One of the little-noticed consequences of the Gamecocks' victory over the spelling-challenged Dawgs Saturday is a trend that speaks volumes about South Carolina's tradition, or lack thereof.

The Gamecocks are now .500 all-time. For the first time in 19 years.

The Gamecocks’ overall record is at .500 (517-517-44) for the first time since 1988. That year was also the last time they were above .500, before two losses in a row knocked them below the mark.

In all fairness, some of the credit for this belongs to a man who, despite all the criticism he gets from this blog and others, brought the program to the cusp of .500 by going 33-37 in six seasons. Sadly, yes, this was an improvement.

I'll tell you, mediocrity ith not ath hard ath it lookth.

But Thpurrier ... I mean, Spurrier ... deserves the lion's share. He's gone 17-10 so far, or seven games over the midway mark. The likelihood of getting knocked back below .500 are about the same as the odds of Appalachian State beating Michigan in the Big House not great, but not out of the question.

We might be .500 right now.

But we will always be South Carolina