Clemson probably will get to 11-0 -- can USC get to 10-1?
In 12 days, the Game of the Century will be played in Tuscaloosa, Ala., between top-ranked LSU and second-ranked Alabama.
In 33 days, the state of South Carolina will see its own Game of the Century take place right here in Columbia.
That is, assuming USC is up to the task.
Mark it down: Clemson is coming to town on Nov. 26 with 11 wins, a top 5 ranking and zero losses. I know South Carolina fans, who have been in a perpetual state of denial for over a month, don't want to hear that or believe it.
But it's the truth. Clemson is for real. The Tigers can — not necessarily will, but can — win the national championship. And Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and N.C. State aren't going to do anything to derail that quest.
So now, all that's left for USC to do is to try and make sure it brings something to the table come Thanksgiving weekend. Sure, the Gamecocks' main focus is still a second straight SEC East championship. But running the table and getting to the Clemson game with a 10-1 record is the best way of accomplishing that.
Georgia will not, in all likelihood, lose another football game this fall. The Gamecocks' best shot to return to Atlanta is to punch the ticket themselves and win out. And given the events of the Gamecocks' bye week — Tennessee was thumped and appears set to give a true freshman his first career start against USC while Arkansas looked rather human against a bad Ole Miss squad — USC should now be entertaining thoughts of finishing this rather unprecedented three-city, four-week, late-season conference road swing at 3-0.
Do that, and the Gamecocks are 8-1 overall, 6-1 (6-1! South Carolina!) in the SEC and a win over a depth-challenged Florida team away from another division title. Win that game, follow it up with a scrimmage against The Citadel the next week and lo and behold, USC is 10-1 and definitely in the top 12, if not the top 10.
The last time both USC and Clemson were ranked when they met was in 2000, when the No. 16 Tigers defeated the No. 25 Gamecocks 16-14 in Death Valley. But you must go back to 1987, when No. 12 South Carolina defeated No. 8 Clemson 20-7 in Columbia, for a rivalry meeting that had a significant national impact on both sides. The 1981 game 30 years ago did feature No. 2 and eventual national champion Clemson, but the Gamecocks were unranked at 6-4 and coming off a loss to Pacific.
Fans on both sides of the game have yearned for more national attention. Here's the chance. The past two meetings have seen one team — Clemson in 2009, USC last season — with a conference championship game waiting the next week. In 2011, both could now be heading to a 13th game. But of course, both teams have to get there first.
Here's saying Clemson definitely does what it needs to. As for the Gamecocks, time will tell. USC should take solace in this fact: A week off gave it much needed rest, a chance to figure out how to function on offense without Marcus Lattimore and maybe most importantly, made a once-assumed arduous march seem a lot less difficult.
A lot of football remains to be played. But with each passing week, gridiron Armageddon in the Palmetto State inches closer and closer to reality.