Wednesday News and Notes: More Steele on Gamecocks and Other News and Reading
by Gamecock Man on Jun 16, 2025 7:14 PM EDT
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PrintHi, everyone. Some interesting suggested reading for you:
Most Improved Offensive and Defensive PPG | Phil Steel's Blog. Phil projects the Gamecocks to have one of the nation's most improved offenses in terms of points scored. Keep your fingers crossed that he's right us about this time.
Reggie Bush, Realignment, Recruting Violations, Etc: The NCAA Should Give Itself The Death Penalty - SBNation.com. Interesting take on recent events.
What Sort of Tradition Would Texas A&M Bring to the SEC? - Dawg Sports. A Georgia blogger bites on an opportunity to slam the Gamecocks, keeping one of the summer's most prominent memes alive and well.
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For the benefit of anyone who reads your summary but does not click the link . . .
. . . the peroration of the cited piece reads as follows:
Lest I be accused anew of being “unnecessarily condescending” toward our SEC East neighbors in Columbia as part of my “MO regarding any opponent of the Bulldawgs,” I should hasten to add that the Gamecock faithful view the Aggies as “a prize in their own rights.” No less respected an authority than Phil Steele says the South Carolina “program is a sleeping giant,” and, as a Georgia fan, I have a tough time disparaging any opponent whose games against the Bulldogs routinely are settled by razor-thin margins, as many of the Athenians’ meetings with the South Carolinians have been. Since 1993, nine out of seventeen series showdowns have been settled by a touchdown or less, including seven of the last nine. The Garnet and Black boast a better program than we wish they did.
My posting was in response to a critic of Texas A&M who compared the Aggies’ tradition to that of the Gamecocks. Someone else made the analogy; I didn’t. I drew quantifiable comparisons between the achievements of both programs (conference championships, ten-win seasons, etc.) for the purpose of demonstrating the attainments of the Aggies. As the passage I have repeated above demonstrates, my purpose was to praise Texas A&M, not to criticize a South Carolina program that clearly has improved during its nearly two decades in the SEC, and which annually gives the Bulldogs everything they can handle on the football field.
The last time there was a difference of opinion between us, I came here to apologize. I have always tried to be respectful toward you and your weblog, Gamecock Man, and I have endeavored to temper our rivalry with respect. I would like to think I have earned at least some small measure of the benefit of the doubt. I regret to learn that I have not, but I feel obligated to state in my defense that your unflattering characterization of what I wrote is unfair and inaccurate.
In the spirit of conference solidarity and (I hope) respectful rivalry, I close by wishing the Gamecocks well in the College World Series. I am sure they will represent the conference well.
Go 'Dawgs!
by T Kyle King on Jun 16, 2025 7:40 PM EDT reply actions
I intended no disrespect by my post and apologize that it could be taken the way you read it. I should have given it more than a one-sentence blurb in order to
That said, it’s unquestionably been the case that the Georgia blogs I read—and, in case there be any further misunderstanding, let me say that I read yours because I thoroughly enjoy your writing and insight—have repeatedly derided the Gamecocks this summer. It definitely seems to be a trend. It’s not just Dawg Sports, and I’ll grant that the passage that you quoted above tempers your criticism to an extent not often seen on the other blogs. I’ll also grant that the post was focused on Texas A & M, but it doesn’t seem to me that it would have been difficult to make an argument for A & M without slamming Carolina. I mean, A & M’s history compares favorably to all but the most distinguished SEC programs, so you could have compared the Aggies to any number of our brethren.
To sum up—I apologize for coming off the wrong way here, especially in light of our recent disagreement. I should have been more sensitive to that context. But I would really like to know where the anti-USC vitriol from the UGA camp is coming from this summer.
Garnet and Black Attack: A Blog by and for Gamecocks Fans.
by Gamecock Man on Jun 16, 2025 8:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Fair enough.
If the commenter to whom I was responding had compared Texas A&M to Arkansas (the more apt comparison, since the Razorbacks spent many years in the Southwest Conference, whereas the Gamecocks spent a number of years as an independent), to Florida, or even to Georgia, I would have compared the Aggies to that team. I only compared them to South Carolina because the analogy was drawn by someone else, and I tried to make it clear that no disrespect to the Gamecocks was intended by me.
