Vandy rivalry, dandy or notBy Gene Sapakoff (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Thursday, September 4, 2008
 NASHVILLE, Tenn. — South Carolina supporters don't want to admit it. This isn't exactly the way Steve Spurrier planned it. But Vanderbilt is a bigger Southeastern Conference football rival for South Carolina than Georgia or Florida. For the Gamecocks, the road to satisfaction runs through the home of the Grand Ole Opry, 11,374 waitresses scrambling to become the next Martina McBride and a bunch of songwriters with lyrics about fried chicken and heartache. Yes, that Vanderbilt. "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt's baby. Gloria Vanderbilt's namesake, if not glorious Vanderbilt football tradition. The Vanderbilt endowment, you know, wasn't built on bowl revenue. But this is the trendy Tennessee town tied to South Carolina bowl hopes, not Knoxville. So we gather tonight in Nashville, not for Gretchen Wilson or Travis Tritt but for two teams destined for opposite paths. Only the season rides on this game for South Carolina. If Vanderbilt loses, 0-8 in '08 might happen over a typically perilous SEC schedule. Bowling or not On both sides of the Appalachian Trail, this series has greatly impacted success or failure since Spurrier arrived in Columbia. The 17-6 home loss to Vanderbilt last year is the only regular season game the Spurrier-led Gamecocks have lost that they were favored to win. It was a doozy, the difference between a bowl bid and a long winter of discontent. For head coach Bobby Johnson and Vanderbilt, the surprise win put bowl plans in play, no small thing at a school without a postseason appearance since 1982 (in other words, way before anyone ever heard of Garth Brooks). The Commodores, however, folded with close losses to Kentucky and Tennessee on the way to a 5-7 finish. In 2006, South Carolina might not have reached the Liberty Bowl without a 31-13 victory in Nashville as the Gamecocks lost their next three SEC games before defeating Middle Tennessee and Clemson to squeeze out a 7-5 regular season record. Same thing in 2005: Winning a 35-28 shootout with Jay Cutler at Williams-Brice Stadium was resume critical. The Independence Bowl took South Carolina at 7-4, but who knows at 6-5? Credit report risk Make no mistake about it: Spurrier has made progress against The Big Four foes who appear annually on the South Carolina schedule: 4-8 against Clemson, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee. With one victory against each and five close losses among the 12 games by a total of 12 points. Predecessor Lou Holtz against the same schools went 3-21. Not even Tanya Tucker's career had that kind of dip. But, appropriately, Vanderbilt this year is the Gamecocks' first SEC opponent. To get where the faithful want this program to get, it must first hurdle a baseball school admired by the College Board. Fail to pay attention to Vanderbilt, and you risk finding yourself whining like that young slacker with credit report issues. Believe it not, Spurrier regularly compared his Florida teams to Vanderbilt. But that was when bragging about the Gators' academic achievements. Now it's the Gamecocks trying to avenge the bitter loss of 2007, the first stumbling block in a 1-5 second-half slide. A decisive South Carolina victory tonight also keeps Vanderbilt from growing a rivalry no one in garnet wants to acknowledge. Reach Gene Sapakoff at gsapakoff@postandcourier.com |
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Comments
This article has 17 comment(s)
Posted by Rooster07 on September 4, 2008 at 7:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Are you kidding me Sappy? Rivalry? First off, you conveniently forgot to mention the overall record between the two teams which, by the way, South Carolina holds a 14-3 advantage. Other than last year the only other two losses to Vandy were in 98 and 99 during that infamous losing streak.
Secondly, you don't give Vandy enough credit.(we aren't the only team that struggled with them last year). They are no longer a given conference win every year. Bobby Johnson has done an excellent job there.
Posted by Rebel_Yell on September 4, 2008 at 8:16 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Pure dribble from a delusional cow-turd. He calls a revenge game a rivalry--i guess duke and wake are clemson's rivals too according to this genius. He is about as right on as his 12-0 prediction for his beloved tiggers. And he puts the tigs in the same category as florida, Ga and Tenn (more like Miss St or Ark). It's time for this moron to go - we need a real sportswriter! Sappy, why don't you call some good sportswriters to find out why they are successful and you are not. Loser with a smirk. 12-0 . . .brilliant!!!!
Posted by TAR1 on September 4, 2008 at 8:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I don't know about Vandy being a rivalry but they will sneak up on you if you over look them. Last year they got SC and in 06 they got Georgia. Wonder who it will be this year. Hopefully it will not be tonight.
Posted by Chanticleer on September 4, 2008 at 9:34 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Its Gene's job to peak interest in his readers and he has done just that according to y'alls post.
