I’ve read a few articles today about the A.J. Green situation that have left me scratching my head, particularly this one from Tony Barnhardt of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  I don’t frequent the Georgia blogs or message boards, so I can’t honestly tell you what side the majority of fans are taking on the issue.  But of the few columns I have read, the writers seem to come down soft on the one person who could have prevented this whole situation:

A.J. Green.

Green’s statement said something about a “mistake in judgment” he made. 

Translation:  I knew it was wrong, I did it anyway.

Now tell me, why WOULDN’T you be mad at him if you’re a Georgia fan?  He sold his jersey for $1000 to a guy who might or might not be an agent, knowing it could get him and the university in trouble.  That’s not a mistake in judgment, that’s blatant disregard for the rules that are constantly hammered into these athletes not to break.      

It is certainly well within everyone’s right to demonize the NCAA – been there, done that, sold the game-worn jersey – but until someone comes up with a fair and equitable way to pay college athletes for their services, those athletes need to play by the rules, or be prepared to suffer the consequences. 

And while we’re on the subject, has anyone actually come up with an idea for a fair and equitable way to pay college athletes?  Should they pay just the revenue generators?  Would the money be split evenly among the entire team?  Just the scholarship players?  Would the fourth-teamers get the same amount as the first-teamers?  What if 5000 Alshon Jeffery jerseys sell, but zero Rokevious Watkins jerseys sell?  Does Alshon get a cut of that and Rok not?  What about FCS schools?  Do the same rules and payment schedules apply to them?

When somebody can piece that together along with the thousands of other questions that would be raised, then we can talk.  Until then, let’s hope the kids do the best they can with their scholarship that is worth tens of thousands of dollars. 

Yes, to some degree I would agree these kids are “used”.  They work hard, more is expected of them than a typical college student, and millions could potentially be made off their likeness over four years without them ever seeing a red cent.

That said, put me in a time machine today, take me back 22 years, and give me a football scholarship to the University of South Carolina.  Sell my posters, jersey, signature, and use my likeness anywhere you see fit.  I don’t want anything in return but to be able to run through that tunnel and play football on Saturdays. 

But that’s just me.

Since there is already a column out there called This Week in Schadenfreude, I am relegated to calling this column the much more pedestrian The Comeuppance Report; or, Who I’m Pulling Against this Week. 

After week one, here are just a few choices

Georgia – an obvious selection, I know.  I hate them and their smuggery so much.  But make no mistake, Georgia hates us back in a big way.  They always say their rival tank is full, with the likes of Florida, Tennessee, Auburn and Georgia Tech on the schedule.  They just don’t have time to hate us, but thanks for asking (pat on the head, run along and play now).  They want us to be Kentucky or Vanderbilt so bad they can’t stand it.  But we just won’t oblige.  While they beat us more often than not, it’s always a nail biter, and losses to us are much more crushing to them than they let on.  A deep-seated hatred for South Carolina bubbles just below the surface of every Georgia fan.  Let’s hope this year we can break their spirits again.    

Jamie Harper and Andre Ellington – The backfield duo of CTU have announced to the world they want to be known as “New Storm”.  Yeah, and I want to be known as Sergeant Badass Chickmagnet Superman, but it ain’t gonna happen.  As the saying goes, if you have to give yourself a nickname, then it’s not really a nickname.  And if you ask for that nickname after rushing for 100 yards each against NORTH FREAKIN’ TEXAS (best known for their courageous performance against the guards in The Longest Yard), then the NCAA should be investigating you for narcissism-enhancing drugs. 

Cam Newton – Simply because I don’t want him to be that good (and I don’t think he is: see Texas, North).  The Auburn fans I work and play with have come out of the woodwork like cockroaches when the kitchen lights have been turned off and a month-old loaf of bread has been scattered across the floor.  One guy actually danced in my office this morning out of giddiness.  Danced.  In my office.  Turn on the lights Dan Mullen, turn on the lights.    

North Carolina – News flash, YOU LOST.  Stop throwing around the words courage and spirit and determination, and mix in the words “blew it”.  You took LSU and The Hat down to the wire.  In the SEC we call that “Saturday”.  Get over yourselves.    

Tulane (who is hosting Ole Miss) – We’ve all had a good laugh, now it’s time to move on.  You know you thought “what if that happened to us?”  You know you did.  And how did it feel?  Horrifying, right?  Now let’s leave the Ackbars alone and let them regain some of their dignity.

Brent Musburger – if you listened to last night’s Boise State-Virginia Tech game, this requires no explanation whatsoever.

