When you think of South Carolina vs. Clemson on the football field, you picture two teams that despise each other. This rivalry is one of the college football’s most underrated rivalry games, and one of the most storied.
Many college football fans are unaware that “The Battle of the Palmetto State" is the longest uninterrupted series in the south, and the second longest uninterrupted series overall, having been played every year since 1909.
Clemson holds a 65-39-4 lead in the series, which dates back to 1896, but the Gamecocks have won two straight.
As a South Carolina native, and two-time graduate of THE University of South Carolina, I was groomed to hate the color orange and can recall a lot of the games—some with joy and others that bring a sour taste to my mouth (see the offensive pass interference against Andre Goodman in 2000). 
My favorite memory of a Gamecocks win would have to be the most recent. Let me frame this by saying I married a fine Southern Belle that is originally from Clemson (before you ask—no, she is not a Clemson fan as she was saved from the Kool-Aid as a child and proved smarter than that).
So, the trips to Clemson for this rivalry game prove to be quite special, but more so in 2010 than any other due to the fact that not only did USC win, but they helped to make Clemson a 6-6 team for 2010. 
Oh, and the USC win capped off a special season that saw USC go to the SEC Championship.
I thoroughly enjoyed myself in this game, due to the fact that USC dominated the game after there was much “smack talk” from the Clemson side and no respect being given for what USC accomplished by winning the SEC East in 2010.

South Carolina limited Clemson to 260 yards and forced two turnovers. The defense even put points on the board, as Antonio Allen intercepted Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker and returned it 36 yards for a score to make it 26-7 in the third quarter. At that point, it was nice to see “orange” heading towards the exits. USC would eventually win the game by the score of 29-7.
Another thing that made the win one of my favorites was that this win gave the Gamecocks back-to-back wins over Clemson for the first time since winning three straight in the series from 1968-70.
This will be the biggest game in the history of the Clemson vs. South Carolina rivalry when it comes to combined victories for the two programs. Both schools have a 9-2 record, and this is the first time both have entered the rivalry game with at least nine wins.
Let’s hope USC can match the feat from the late '60s, and obtain the win this coming Saturday.  It would be nice to give the ACC Atlantic champs a dose of SEC medicine, and win—yet again—the “State Championship.”Read more South Carolina Football news on BleacherReport.com

When you think of South Carolina vs. Clemson on the football field, you picture two teams that despise each other. This rivalry is one of the college football’s most underrated rivalry games, and one of the most storied. Many college football fans are unaware that “The Battle of the Palmetto State" is the longest uninterrupted series in the south, and the second longest uninterrupted series overall, having been played every year since 1909. Clemson holds a 65-39-4 lead in the series, which dates back to 1896, but the Gamecocks have won two straight. As a South Carolina native, and two-time graduate of THE University of South Carolina, I was groomed to hate the color orange and can recall a lot of the games—some with joy and others that bring a sour taste to my mouth (see the offensive pass interference against Andre Goodman in 2000).  My favorite memory of a Gamecocks win would have to be the most recent. Let me frame this by saying I married a fine Southern Belle who is originally from Clemson (before you ask—no, she is not a Clemson fan as she was saved from the Kool-Aid as a child and proved smarter than that). So, the trips to Clemson for this rivalry game prove to be quite special, but more so in 2010 than any other due to the fact that not only did USC win, but they helped to make Clemson a 6-6 team for 2010.  Oh, and the USC win capped off a special season that saw USC go to the SEC Championship. I thoroughly enjoyed myself in this game, due to the fact that USC dominated the game after there was much “smack talk” from the Clemson side and no respect being given for what USC accomplished by winning the SEC East in 2010.   South Carolina limited Clemson to 260 yards and forced two turnovers. The defense even put points on the board, as Antonio Allen intercepted Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker and returned it 36 yards for a score to make it 26-7 in the third quarter. At that point, it was nice to see “orange” heading towards the exits. USC would eventually win the game by the score of 29-7. Another thing that made the win one of my favorites was that this win gave the Gamecocks back-to-back wins over Clemson for the first time since winning three straight in the series from 1968-70. This will be the biggest game in the history of the Clemson vs. South Carolina rivalry when it comes to combined victories for the two programs. Both schools have a 9-2 record, and this is the first time both have entered the rivalry game with at least nine wins. Let’s hope USC can match the feat from the late '60s, and obtain the win this coming Saturday.  It would be nice to give the ACC Atlantic champs a dose of SEC medicine, and win—yet again—the “State Championship.”Read more South Carolina Football news on BleacherReport.com

