Neo
10-03-2006, 09:22 AM
http://www.sectalk.com/boards/images/logos/South_Carolina.gifThree jeers for criticism of fans.
By RON MORRIS
rmorris@thestate.com
SORRY, STEVE, I have to side with the fans on this one.
South Carolina fans were saluting the extraordinary effort of their Gamecocks following this past week’s near upset of second-ranked Auburn. They were not cheering just another losing effort, as USC coach Steve Spurrier said.
“I don’t want our fans to boo,” Spurrier said on Friday, one day after USC played valiantly in a 24-17 loss to Auburn. “But please don’t clap when we come close. I think it sends the wrong message.”
Actually, the message was pretty clear from the fans. It was received incorrectly by Spurrier.
The message came in the form of a rousing ovation for USC players as they departed the Williams-Brice Stadium field. First, USC players remained on the field, as is their custom, through the band’s playing of the alma mater.
Then, as they departed through the corner of the south end zone, a thunderous applause spread among the remaining thousands of fans. These were fans who earlier in the season had watched less-than-spirited performances by USC against Georgia and Wofford.
Spurrier called out his team following the loss to Georgia for playing “stupid.” He said he needed to find players who competed harder on every single play. He did not say it, but Spurrier’s implication was that USC played without heart.
So, when the Gamecocks played their hearts out, scaring the daylights out of Auburn, the remaining fans wanted to salute those efforts. Good for them.
“Our players, I don’t want them to be content that we came close against a good team,” Spurrier said on Monday. “I appreciate the fans thinking that way, but I’ve never really understood applause after a loss.”
Spurrier really picked on the wrong fans. There were ample other reasons to question USC’s fan support against Auburn. After Auburn took a 24-10 lead by keeping possession of the ball for the entire third quarter, the stands began to empty.
Then, with rain falling early in the fourth quarter, the crowd thinned further. By the time USC got the ball with 5:24 left and trailing 24-17, no more than 40,000 of the original 74,000 remained to see the exciting finish.
Those fans who cheered after the game are the loyal USC fans, not the front-runners more concerned about beating traffic or getting wet. The remaining fans should be applauded for sticking it out on a Thursday night and for giving a big bravo to their team even in defeat.
Not so, says Spurrier.
“If they want to say, ‘Great effort, Syvelle (Newton), that’s fine,” Spurrier said Monday. “But we had a bunch of them who didn’t have great effort.
“There’s a huge difference between coming close and winning. I just don’t want our guys to think coming close is decent. That doesn’t mean crap.”
I can appreciate Spurrier attempting to change the culture of South Carolina football, a culture that long has been all about supporting mediocrity. There certainly exists a lot to be changed, and he is going about it the correct way. Through strong recruiting classes, he is building a solid foundation. He also is demanding that his players be exemplary students and citizens.
More than anything, Spurrier is teaching his players how to win. His message to his team a season ago was that hard work in practice will eventually lead to rewards, and it did. Historic wins over Florida and Tennessee proved that.
Just seconds after that game against Florida at Williams-Brice Stadium, several USC players gave Spurrier a Gatorade bath and attempted to carry him off the field on their shoulders. Spurrier was not happy about it. He said winners reserve those kinds of celebrations for championships.
Spurrier won an Atlantic Coast Conference championship at Duke, as well as six Southeastern Conference titles and a national crown at Florida. He knows how to win, and he knows how to act like a winner.
In this instance, though, he missed the mark. He should have thanked those faithful fans who stuck around to salute his team for a job well done, if not complete.
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/sports/colleges/university_of_south_carolina/15664576.htm
By RON MORRIS
rmorris@thestate.com
SORRY, STEVE, I have to side with the fans on this one.
South Carolina fans were saluting the extraordinary effort of their Gamecocks following this past week’s near upset of second-ranked Auburn. They were not cheering just another losing effort, as USC coach Steve Spurrier said.
“I don’t want our fans to boo,” Spurrier said on Friday, one day after USC played valiantly in a 24-17 loss to Auburn. “But please don’t clap when we come close. I think it sends the wrong message.”
Actually, the message was pretty clear from the fans. It was received incorrectly by Spurrier.
The message came in the form of a rousing ovation for USC players as they departed the Williams-Brice Stadium field. First, USC players remained on the field, as is their custom, through the band’s playing of the alma mater.
Then, as they departed through the corner of the south end zone, a thunderous applause spread among the remaining thousands of fans. These were fans who earlier in the season had watched less-than-spirited performances by USC against Georgia and Wofford.
Spurrier called out his team following the loss to Georgia for playing “stupid.” He said he needed to find players who competed harder on every single play. He did not say it, but Spurrier’s implication was that USC played without heart.
So, when the Gamecocks played their hearts out, scaring the daylights out of Auburn, the remaining fans wanted to salute those efforts. Good for them.
“Our players, I don’t want them to be content that we came close against a good team,” Spurrier said on Monday. “I appreciate the fans thinking that way, but I’ve never really understood applause after a loss.”
Spurrier really picked on the wrong fans. There were ample other reasons to question USC’s fan support against Auburn. After Auburn took a 24-10 lead by keeping possession of the ball for the entire third quarter, the stands began to empty.
Then, with rain falling early in the fourth quarter, the crowd thinned further. By the time USC got the ball with 5:24 left and trailing 24-17, no more than 40,000 of the original 74,000 remained to see the exciting finish.
Those fans who cheered after the game are the loyal USC fans, not the front-runners more concerned about beating traffic or getting wet. The remaining fans should be applauded for sticking it out on a Thursday night and for giving a big bravo to their team even in defeat.
Not so, says Spurrier.
“If they want to say, ‘Great effort, Syvelle (Newton), that’s fine,” Spurrier said Monday. “But we had a bunch of them who didn’t have great effort.
“There’s a huge difference between coming close and winning. I just don’t want our guys to think coming close is decent. That doesn’t mean crap.”
I can appreciate Spurrier attempting to change the culture of South Carolina football, a culture that long has been all about supporting mediocrity. There certainly exists a lot to be changed, and he is going about it the correct way. Through strong recruiting classes, he is building a solid foundation. He also is demanding that his players be exemplary students and citizens.
More than anything, Spurrier is teaching his players how to win. His message to his team a season ago was that hard work in practice will eventually lead to rewards, and it did. Historic wins over Florida and Tennessee proved that.
Just seconds after that game against Florida at Williams-Brice Stadium, several USC players gave Spurrier a Gatorade bath and attempted to carry him off the field on their shoulders. Spurrier was not happy about it. He said winners reserve those kinds of celebrations for championships.
Spurrier won an Atlantic Coast Conference championship at Duke, as well as six Southeastern Conference titles and a national crown at Florida. He knows how to win, and he knows how to act like a winner.
In this instance, though, he missed the mark. He should have thanked those faithful fans who stuck around to salute his team for a job well done, if not complete.
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/sports/colleges/university_of_south_carolina/15664576.htm