The Week That Was
posted by David Cloninger, 8/11/2009 11:48:00 AM
--------------------------- CRACKER
Before I begin, a shout-out to my main man Alex Riley, who has departed these parts for the wilds of East Texas. The lucky stiff gets to cover Texas high-school football and, if time permits, wander over to Dallas and catch a Cowboys game or two. I already clued him in that if he tries to order barbecue, they’re going to bring him cow, and he better like it.
And forget about sweet tea.
Anyway …
The week that was, at the Bluff Road practice fields … So are the days of my life.
It’s the way I’m fueled that I want results yesterday, instead of waiting in due time to get them, so I agree with some of the cannonball-launching public horde who are wringing their hands into Windsors because South Carolina’s offense has not had a great week of practice. Watching Stephen Garcia overthrow some rather wide-open receivers is not good for anybody’s psyche – you guys because you don’t want to see it, me because I have to tell you about it and cause you more sleepless nights (if you read my Tim Tebow blog a couple of weeks ago, you know my conscience has more than enough obstacles).
The Gamecocks’ quarterback didn’t look good during the five days I got to watch him through a full practice, but that’s no crime. It’s the first week and there are three more to go. Still, it’s refreshing to see one guy in the No. 1 spot so I don’t have to always remind myself to ask Steve Spurrier, “Settled on a starting quarterback yet?” every night.
Of course I’d like to see the final product -- i.e., what USC will take into Carter-Finley Stadium on Sept. 3 – right now. It would save me the trouble of speculating because I’d have those facts of the cold and hard variety that make my existence so much simpler.
But that’s what preseason camp is for.
Yes, it’s distressing to see a full summer of (by his and the program’s account) studying and preparing not pay off right away. Sure, I’d be as happy as any of you to see the kid go out there and start whizzing footballs like the reincarnation of Steve Taneyhill that he’s supposed to be.
Honestly, I really don’t care if Garcia gets benched and someone else replaces him. I don’t. I just don’t want to have to watch the constant QB rotation that went on last year. It pained me as a football fan.
He’s not going to get benched, though, and he’s got three weeks to correct whatever he’s doing wrong before the Wolfpack are lined up in front of him. Spurrier will update all of us after practice on how he did that day and I’ll hop, skip and scamper to the computer to inform all of youse (working on my Brooklyn-ness, a curse of working with Roger Olivieri).
Spurrier hasn’t been easy in his public assessment of Garcia thus far, but then QB 1 told all of us the coach called him to say not to worry about a bad week. Plus, Garcia showed up early and stayed late at Monday’s practice.
Breathe, folks, all is not as lost as it seems.
That’s been the most intriguing storyline out of the first week, because the defense has looked OK (despite a lot of ding-ups). Spencer Lanning is really tackling the chore of punting and place-kicking, so special teams should be fine, and I know the offensive line might not be 200 percent better by Sept. 3, but it will at least be tougher after Eric Wolford finishes removing his foot from some hineys (hinies?)
In general, the same first week I’ve seen for the past 14 years (God, has it been that long?) Some good, some bad, room for improvement, etc. If we all saw Super Bowl champions darting around the field last week, it just wouldn’t be USC football.
It’d be boring.
P.S.
Couldn’t let this nugget go un-discussed: Ben Axon was not admitted to USC.
Let me go on the record by saying I have no idea if the marijuana Axon was found with was his. Of course he’s going to say it wasn’t his – that’s human nature. I’ve never met the guy, never talked to him, so I can’t judge what kind of person he is.
But USC was right not to admit him.
For the folks chastising USC’s policy and blaming the school for not giving the kid a chance (because, as we all know, Ben Axon is the only player separating the Gamecocks from the Rose Bowl next year), stop. There were apparently some other red flags, too many to let him in on a conditional basis.
Remember the class of 2007, featuring Michael Bowman and Arkee Smith? Those two guys qualified but didn’t pass admissions, and Spurrier was so furious he threatened to quit if the policy wasn’t amended.
Axon’s was a similar case. He passed the NCAA Clearinghouse but was denied by USC admission. But this time, Spurrier was OK with the decision.
If he’s fine with it, why can’t the rest of the world be?
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“Seven days and seven nights.”