Gene 1
Idiots 0
Posted by JRob on September 4, 2008 at 10:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Chanticleer, every article on S. Carolina football picques (the word you mean) interest because of people like you and youmanyo. Sapakoff, nice prediction on the Tigs this year.
Posted by Rebel_Yell on September 4, 2008 at 10:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
There's no interest generated from this article. It's wrong just like 12-0. Now let me get back to your wife Chanticleer--enjoy your day at work. Loser!
Posted by cocock on September 4, 2008 at 11:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Sapakoff stick to your knowledge of the MWC and CSU. I'm guessing you are one of the CSU grads who thinks your rival is CU. Nice prediction on Clemson. You should consider a move to the Arts & Leisure section because your sports reporting is less than stellar.
Posted by GoGamecocks25 on September 4, 2008 at 1:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Sapakoff is an idiot. Enough said.
Posted by kathytanya on September 4, 2008 at 2:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Gene Sapakoff:
You don't know much about sports and you are very insulting. What you said about Tanya Tucker was insulting and disrespectable. Her fans think she is an awesome singer and performer and we don't need someone like you to worry about her career, you need to worry about your own and leave Tanya's alone. Tanya never says anything degrading about anyone, unlike you who doesn't say anything nice about anyone. Kathy
Posted by rebel1 on September 4, 2008 at 2:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
chanticleer, you came out of hiding. With all your trash talk about USC. Hum, let me see. 3 arrested last week alone, 7 this year at you beloved school. Where were you at last week. Dont want to talk about it. Just like the puttykats. Remember I said it first, GLASSHOUSES will come back to bite ya and boy did it. now we know what your all about. JOKE
Posted by lowcountrydawg on September 4, 2008 at 6:46 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"Make no mistake about it: Spurrier has made progress against The Big Four foes who appear annually on the South Carolina schedule: 4-8 against Clemson, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee. With one victory against each and five close losses among the 12 games by a total of 12 points."
Here's the difference between Carolina and say, Georgia...
Travel back to 1996...Coach Jim Donnan at UGA had winning records w/ranked teams each year. Pretty good bowl games. What cost him his job? UGA's "BIG 4"...Florida, Tennessee, Auburn, Ga Tech...His records against those schools follows...
UF 1-4
UT 1-4
Auburn 2-3
Ga Tech 2-3
No SEC Championships
No Sugar Bowl Appearances
Now Mark Richt's Records again said "BIG 4"
UF 2-5..but closing the gap...
Tenn 4-3
Auburn 4-3
Ga Tech 7-0
2 SEC Championships
2 BCS Bowl Victories
Bottom Line: "It ain't enough to win the games you're supposed to win."
Posted by sptiger on September 4, 2008 at 11:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Here's my gift to my fine feathered friends.....see below a song sung by non other than the COMMODORES which for some reason I felt was appropriate right now. I need some sleep! Good night folks! College football just got a little bit sweeter.
[Chorus:]
She's a brick house
Mighty might just lettin' it all hang out
She's a brick house
The lady's stacked and that's a fact,
ain't holding nothing back.
She's a brick house
She's the one, the only one,
who's built like a amazon [pronounced am-a-ka-zawn]
We're together everybody knows,
and here's how the story goes.
She knows she got everything
a woman needs to get a man, yeah.
How can she lose with what she use
36-24-36, what a winning hand!
[Chorus]
The clothes she wears, the sexy ways,
make an old man wish for younger days
She knows she's built and knows how to please
Sure enough to knock a man to his knees
[Chorus]
Shake it down, shake it down now (repeat)
Posted by fjms on September 5, 2008 at 12:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Come on now. I'm a Clemson fan and hate the shamecocks but we still have no reason to talk until later on in the season.
Posted by SOSblows on September 5, 2008 at 12:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)
USC 17
VANDY 24
YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!
Posted by mcfadden00 on September 5, 2008 at 2:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Gene,
I give you alot of credit for noticing the importance of this game over the years. What an interesting point about this semi-rivalry. Now you just look really really smart ;)
At the end of the season, if you care to write an article about the infamous chicken curse, you should include the events of the last two years vs. Vandy. SC fans did alot of trash talking this week. It seems to have pissed old Ben Tillman off a tad bit early this year. A lesson for Gamecocks: Never tempt the Curse!!! After all, it's struck 2 years in a row at the hands of a Clemson man, Bobby Johnson.
Posted by ashleyriver on September 5, 2008 at 10:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
SOSBlows---remarkable prediction. Perhaps you should get your own 800 line
Posted by JRob on September 6, 2008 at 12:01 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Um, it's pretty easy to make an accurate prediction after the game has been played.