I keep telling myself to keep it in perspective.  It’s only week one.  It was only Southern Miss. 

But don’t it feel good? 

There was a 50-gallon drum full of reasons to wring our hands leading up to the game – Agentgate, Whitneygate, who was going to be eligible, who wasn’t; Southern Miss was a more formidable opponent than N.C. State; Andre Brown was 7-feet tall and ran a sub-4 40; Austin Davis was the second coming of Brett Favre; our defense wasn’t ready for the fast-paced USM offense; Larry Fedora was SOS Lite, etc. etc.

T-bone gave us fair warning – do not fear a C-USA team only returning four starters on offense and that gave up 42 points against Middle Tennessee in a bowl game more pathetic than that bowl-that-shall-no-longer-be-named.  But we did not listen.  And after the first three and out, our fingernails were bit to the quick and leprous sores were forming on our hands. 

But then something odd happened.  The University of South Carolina started to look crisp in a season opener. 

Steve Spurrier mixed it up with the playcalling, not giving a crap that he may be “showing his hand.”  Stephen Garcia was all at once sharp, daring, fearless, and best of all, a leader.  Stephon Gilmore flashed his freakish talent on both sides of the ball.  Alshon Jeffery looked like a varsity player getting reps against the JV’s.  Marcus Lattimore, while he didn’t put up spectacular numbers, energized the other players and the crowd.  Ace Sanders looked like he belonged on the Bonneville Salt Flats.  Connor Shaw was as advertised. 

Sure, there were a few rough spots, mainly on defense.  A busted assignment led to USM’s first score.  The D wasn’t as havoc-wreaking as we would’ve liked, and they gave up a lot of yards in the final quarter.  There wasn’t a great push from the front four, and some of the back-ups made us thankful for the first-teamers. 

But come on, aren’t we nitpicking at that point?  We apparently survived a pre-game nuking at the hands of the NCAA, and then went on to soundly beat a team that most experts expected to give us a game well into the second half.  That’s a heckuva lot better start than we’re used to, I can tell you that.

At least for one week, we were who we are supposed to be – a contender for the SEC East crown pounding a good but overmatched mid-major.  So I’d call the feeling right now cautious giddiness.

Lose next week to Georgia, and we’re back to being good ol’ South Carolina.

Win next week against Georgia, and a universe of possibilities opens up.

Just because everybody else does it, and we obviously have some spare time, TRC shares our gameday predictions for Southern Miss.

Buck says: USC 27-10.  This game will be reminiscent of NC State 2008, with a seriously sloppy first half and a couple of late scores to help us breathe easy.  Offensive stars will be Garcia, Lattimore and Jeffery (why yes, this limb is nice and sturdy, thank you very much), while the D will suffocate Southern Miss (I’m only giving them 10 points because I envision us giving them the ball in plus territory a couple of times.)  Other game notes:  Looking forward to Rece Davis calling the game, he’s 87% less smug than Chris Fowler; not looking forward to listening to the Craig James/Jesse Palmer color guy gigglefest; Buck beer consumption over/under – 7; G-man beer consumption over/under - 0.5; T-bone postgame alcohol level over/under – 0.11; Most common quote from a Georgia fan while watching us Thursday night – “Oh my gosh, we are going to KILL them.”

Tbone says: USC 31-3  Our offense may go in fits and starts at first.  However, I don’t see a Conference USA offense that returns only 4 starters (1  on OL) coming into our place and making much noise.  Matthews et al will smother the Mustard Buzzards (I’m gonna keep calling them that until it catches on).  Garcia will start, Shaw will get the 1st series of the 2nd quarter.  I look for Lattimore to make his mark on the swing pass twice, and for Gurley/Alshon/Moore to lead the charge for the receivers.  Craig “Derp” James will annoy us with his idiocy, Jesse Palmer will wear an awkwardly short tie.  Rece Davis will spend most of the game speculating on when Spurrier is retiring.  New ESPN sideline reported Jenn Whatshername will stumble at bit, but after a six pack of beer and a gamecock victory, I won’t even notice.  Most common quote from a Clemson fan while watching us on Thursday night – “I saw Kyle Parker in just his workout pants today ! OM-NOM-NOM-NOM-NOM!”