--------------------------- CRACKER
Before I begin, a shout-out to my main man Alex Riley, who has departed these parts for the wilds of East Texas. The lucky stiff gets to cover Texas high-school football and, if time permits, wander over to Dallas and catch a Cowboys game or two. I already clued him in that if he tries to order barbecue, they’re going to bring him cow, and he better like it.
And forget about sweet tea.
Anyway …
The week that was, at the Bluff Road practice fields … So are the days of my life.
It’s the way I’m fueled that I want results yesterday, instead of waiting in due time to get them, so I agree with some of the cannonball-launching public horde who are wringing their hands into Windsors because South Carolina’s offense has not had a great week of practice. Watching Stephen Garcia overthrow some rather wide-open receivers is not good for anybody’s psyche – you guys because you don’t want to see it, me because I have to tell you about it and cause you more sleepless nights (if you read my Tim Tebow blog a couple of weeks ago, you know my conscience has more than enough obstacles).
The Gamecocks’ quarterback didn’t look good during the five days I got to watch him through a full practice, but that’s no crime. It’s the first week and there are three more to go. Still, it’s refreshing to see one guy in the No. 1 spot so I don’t have to always remind myself to ask Steve Spurrier, “Settled on a starting quarterback yet?” every night.
Of course I’d like to see the final product -- i.e., what USC will take into Carter-Finley Stadium on Sept. 3 – right now. It would save me the trouble of speculating because I’d have those facts of the cold and hard variety that make my existence so much simpler.
But that’s what preseason camp is for.
Yes, it’s distressing to see a full summer of (by his and the program’s account) studying and preparing not pay off right away. Sure, I’d be as happy as any of you to see the kid go out there and start whizzing footballs like the reincarnation of Steve Taneyhill that he’s supposed to be.
Honestly, I really don’t care if Garcia gets benched and someone else replaces him. I don’t. I just don’t want to have to watch the constant QB rotation that went on last year. It pained me as a football fan.
He’s not going to get benched, though, and he’s got three weeks to correct whatever he’s doing wrong before the Wolfpack are lined up in front of him. Spurrier will update all of us after practice on how he did that day and I’ll hop, skip and scamper to the computer to inform all of youse (working on my Brooklyn-ness, a curse of working with Roger Olivieri).
Spurrier hasn’t been easy in his public assessment of Garcia thus far, but then QB 1 told all of us the coach called him to say not to worry about a bad week. Plus, Garcia showed up early and stayed late at Monday’s practice.
Breathe, folks, all is not as lost as it seems.
That’s been the most intriguing storyline out of the first week, because the defense has looked OK (despite a lot of ding-ups). Spencer Lanning is really tackling the chore of punting and place-kicking, so special teams should be fine, and I know the offensive line might not be 200 percent better by Sept. 3, but it will at least be tougher after Eric Wolford finishes removing his foot from some hineys (hinies?)
In general, the same first week I’ve seen for the past 14 years (God, has it been that long?) Some good, some bad, room for improvement, etc. If we all saw Super Bowl champions darting around the field last week, it just wouldn’t be USC football.
It’d be boring.
P.S.
Couldn’t let this nugget go un-discussed: Ben Axon was not admitted to USC.
Let me go on the record by saying I have no idea if the marijuana Axon was found with was his. Of course he’s going to say it wasn’t his – that’s human nature. I’ve never met the guy, never talked to him, so I can’t judge what kind of person he is.
But USC was right not to admit him.
For the folks chastising USC’s policy and blaming the school for not giving the kid a chance (because, as we all know, Ben Axon is the only player separating the Gamecocks from the Rose Bowl next year), stop. There were apparently some other red flags, too many to let him in on a conditional basis.
Remember the class of 2007, featuring Michael Bowman and Arkee Smith? Those two guys qualified but didn’t pass admissions, and Spurrier was so furious he threatened to quit if the policy wasn’t amended.
Axon’s was a similar case. He passed the NCAA Clearinghouse but was denied by USC admission. But this time, Spurrier was OK with the decision.
If he’s fine with it, why can’t the rest of the world be?
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
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David Cloninger. David is a full-time staff writer for GamecockCentral, and covers Gamecock football, men's basketball, baseball and recruiting. He may be reached by email at david(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.