Game Two: The SEC Opener

September 9^th

Vs. South Carolina (in Columbia, SC)

You remember the guy in high school who was good at everything? He had brains, athletic ability, all that stuff? Ok, now, remember the guy who was a loudmouth? Always making wisecracks and pissing people off? And remember the overbearing athlete, the one who would sell his sweet old grandmother to win a game? Combine all three of these and you have Steve Spurrier. Spurrier, who is arguably one of the most gifted college coaches ever, roamed the sidelines at his alma mater Florida for a little over a decade. He raised the bar on coaching and revolutionized offense in the SEC. In the process, he made clever/snide comments about his coaching brethren. He also owned Georgia, losing just once in twelve years to the Dawgs. So you understand my bitterness. By now you’re asking yourself, “Hey, long-winded Bulldog guy, what’s this got to do with September 9^th?” Spurrier, (aka “Ballcoach”, “Evil Genius”, “Darth Visor”, or “Steve Superior”) is now coaching the South Carolina Gamecocks. And even though he’s got a much harder gig at USC, and we beat them last year, this game could go either way. It could go either way every year, but it usually goes the Dawgs’ way. The Gamecocks are Susan Lucci, that soap opera actress that lost 361 straight times at the Daytime Emmys. Great fans, nice facilities, but always coming up short and looking forward to next year. A win against us and the Gamecocks will be beating their chests loudly, proclaiming that they have finally arrived. It could also mean that Georgia will begin the rally cry for a new QB. (I’ll get to that later). Georgia fans are hanging our hats on the fact that we have our own genius coach who can win every year. South Carolina fans are hanging their hopes on Spurrier, even though he can’t easily pluck top notch recruits from the talent-rich state of Florida. He did turn around the football program at Duke University, which is the equivalent of giving Dog the Bounty Hunter a make over and having him take home top prize in a beauty contest. So September 9^th should be very interesting. I make no prediction except that Spurrier will throw his visor because the game will be on national TV and he’s the master at giving the people what they want.