It's over, folks. The Gamecocks aren't going bowling.
"We're disappointed we did not get to a bowl game," said Head Coach Steve Spurrier. "We had five games to win number seven, but didn't get it done. We have no one to blame but ourselves."
The Independence Bowl went with Alabama.
Spurrier's right, of course. Neither Alabama nor South Carolina really deserve to go to a bowl game, so there should be no whining about the Gamecocks missing it. You don't really get to be upset that an undeserving team made the bowl when you don't deserve it yourself.
And a win would have made all of that moot. Beat Vanderbilt, or Tennessee, or Clemson -- all three of which were winnable into the fourth quarter or even beyond -- and the Independence Bowl has no choice.
This, of course, will accelerate all of the Year in Review stuff, putting it alongside the bowl headaches previews.
It's a fitting end to a sorry season.