Gman says: USC 23-17.  The PappaJohns.toilet bowl game is too fresh for me to think we are suddenly going to light it up on offense.  Yeah, we have Lattimore and great receivers, but I believe these are pretty much the same receivers we had last year and we struggled mightily to score.  With a lot of returners on O, however, I think we will move the ball well between the 20’s.  This will result in opportunities for Lanning that he will cash in on.  I expect one boneheaded offensive play that sets up SM for an easy score.  The D will play well but struggle to create turnovers.  As is often the case with this kind of opponent, we will look like the better team by a wide margin, but the score will not reflect it.  I’ll be live at the W-B so I (thankfully) won’t hear the ESPN crew and their digs and snickers about our program.  Don’t be surprised if they continue their lovefest with UCLA pitchers Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer (who didn’t even pitch!).  Will tailgate mightily – looking forward to hanging at my new spot.  I would tell you to come by for a beer, but, um, we’re, uh, probably not going to be there when you come by.  Dang!  Maybe next time.

Thank God for Football Season and Go Cocks!

November 21, 1987 was the day I became a Gamecock fan.  I don’t mean I started pulling for South Carolina.  I mean I became a FAN.

That was the night 12th-ranked South Carolina took on 8th-ranked Clemson in Columbia.  It was the highest combined ranking ever for the schools, and was the night game on ESPN (back when “game of the week” meant something).  I was a Freshman at South Carolina, and had seats in the student section about the 30 yard line.

It was a cold night, but the stadium was packed…and loud.  The 2001 entrance was legendary, and the game would turn out to be one of the most memorable Gamecock victories over Clemson.

Both defenses were tough that night, but South Carolina broke through on this play to Ryan Bethea (hat tip to Cockytalk).  When he split the Clemson defenders I just remember the entire student section going nuts.  When Bethea was brought down inside the ten, I looked down on the ground and the G-man was lying flat on his back in between the bleachers where he had fallen.  With no regard for his safety whatsoever, he looked up at me and screamed, “DID HE SCORE?!?”

He didn’t, but Harold Green did on the very next play.  The rest of the night will be remembered by all that were there because of the hauntingly slow chant of “RODDDD-NEEEEE, RODDDD-NEEEE”  directed at Clemson QB Rodney Williams, who took a beating of Biblical proportions that night.  Brad Edwards sealed the win with an interception return for touchdown late in the game.

I still have that game on VHS somewhere in a cardboard box in my basement.  I must’ve watched Ryan Bethea run with that football 1000 times, with the announcer (any help with who that is?) starting with the flat “Ryan Bethea” and then when the play breaks big the staccato “RY-an be-THEA, WILL GO…”  Even the announcer thought he was gone.

Ryan Bethea was essentially the Alshon Jeffery of his time.  A big guy, really big, with great hands and good speed.  I always had such high hopes that he would be the next Sterling Sharpe, but that never materialized.  Rumors swirled around campus that he was involved in some shady dealings, but nothing was ever confirmed to my knowledge.  He spent some time in an NFL camp or two, but never caught on.

I have no idea where Ryan Bethea is now, but I’d love to tell him that play made me smile each and every one of those thousand times I watched it.  And it still does.

Twenty-five days ago we had the idea to count down the days to the season using the jersey numbers of random, and not so random, former Gamecocks.  Here is a recap of 25 through 2.  Check back tomorrow for #1.

#25 – Mike Reddick; #24 – Tony Watkins; #23 – Terry Wilburn; #22 – Derek Watson; #21 – Zola Davis; #20 – Bobby Fuller; #19 – Troy Hambrick; #18 – Steve Taneyhill; #17 – Vic Penn; #16 – Jamacia Jackson; #15 – Matthew Thomas; #14 – Phil Petty; #13 – Erik Kimrey; #12 – Toby Cates; #11 – Rashad Faison; #10 – Blake Williamson; #9 – Todd Ellis; #8 – Teddy Crawford; #7 – Mike Rathe; #6 – Tommy Beecher; #5 – Dondrial Pinkins; #4 – Sidney Rice; #3 – Cory Boyd; #2 – Sterling Sharpe

At the risk of offending many Gamecock fans, I submit to you…

Sterling Sharpe was the greatest South Carolina football player of all time.

There, I said it.  And I mean it.  And yes, I’m well aware George Rogers won the Heisman.  I didn’t have the benefit of seeing Big George play very much as I was 11 years old and only on the verge of beginning to realize my undying love for college football.  Plus, unfortunately there were no 24-hour sports networks to broadcast his exploits day and night.  Nonetheless…

I was a freshman at South Carolina when Sterling Sharpe was a senior.  I can assure you I’ve never seen a player quite like him in a Gamecock uniform, and I have my doubts I ever will again.  He had the ability to dissect defenses with his speed and ultra-smooth moves.  By the time he was a senior his work in the weight room had given him an additional element of power not many could match on the college level.  “Ellis to Sharpe” was a staple of every Gamecock’s vocabulary.

