(Written by a Georgia Fan and posted everywhere!)
This is South Carolina football…
South Carolina has an all-time winning percentage under .500, which ranks 89th all-time in D-1A football...only 28 programs have been worse. A few of the notable football programs who have been better than the Gamecocks include such powerhouses as: Duke, Western Michigan, Tulsa, Toledo, Navy, UAB, Central Florida, Ball St., North Texas, Nevada, East Carolina, Houston, Northern Illinois, Utah St., San Jose St., Vanderbilt, Akron, Baylor, UNLV, Kansas, and Rutgers just to name a few. This is Carolina Gamecock football.
In the 58 seasons Carolina has been affiliated with a conference, they have won that conference once...the ACC in 1969, with a 7-4 record. Since the Associated Press began ranking football teams in 1936, the Cocks have finished in the Top 20 of the rankings only five times in the 67 years. Carolina has never finished in the Top 10 of a major recognized poll...NEVER. The first year of Gamecock football was in 1892, Carolina won its first bowl game 103 years later. In 109 seasons of football, Carolina has yet to participate in one of the “Big 5” Bowls (Rose, Sugar, Orange, Fiesta, Cotton). As Carolina is set to begin its 110th season of collegiate football, they have won 10 or more games in a single season once. In 110 seasons, Carolina has won more games than it lost only 50 times. In 110 seasons, Carolina has won 6 or more games in a season 33 times, and lost 6 or more 34 times. This is Carolina Gamecock football.
South Carolina has had 32 different head coaches in its storied tradition...only five of them stayed longer than 5 seasons, 21 of them have losing records. Add to that the winning tradition the Cocks have enjoyed at home in Williams-Brice Stadium. Carolina is 16-27-1 at home in conference since joining the SEC. It’s another Carolina Touchdown!?…not quite. Of the 50 programs, which have played more than 1000 games all-time, only four have scored fewer points than South Carolina in their schools history. Their 7.8 ppg in the SEC is the fewest since the conference expanded to 12 members in 1992. This is the tradition of Carolina football.
Since joining the SEC in 1992, Carolina has had a winning record in the conference twice. In the eleven seasons as a member of the SEC, Carolina boasts a conference record of 31-56-1…only two teams have been worse: Kentucky has 25 wins, Vanderbilt 10. Although Carolina has yet to finish in the top two of the Eastern division, they have finished last twice. Carolina has yet to win six conference games in a season, something only Kentucky, Ole Miss, and Vanderbilt have done in the last 11 seasons. And no one should forget the fact that Carolina went two consecutive seasons without winning one conference game, not one. Carolina had an impressive string of 21 consecutive games with a loss snapped in 2000 by beating New Mexico State (then let the rest of the country know what Carolina football was all about by tearing down the goal-posts). Since 1992, only three times has any non-probation member of the conference failed to win two or more games overall in a season…South Carolina has accomplished this feat twice, Kentucky once. Since 1992, only once has a conference member failed to win a game overall in a single season…you guessed it, South Carolina. South Carolina’s all-time record versus other current conference members is even more impressive: 2-9 vs Alabama, 4-7 vs Arkansas, 1-4-1 vs Auburn, 3-17-3 vs Florida, 13-40-2 vs Georgia, 7-6-1 vs Kentucky, 2-13-1 vs LSU, 5-6 vs Ole Miss, 5-6 vs Mississippi St., 2-17-2 vs Tennessee, and 10-2 vs Vanderbilt. That’s correct, Carolina leads the all-time series against 2 SEC teams...Kentucky and Vanderbilt. This is Carolina Gamecock football.
But, the comparison of only 11 seasons in one conference does no justice to the tradition of South Carolina football. So lets compare the Cocks record versus D-1A schools they have played 20 or more times: 36-60-4 vs Clemson, 17-24-3 vs Duke, 3-17-3 vs Florida, 13-40-2 vs Georgia, 9-12 vs Georgia Tech,11-17 vs Maryland, 16-34-4 vs North Carolina, 25-26-4 vs North Carolina State, 2-17-2 vs Tennessee, 20-12-1 vs Virginia, and 34-20-2 vs Wake Forest. That’s correct, Carolina leads the all-time series against 2 of these 11 teams...Virginia and Wake Forest. This is Carolina Gamecock football.
But all this tradition and past records are meaningless. What is more important is the recent history. Only losers live in the past. We are in the best years of Carolina Gamecock football, and the future has never been brighter...or has it? Carolina is coming off another losing season, the 8th in the last 12 seasons. Overall record since Lou Holtz became Head Coach: 22-25. Since 1995: 38-52-1, which is 82nd among D-1A teams over the same period. Since Joining the SEC: 55-68-1, which is 75th among D-1A teams over the same peiod. Since 1990: 64-79-3, which is 72nd among D-1A teams over the same period. Carolina has finished in the Top 15 once in the past 15 seasons, and been to three bowl games in that span. This is Carolina Gamecock football.
2002 was the season that the Cocks would finally surpass Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida. They would finally get over “the hump” to capture the Eastern Division Championship. You had two Heisman candidates in the same backfield, Pinnock and Jenkins. You mixed up all the ingredients to produce another sub .500 record, and another 0-for against the Big 3 from the East. The Carolina Heisman candidate at RB finished with less than 50 ypg rushing, and the Heisman candidate at QB finished the season at DB. But, wait there is always next year...2003 will be different...This is Carolina’s year. We all wait with great anticipation.