McKinley close to record

COLUMBIA — Despite a lot of attention from opposing defenses, South Carolina junior receiver Kenny McKinley is still closing in on a record season.

With six receptions Saturday against Clemson, he'd break Sterling Sharpe's record for most catches in a year. Even though three different quarterbacks have played this year for the Gamecocks (6-5), McKinley has 69 receptions for 843 yards. Sharpe caught 74 balls for 1,106 yards in 1986.

"Just to have a chance at it, it's a great deal," said McKinley, who has caught 28 passes in the past three games. "I want to win the game, man. If I get four or five catches and we win, it would be a lot better than me breaking the record and us losing. It is a big accomplishment. I hope to come out there and break it. But I want to win."

Not bad for a guy who's flown under the radar virtually his entire career at USC.

A lot of that has to do with the guy who is second and third on the single-season receptions list, Sidney Rice.

"I think he's out of his shadow now," Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said before the Razorbacks saw McKinley and USC on Nov. 3.

When McKinley was asked about his company on the list, he completed the question before it was asked.

"With who, Sterling Sharpe?" said the excitable McKinley. "It's a big deal, man. I see where those guys are now and they're very successful. I just want to get to where they're at. It's big just to be mentioned with those guys and have a chance this weekend to be mentioned with them."

Bounce-back success

Steve Spurrier is 20-6 in his coaching career coming off a bye week.

Spurrier said that probably has more to do with his overall success at Florida than the extra week of practice.

"You know, we were probably favored in 22 of the 28 games. Maybe that was it," Spurrier said. "I have not ever really placed a lot of emphasis on the team with the open date has a huge advantage. Some people think they do. Maybe they do in some cases, maybe they don't. I don't know."

Last hurrah

Cory Boyd, a fifth-year senior, said he doesn't know how he'll react to running onto the Williams-Brice Stadium turf for a final time.

"I can sit here and say one thing, but it might be another," Boyd said. "I can say I'm going to be the tough guy and I'm not going to cry. But once you get out there, you realize it might be the last, and a lot of emotions not fly. Right now, I'm going to say I'm going to be a big man, I'm not going to cry and I'm just going to relax."

Bowl thoughts?

Like a lot of Gamecocks this week, Boyd said he's not concerned about the team's bowl prospects. A 6-6 USC team that lost five in a row, what it would be with a Clemson loss, doesn't seem too attractive in a crowded postseason picture.

"We try not to think about it," Boyd said. "We're just taking it one game at a time. It's not something we need to sit and put too much pressure on. We know what we've got to do. We know our season slipped away at times. We've got to go out there and play."