Sharpe was drafted in the first round by the Packers, and went on to be an All-Pro in five of his six seasons with the team.  In 1992 he broke the NFL single-season receptions record, and then for good measure broke his own record in 1993.

Sharpe’s career was unfortunately cut short by a severe neck injury suffered in 1994.  Had that injury not occured he would surely be an NFL Hall of Famer, and I believe he would be mentioned shortly after Jerry Rice in conversations about the greatest receivers of all time.

Sharpe caught a little flack last year for refusing to “unretire” the #2 and allow Alshon Jeffery to wear it.  Personally, I would be more concerned about a high school player who chooses his college based on the number he wears (which thankfully Alshon did not).  Sharpe’s loyalty to the university has been questioned on occasion because he doesn’t give us “shout outs” from his broadcasting gig, doesn’t hit the recruiting trail for us, and rarely shows up for USC alumni-type events.

That stuff really doesn’t bother me so much.  He’s my favorite Gamecock of all time, and I hope he’s the last #2 I ever see in a South Carolina football uniform.

The first game week of the 2010 season is here, and over the next three days leading up to the season opener TRC is going to be giving you the best and worst case scenarios for the Gamecocks offensive, defensive and special teams units.  These are not predictions, mind you, just some scenarios that could lead to a special season, or a disastrous season, for the ‘Cocks.  Besides, predictions are pointless and stupid.  So we’re saving them for game day.

Now, on to the offense.  (I personally am not going to assume any new injuries, although we know that will happen at some point.)

The Quarterbacks

Best case – Stephen Garcia starts every game, goes over 3000 yards and 30 TD’s while increasing completion percentage and improving TD to INT ratio; Spurrier actually begins to compliment Garcia, albeit gingerly, as having “matured” and making better decisions; Connor Shaw plays in mop-up duty, and plays well, but not nearly well enough to supplant Garcia; Andrew Clifford takes a few victory formation snaps against Furman and Clemson (heh heh); Ryan Mallett channels Jevan Snead, and Garcia becomes our first ever All-SEC QB.

Worst Case – Garcia bumbles through the first two or three series against USM, and Shaw comes in to the crowd’s delight.  Shaw realizes the lights are very bright, 80,000 sets of eyes are 160,000 actual eyes, and that Flowery Branch was never this loud; Shaw thinks he sees Rece Davis give him the evil, two-fingered “I’m watching you” motion from the press box and pees his pants a la Tommy Beecher; Garcia re-enters, but the emotional tipping point has been reached for him and he’s toast; the rest of the season becomes a Garcia/Shaw/Clifford death spiral that leads to an inordinate number of “backwards plays” and visor and/or headset and/or clipboard slams.

The Running Backs

Best Case – Marcus Lattimore is who we think he is, a freaking stud of a back whose power and speed conjure images of Adrian Peterson; Lattimore wins SEC Freshman of the Year and breezes past 1000 yards to give the Gamecocks their first 3000-yard passer and 1000-yard rusher since…since…anyone?;  Kenny Miles is a more than capable second stringer that gives Lattimore rest, but that’s not enough for Miles as he busts over 100 yards a couple of times himself; Brian Maddox is a bruising short-yardage back who piles up touchdowns, while Jarvis Giles is a third-down back and slot receiver that gives defenses fits.

Worst Case – It becomes evident early that Lattimore was either over-hyped, or our offensive line is so bad that not even the top running back in the nation can help us; Miles’ hamstring issue lingers the entire season and renders him ineffective; Maddox continues to be Maddox, a decent situational back, but not much else; Giles gets viciously tackled by his hair early in the season, then validates Spurrier’s “he always has issues” statement and rides the pine for the rest of the way; Bryce Sherman continues to win accolades for his practice performances.

The Wide Receivers

Best Case – Alshon Jeffery leads the way as the Gamecocks have three receivers go over 50 catches and have one first team and one second team all-SEC receiver; Jeffery gets A-A mentions, and the rest of the squad – Gurley, Moore, Barnes, Scruggs, Bennett, and Smith – become known as one of the top two or three units in the country; despite all the buzz around Ace Sanders, he is redshirted because of the logjam of talent in front of him.

Worst Case – Jeffery’s hands become inconsistent and he has the proverbial sophomore slump; Gurley has a dozen TD’s called back in the first six games (11 illegal shifts, one offensive PI) and goes into the tank similar to last year; Barnes continues his pattern of actually getting a little bit worse every year; nobody else out of the group is able to step up in game situations either due to lack of talent or poor quarterback play.

