Thanksgiving: So it’s Thanksgiving and I’m experiencing the unholy trinity – in-laws, Gamecock fans, and a holiday under one roof. Actually, spending time with your Gamecock family is entirely tolerable, so long as it’s not game day or the one year in five when USC wins. Gamecocks also are mouthier during Thanksgiving than Christmas, for obvious reasons.
As we sit at the Thanksgiving table tonight, each person mentions what they are most thankful for. I am planning to say that I’m most thankful that Carolina hasn’t beaten Clemson two years in a row in my lifetime. And as a 38 year old, Carolina would have to win every year for the rest of my life to even the series. I wonder how that will go over with my mother-in-law. I love Thanksgiving.
C.J. Spiller: I also love C.J. Spiller. He texted me this morning (okay, it was Twitter) to wish me a happy Thanksgiving. What a thoughtful young man.
The Carolina/Clemson game has a way of making heroes. Jerry Butler is remembered for the Catch I. Woody Dantzler and Rod Gardner are remembered for the Catch II. Willie Underwood had an interception and a pick 6 in 1980.
What will C.J. Spiller do on Saturday? He had a pedestrian game against Virginia, so he is due. I usually don’t believe that something will happen because someone is due, but I suspect that Spiller can dial up miracles on command.
Having said that, football always comes down to blocking and tackling.
SEC: Home of the Urbans: If hurricane fences and industrial zoning say college football, then Williams-Brice shouts a loud “Howdy!”
Florida has Urban Meyer. USC has urban blight. All hail pavement!
Charge the fire extinguishers, boys – it’s game time at USC! How surpassingly awesome is it that USC uses one of America’s favorite safety products to enter the field? Their team only needs to wear oven mitts and PFD’s to complete the theme.
Eponymous: I predict that one day, in my lifetime, Gamecock will be eponymous with crushed dreams. Here’s how it might be used in a sentence:
“I thought this new job would be great when I took it, but it’s turned into a real Gamecock.”
God has ordained certain things in the universe: laws of physics, laws of economics, and laws that compel South Carolina to crumble in craptacular fashion.
Winning in Columbia is an affront to nature.
Philosophy: Let’s explore the zeitgeist at USC. It was a means by which elites could hoard power in an old boys club. Walter Edgar explains in his excellent book South Carolina: a History how the USC folks got their grip on when Thomas Green Clemson bequeathed his estate to found a college:
“Immediately there was opposition from the Conservatives [i.e. Gamecocks], who rightly viewed the Clemson bequest as a threat to their beloved University of South Carolina. They raised all sorts of roadblocks…”
Dang skippy. But USC has raised no roadblock that we can’t run through, like we’ve done for a century, and like C.J. Spiller will do all day Saturday.
Inspiration: I saw the Pope at Williams-Brice. I saw Billy Graham at Williams-Brice, with Pistol Pete Maravich, no less. USC apparently made no attempt to get those venerated men to make supplication for its program. Or the blessing didn’t take – one of the two.
If USC is headed to glory, then I guess Olympia is the promise land, Spurrier is a prophet, and Five Points the temptation that ensnares them all. Somehow I’m not buying it, except for the Five Points part.
Anticipation: The one way for the footstool to become a stumbling block is for Clemson to look past USC as they anticipate the ACC Championship Game. I don’t think that will happen. Dabo has prepared the team well all year. Clemson came back against Georgia Tech when all hope was lost. Clemson has been business-like when they had to. Clemson has been a great fourth quarter team, which shows that they have bought in and are “ALL IN”.
The only other way that Clemson might blow it is by losing the turnover battle. Kyle Parker makes me nervous with his decision-making at times, though he played very well against Virginia.
When it’s all said and done, I think that Clemson wins by seven…and Spurrier falls to 0-2 against our position coach. Blessings abound.
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