their heart out every chance they get to play. But you can’t escape from the fact that players like Brian Richardson and Lakeem Jackson were brought in to be cornerstones of the program, and now they’re fighting to just get a few minutes every game.

Whose fault is that? I’m going to give the players the benefit of the doubt that they’re working hard and trying to get better every day. And if that’s the case, then the coaching staff is not developing these guys, or they’re not being put into a system that gives them a chance to complete, much less win.

Look, a lot of people have been talking about “realistic expectations” in defense of Horn when it comes to our program. I get that. There is not a single program in a major conference with resources like ours that has underachieved more in the last 40 years. (Name one, please, to make me feel better.)

But that doesn’t mean we should accept it. And it doesn’t mean we should turn a blind eye to all the arguments that are starting to build up against Darrin Horn. He wasn’t brought in to be a miracle worker, but he also wasn’t brought in to a bare cupboard either, as evidenced by our 21-10 record his first year.

I’m not screaming for the dismissal of Darrin Horn. Despite taking the time to jot these few words down, I quite frankly don’t care a whole lot at this point.

And that may be the biggest indictment of all.