I understand your point that some Georgia bloggers and some commenters on those blogs seem to have singled out South Carolina for special criticism this offseason; the comment to which I was responding probably is an example of that. If I had to guess—-and it is just a guess—-it is because (i) the Gamecocks have received more offseason media love than they ordinarily enjoy and (ii) the Bulldogs are coming off of back-to-back disappointing seasons and their road game against South Carolina represents the first genuine test of the 2010 campaign for Georgia. (It probably also is related to the fact that we in Bulldog Nation always have been surprised by the level of disdain many among the South Carolina faithful seem to have for Bulldog fans, although that disdain has not been unduly on display from the Palmetto State to the Peach State this offseason.) It’s probably a backhanded compliment, if you want to look at it that way.
You make a valid criticism that some Georgia bloggers seem to derive particular pleasure from running down the Gamecocks, but, when our previous disagreement made me aware that this was a sore subject with some South Carolina bloggers, I began making a concerted effort not to be a part of the problem. That is why I was surprised by the blurb above; many on my side of the fence are guilty of what you accuse them of doing, but I have tried not to be one of them.
I appreciate your willingness to meet me halfway, Gamecock Man. Don’t get me wrong; when our teams meet, I want my team to beat your team by 100 points, just as you want your team to beat mine by that same margin. (History suggests we’re both liable to be disappointed, as one of our teams beating the other by more than a touchdown certainly would be the exception rather than the rule.) The rest of the year, though, I’d just as soon we be on good terms with one another.
It’s fair for you to wonder why South Carolina has come under such fire from Georgia fans recently. It’s fair for me to wonder why Georgia has come under such fire from South Carolina fans historically. In truth, both sides probably are overly critical of the other and are too willing to suppose the other fellow started it. For my part, I’ll try to maintain a respectful tone from my side, and I appreciate your efforts to do likewise. Neither of us can control what elements of our respective fan bases do, but, if every man sweeps in front of his own door, the whole world will be clean.
Thanks, Gamecock Man. Have a good evening. We’ll see y’all in the fall.
Go 'Dawgs!
by T Kyle King on Jun 16, 2025 8:42 PM EDT up reply actions
I appreciate your response, Kyle.
Your approach to this issue has certainly been much milder than some of your Bulldogs blogging cohorts, and I regret not taking that into account when I wrote this post. I’m clearly a little too sensitive on this issue and will try to think before I write in the future. As you say, I would prefer that we maintain a healthy, respectful relationship as SBN colleagues, particularly because I really do admire your work at Dawg Sports.
I’ll admit that I indulge in a good bit of rivalrous feeling when it comes to UGA, like a lot of Gamecocks people. I can understand why this comes as a surprise to Georgia fans, considering the relative lack of historical precedent for a rivalry in this quarter. I think the motivation for rivalry with UGA for Gamecocks fans comes from the fact that we need an SEC rival, and Georgia is the most logical choice because we had a preexisting series when we joined the SEC. We’ve also had significantly more success against the Dawgs than Florida or Tennessee. We’ve had so little against Florida that it would be almost asinine to call them a rival. In that sense, it’s true that it is kind of like we’re just looking for a fight, but it’s also true that we needed a rival to replace the role played by former ACC rivals like N. C. State. That’s probably the best I can do for an explanation of our end of things.
Garnet and Black Attack: A Blog by and for Gamecocks Fans.
by Gamecock Man on Jun 16, 2025 11:13 PM EDT up reply actions
Georgia and South Carolina will always be hostile towards each other
UGA is the Gamecocks primary rival in the SEC (with our long-standing resume against each other before USC joined the SEC), so the fans will never like each other… this off season holds one of the (if not the most) anticipated game between the two, as it could very well decide the SEC East champ.
by Gamecockrock on Jun 17, 2025 6:40 AM EDT up reply actions
This is probably part of the reason for the animosity this offseason.
This may indeed be the most significant matchup between these two schools. I still think we’re a longshot for the SEC Title, but this looks to be the best chance we’ve had to compete for it in many years. And of course the UGA game is one of the keys if we’re going to go anywhere.
Garnet and Black Attack: A Blog by and for Gamecocks Fans.
by Gamecock Man on Jun 17, 2025 10:10 AM EDT up reply actions
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