The Tight Ends

Best Case – Wes Saunders is cleared of any wrongdoing in Saunders-gate (which is all specific allegations rolled into one); in addition, he keeps his trap shut for five months and puts up the type of numbers he is capable of and becomes a first team all-SEC tight end; Pat DiMarco makes a few plays at TE, but is primarily used more at FB where he is needed more; Justice Cunningham and Mike Triglia contribute via their blocking skills, and catch a few passes along the way.

Worst Case – Saunders is a goner for the season; the DiMarco experiment fails miserably because of his lack of size and injured forearm; Cunningham never develops in pass blocking, run blocking, or pass catching; Triglia emerges as our best option at TE.

The Offensive Line (yes, saved the best for last)

Best Case – Shawn Elliott finally cracks the code and finds five guys he can count on week after week; the zone blocking scheme helps shoot the running game to the top third of the conference, pass blocking helps reduce the number of sacks to a more manageable 20 or so; Jarriel King finishes his enigmatic career with a first team all-SEC selection, and T.J. Johnson makes the second team; only one freshman OL is pressed into action all year; midway through the season Spurrier appears to get a little teary-eyed when talking about how well the OL is playing.

Worst Case – Elliott realizes early on what John Hunt and Eric Wolford already know – despite our best recruiting efforts and coaching, there is simply a dearth of OL talent in the program.

Overall

Best Case – The offense we thought we were getting six years ago finally arrives; we have a balanced, attacking group that finishes in the top 20 in the country in scoring and total offense; The Evil Genius is back.

Worst Case – 30+ sacks, bottom quarter of the conference in rushing and scoring; more than seven illegal shift penalties; low percentage of TD’s in the red zone; in other words, something pretty similar to what we saw last year…and the year before…

Cory Boyd had quite a roller coaster career at South Carolina, but despite some pitfalls left the school as a fan favorite.

Boyd came to USC as a RB/DB out of Orange, NJ, and entered the same year as the heralded Demetris Summers.  Boyd had a difficult upbringing, and to hear Lou Holtz tell it, he practically had to dodge gunfire to get to Boyd’s house on a recruiting trip. That no doubt helped drive Boyd to USC.

The lasting memory of Boyd’s freshman year (when he actually wore #4) was this scary concussion-inducing play against Virginia, which ended the career of UVA defensive back Willie Davis.  Boyd was chosen the team’s Freshman of the Year despite being out-rushed by Summers, who was second on the team in total yards.

In 2004 Boyd was second in rushing to Summers, but in 2005 Boyd was suspended for the entire season for a violation of team rules after Summers had been permanently dismissed.

The 2006 season started with a bang with Boyd catching a TD pass from Syvelle Newton on a trick play against Mississippi State.  But with a camera on him on the sideline, Boyd informed the viewing audience that he was “back like cooked crack”.  This obviously didn’t go over well, and after a mini uproar Boyd apologized and everyone moved on.

Boyd recovered to be an undisputed team leader throughout ’06 and ’07.  While he never put up all-SEC type numbers, he was highly respected around the league for his tough running style.  Some memorable moments include his short ankle-breaking TD run against UGA, his great night against Tennessee in an overtime loss, and this catch and run against MTSU, probably the one play that best captures Boyd’s running style.

Boyd has yet to stick with an NFL team since departing USC, but has emerged as the feature back for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in 2010.

The best receiver at South Carolina since Robert Brooks is a prime case study for the “star rankings don’t matter” crowd.  There was a fierce battle for Sidney Rice (a 3-star FWIW), but it was between USC and Syracuse, and part of the battle seemed to hinge on him playing basketball in college.

Fortunately he chose the Gamecocks even though they had an anemic passing game and seemingly no quarterback on the horizon.  He injured his knee in warm-ups his before the UGA game in 2004 and sat out the year recovering.

Throughout the spring and fall practices of 2005 with Spurrier at the helm, there was a buzz about this lanky receiver named Rice.  But once again, he was injured in fall practice and had to sit out the ’05 season opener against Central Florida.  The following week against Georgia, the fans found out what the buzz was all about.  He had a handful of catches and one TD that day, but additionally he had a presence and confidence that caused fans to take notice.

Rice only played two years with the Gamecocks, but his list of accomplishments are long.  And while the accomplishments are great, the memorable games and plays are even better – the leaping TD in the big win in Knoxville, the twisting catch and long catch and run against Florida, the tiptoe catch and complete abuse of Chris Houston of Arkansas, plus a whole lot more.

Looking back at Rice’s highlight videos, you sure hope Alshon and Co. can instill that kind of confidence back in the wide receiver corps.