Spurrier: "I'm nowhere near retiring"

Cockfan720 · 02-23-2009, 01:14 AM

Saw this posted on Cockytalk and thought I'd bring it here...

Steve Spurrier tells Georgia’s top QB prospect he is nowhere near retirement | College Football Recruiting

Quote:

South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier told Georgia’s top quarterback prospect he is “nowhere near retiring” from the Gamecocks.

Flowery Branch quarterback Connor Shaw spent around 30 minutes with Spurrier during South Carolina’s Junior Day on Saturday. One of the first things they talked about was Spurrier’s future with the Gamecocks.

“I always hear these rumors, just like everybody else, that Coach Spurrier is going to retire in two years, so I asked him about it,” Shaw said. “He [Spurrier] told me ’I'm definitely staying until we accomplish more things at South Carolina … [and] I’m nowhere near retiring.’”

Shaw, the younger brother of Georgia Tech quarterback Jaybo Shaw, is one of the state’s top 2010 prospects and has early offers from South Carolina, Tech, Stanford, West Virginia and Wake Forest.

With Spurrier, rumors about his impending retirement are constantly used against South Carolina on the recruiting trail. Even one of Spurrier’s former assistants, David Reaves, was accused of saying it to prospects after taking a job with Tennessee two months ago. However, Reaves later denied it, according to the Charleston (S.C.) Post and Courier.

Shaw didn’t ask Spurrier the loaded question to be nosey. Shaw said South Carolina has a slight lead over Georgia Tech as his frontrunner, and he wanted assurances the man he considers his “childhood idol” will be around if he signs with the Gamecocks.

“That [Saturday] was the first time I really had the chance to sit down and talk with Coach Spurrier … it was a like a dream come true,” Shaw said. “Growing up, [Spurrier] was my idol when he was coaching at Florida. It’s still hard for me to believe that I have the opportunity to play for him.”

Spurrier pulled the prized prospect into his office and, during a lengthy conversation, let him take a peak at his Heisman trophy and many championship rings. Spurrier also let Shaw know that the admiration was mutual.

“South Carolina is bringing in a little more of shotgun offense with a zone read, and [Spurrier] said that I would pretty much be a perfect fit for that system. He said that I was the guy they wanted, and that was pretty cool hearing that from … one of college football’s greatest coaches.”

Shaw said he called his brother at Georgia Tech about the Spurrier experience. “Jaybo thought it was cool that I got some one-on-one time to talk with a legend.”