Session held tonight at Bluff Road facility
South Carolina fans will be able to attend and watch the official beginning of one of the most anticipated seasons in school history.
USC coach Steve Spurrier has opened the first preseason practice of the 2011 season, which is tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Bluff Road practice fields, to the public.
“We’ve had a lot of people express interest in seeing the Gamecocks, so we’re going to open up the first practice,” said Spurrier in a release. “We appreciate all the Gamecock fans and their support of the team and look forward to seeing a bunch of them out there on Wednesday night.”
Players will not be available for autographs before or after the session. Additionally, no pets are allowed to be at the practice field. All in attendance must remain inside the yellow ropes surrounding the field. Cameras will be allowed to shoot for the duration of the practice. Tonight’s practice is the only open practice currently scheduled, but that is subject to change.
Coming off a 9-5 campaign in 2010 and the first SEC Eastern Division championship, expectations are high for the Gamecocks. USC was picked by attending media members as the favorite to win the East for the first time in school history at last month’s SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., and Carolina is expected to be in the Top 15 of both major national preseason polls, the first of which is released tomorrow with the unveiling of the USA Today Coaches Poll.
Spurrier is optimistic, but cautious about the attention his team is receiving.
“We’ve got a lot of good players,” he told reporters at his media golf outing last week. “Our coaches have done a super job recruiting, and we’re in position. We’re in position if we can run with it and put it all together.”
Noting that the team wasn’t picked to win the SEC outright, which he said he eventually wants USC to see happen, Spurrier said he wasn’t worried about the hype of being the favorite.
“We hope that we’re smart enough to handle it,” Spurrier said, stating that the team wouldn’t worry about predictions during college football’s “talking season,” but rather improving with each week and game.
Ellington impressing: Spurrier said that Bruce Ellington, who has joined the football team after starring for men’s basketball past season, has done well in workouts according to reports from strength coach Craig Fitzgerald and his staff. Spurrier said he thinks Ellington will be “a big help” on offense this season.
Special teams prediction: Spurrier himself made a prediction of his own at the golf outing, saying he believes USC will score a touchdown on special teams for the first time since he was hired prior to the start of the 2005 regular season. New special teams coach John Butler, who replaced the departed Shane Beamer, is being entrusted to help continue the overhaul of the various units, which have been weak points for Carolina in recent seasons.