The Weekly GABAbag

And awaaaay we go!

@Heisman4Clowney asks, “If Spurrier gets the Cinco vs. Clemson in November, maybe he'll name a wine after Dabo. Thoughts on potential titles for that vintage?”

I assume your question stems from Spurrier’s Gamecock Garnet wine, but did you know the other Steve Spurrier on Wikipedia is a British wine expert? If they ever met, I’m sure they’d have plenty to talk about. Imagine! Topics ranging from “Having the first name Steve” to “having the last name Spurrier”.

If we notch number five, I don’t think Spurrier would take such overt steps to boast over the accomplishment. More likely, he’d slot in passive aggressive one-liners like, “Huh, guess that means now the redshirt seniors never lost to Clemson either. So that’s neat.” But since this is a hypothetical discussion, I’ll go with “Thumb Cabernet” or, if you’re into whites, “Five-and-Oh Grigio” in honor of those aforementioned RS seniors.

@jgunnels27 asks, “What's a reasonable postseason expectation for the Gamecock baseball team?”

It wouldn’t be outlandish to expect a regional win, assuming we host. The Gamecocks have only lost at home to three teams this season, so nabbing that homefield advantage in a regional would be big. Looking ahead, a super-regional hosting spot isn’t out of the question, but we’d need to go on a bit of a tear that would probably include a sweep of MSU in Starkville and a couple of wins in Hoover. Short of that, we’ll have to scuffle in a road super. But the team took two of three LSU in Baton Rouge, so it isn’t inconceivable to imagine we could claw our way back to Omaha even if it means hittin' the road first. That said, I’m not sure we’ve got the pitching depth or offensive consistency to string together a postseason run akin to the past three seasons. The pragmatist in me says we bow out in a super regional, but my cache of pie-eyed idealism accrued over the past three postseasons has me thinking bigger.

Marc asks, “What's your reaction to the meltdown by Kentucky fans on Twitter about Andrew Wiggins? Seems par for the course with that group.”

The funny thing is that even without Wiggins, Kentucky still eclipses Kansas for the best basketball recruiting class. And yet if you asked the average UK fan on the street if they’d barter Drew Barker for Wiggins, I bet you five bucks they’d agree before you finished the sentence. But I can’t think that too absurd, since we’d do the same in a reciprocal situation with the sports reversed. “Screw that high four star basketball recruit, we’ll take Da'Shawn Hand!”

Still, I don’t like to generalize. There are morons in every fanbase—ours included—and when their pride gets rattled, morons tend to forget how to behave. Because, you know, they’re morons. Also the caliber of moron is usually inflated when a team has had a great deal of success, which we saw with Kentucky hoops fans lashing out at Wiggins or with Harvey Updyke or with—dare I say—those who whispered "fire Chad Holbrook" after the Arkansas series.

Kevin asks, “Is there any artist/concert that could counteract the ‘Kenny Chesney Effect’ on Williams-Brice?”

Unfortunately, no. Be it a reunited Led Zeppelin, a reincarnated Johnny Cash, or a regular Radiohead, there is no band or musician so magnificent that they could match the absolute value of Chesney. If the Beatles were a perfect 10, Chesney is a -12. Alas, we’re left with one option.

@RubrChickens asks, “Quien es mas macho: Andy Demetra o David Cloninger?”

The question pits the hardworking creamed-corn fountain serving as the voice of GAMECACK baseball and basketball against the oft-unraveling Gamecock Central scribe. While some of us blogger types give these guys guff, we should note that we appreciate Andy and David—they work hard and provide us with good information. But, the question was asked, so we’re going with Cloninger because Demetra might be the least macho person in the hemisphere.

Chase asks, “How can any good, sadistic Gamecock fan want Georgia to beat Clemson? Wave the SEC Flag if you need to, but what would be better for covert enemy message board watching than to observe (effigies) of Mark Richt being burned while clamoring for his job as they start with (an) 0-2 record. And, how about the slow building of Clemson’s ego, crescendoing with rivers of the upstate rising from their tears as a perfect season ends in Columbia while the Tigers are run out of town , with some oddly arranged chant having to do with thumbs? Some men just like to watch the forums burn.”

Wow. That question was packed so full with bravado, my computer almost crashed. Look, nothing would make me happier than to pull the rug out from under Clemson’s title hopes at the 11th hour. But message board chaos isn't reason enough for me to stoop to pulling for a rival. The “Fire Richt” flag flies every year so any flare-up among online Dawgfans would yield familiar, fleeting satisfaction. Plus, your scenario rests on us eventually beating Clemson (and Georgia, for that matter, which isn't a given.) But what if we lost to our rivals, who had vanquished Georgia a few months prior? God, I can already hear my Clemson pals spouting dismissive anti-SEC overtures. So while I agree with you that it would take a sadistic Gamecocks fan to root for Clemson over Georgia, I mustn’t be one. I can’t find it in my heart to pull for Clemson, especially in a game with no immediate implications. Best case scenario, in my opinion? A sloppy, low-scoring Georgia victory. We need as much lingering uncertainty as possible to hang over the team and fans for the week that separates our games! Realistically, though, I think it’ll be the opposite. Right now, I think Clemson wins it, 408-392. But I certainly won't be pulling for them.

What about you? Submit your answer in the poll below, and explain yourself in the comments.

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Short and sweet this week! Thanks to all those who asked questions. It's never too early to get next week's submissions in. Tweet @GABAttack or e-mail gabamailbag@gmail.com.