USC, Vanderbilt meet at programs' crossroads
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier was leaving the Dodie Academic Enrichment Center cafeteria a few weeks ago when he heard a question that hasn’t been posed to him in a while.
“One of the guys that works on campus said, ‘Hey coach, are we going to have a winning record this year?’” Spurrier said at football media day. “I said, ‘Winning record? Our goals have gone past a winning record,’ but I started thinking that’s probably what you used to say around here.
“That was the question. I hadn’t heard it in a long time. That’s 7-6. If we go 7-6, that wouldn’t be a very good year for us.”
Seated squarely at the top of the SEC East in expectations for the first time in program history, the Gamecocks open the 2012 season against a team that’s undergoing a facelift of its own — Vanderbilt.
“They’ve been on the rise for the last couple of years,” said senior free safety D.J. Swearinger. “They’re doing better than they have been in the past, so it’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
In coach James Franklin’s first year, the Commodores went to their first bowl game since 2008 and have the opportunity to go to back-to-back bowl games for the first time in program history.
Even after the 2008 bowl victory, Vanderbilt followed with a 2-10 record the next season, going winless in the conference. With Franklin, the success seems sustainable with quarterback Jordan Rodgers, younger brother to Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and an experienced defense.
Spurrier, who came to South Carolina at a time when hoping a winning record was the norm, can relate with Franklin. Not only was he able to elevate the Gamecocks’ national prominence, but he faced a similar challenge as the coach of Duke.
“They feel good about themselves, and they should,” Spurrier said. “They went to a bowl game last season. When you’re at Vandy and you go to a bowl, that’s like Duke going to a bowl. Do you remember the last time they went? They actually went once after I left. That’s a big deal to go to a bowl. It used to be a big deal around here.”
At a program with no real football tradition, Franklin has been able to get his team national attention. A video of a walk-on receiving a scholarship went viral, and Franklin’s community outreach has received considerable attention.
Spurrier said he didn’t have to do “big promotional gimmicks” at Duke, crediting winning for increased attendance and the talent for the wins. Spurrier didn’t discount Franklin’s tactics, either because he thinks it can give players hope that good things can happen at a place where they usually don’t.
“They have done a super job, and you’ve got to create some buzz and some hype,” Spurrier said. “They’re doing that. They want to play, and they want to try and be competitive. They were competitive last year and lost a bunch of close games, so let’s hope they don’t change their ways when we play them.”
Outside of last year’s 21-3 victory, South Carolina’s games against the Commodores have been traditionally close. Vanderbilt beat USC in 2007 and 2008, and the Gamecocks only won by four and 14 points, respectively, the following two years.
“We’ve never overlooked Vandy because to us, they’ve always been good competition,” said senior running back Kenny Miles.
Spurrier said part of the reason “Vandy is not in that neighborhood with a lesser team any more” is a commitment to winning, through improving facilities, similar to the $200 million master plan USC took on to improve athletics facilities.
Though the Commodores are on the rise, they haven’t arrived yet. Even with hosting a Thursday night game against a top-10 conference opponent, single game tickets are still available for the game, and the Titans preseason home game will almost certainly outdraw the college football season opener.
The next step for Vanderbilt is to get the signature win, like USC’s victory of No. 1 Alabama in 2011, sparking the run to the SEC East title. For the Gamecocks, experiencing the view from the top temporarily, a loss to Vanderbilt could cause everything to come crashing down.
“The realistic expectation is to beat South Carolina on Thursday,” Franklin told reporters. “Nothing exists after South Carolina. Even our schedule posters just say South Carolina. No other game exists. This is our Super Bowl.”