The final game of the regular season for the South Carolina Gamecocks still matters, despite the fact that USC won’t be playing for a spot in the SEC title game.Things haven’t gone according to South Carolina’s master plan this season, but the Gamecocks will definitely play Clemson—their in-state rivals—tough on Saturday.The matchup of Palmetto state teams has its share of story lines. Here’s what to pay attention to when you tune in for Clemson vs. South Carolina this weekend…Begin Slideshow

The South Carolina Gamecocks earned a 41-20 victory over The Citadel Bulldogs, it was a confidence building type win with the rival Clemson Tigers coming to town to close out the season.The win earned the Gamecocks (9-2) back-to-back seasons with at least nine victories for the first time in 118 seasons of football.It was a satisfying victory for South Carolina, especially for the offense which had averaged just 18 points a game in its previous four games. The Gamecocks had 473 yards, nearly double Citadel’s total of 249.Let’s issue the grades for this win:Begin Slideshow

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Steve Spurrier will be the first to admit that things haven’t gone according to plan for his team this season. Preseason polls projected South Carolina to win the SEC East relatively easily, but the team will likely finish second in the division to the Georgia Bulldogs at season’s end.Considering that the Gamecocks are a completely different team now from the one that started the season, second place is still a notable accomplishment.South Carolina lost starting quarterback Stephen Garcia to suspension, starting running back—and preseason Heisman Trophy hopeful—Marcus Lattimore to injury and has had to rely on their defense to win games.The Gamecocks aren’t the offensive juggernaut they were expected to be, but that hasn’t prevented them from putting together a respectable season.Much of the team’s success can be credited to Spurrier’s abilities as a coach. Given what he had to work with, the Ol’ Ball Coach has shown once again why he’s one of college football’s best.I highly doubt that the South Carolina athletic department is calling for Spurrier’s removal as the program’s head coach, despite the Gamecocks’ (likely) failure to win the SEC East after all the preseason hype.Besides, if Georgia somehow loses to Kentucky next week, South Carolina can still backdoor its way into the SEC Championship game by virtue of the Week 2 win over the Bulldogs.The SEC is a tough conference; winning games—and to some degree, winning titles—is the measure by which coaches are judged. Spurrier probably won’t win a division title this season, but he’s got nothing to worry about in terms of being replaced as the head coach of the Gamecocks.Here’s why Steve Spurrier deserves to coach at South Carolina for as long as he’s able.Begin Slideshow

The South Carolina Gamecocks (7-2, 5-2 SEC) will have their SEC finale against the Florida Gators (5-4, 3-4 SEC) set for noon on Saturday, Nov. 12. The game will be televised nationally on CBS. Carolina enters the contest ranked 15th in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches poll, and are 13th in the latest BCS Standings. The Gators are unranked.Despite the Gators being out of the SEC East title race they are positioned to play a crucial role in helping to determine who the represents the East at the SEC Championship.  If they successfully upset South Carolina, then it’s Georgia’s.  A Gators loss at the hands of USC, keeps the hopes of the “garnet & black” faithful alive for a SEC East repeat.For South Carolina to taste gridiron glory, these 10 players will need to step up big for the Gamecocks against the Florida Gators:Begin Slideshow

"Our worst fears have been realized." No, I'm not quoting broadcaster Jim McKay from the 1972 Munich Olympics.Those are the words of South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier regarding the season-ending knee injury suffered by running back Marcus Lattimore.Pretty strong words from the Ol' Ball Coach.The Gamecocks lost more than a chance to bring the Heisman Trophy to Columbia. Their chances at winning the SEC East took a severe hit when Lattimore when down.  But as bleak as things look, the team has nowhere to go but forward. The SEC East division title is still within reach for the men in garnett and black.Let's look at the facts. South Carolina is leading their division, they have talent on both sides of the ball, and they still have an outside chance at back-dooring their way into the BCS National Championship game.An injury to a star player should never be taken lightly, but the absence of Lattimore for the rest of the season doesn't necessarily end South Carolina's hopes of winning their division.Granted, he was the workhorse for this team; his performance during the first part of the season is the main reason that the Gamecocks were able to pull off tough wins, especially against Georgia and Navy.Now, the rest of the team will have to collectively raise its level of play after losing him. Here's why South Carolina can still win the SEC East without Marcus Lattimore...Begin Slideshow

A tough week in Columbia, South Carolina, just got a whole lot tougher. After head coach Steve Spurrier kicked starting quarterback Stephen Garcia off the team for off-field issues, even more of the offensive load was placed on the shoulders of Heisman candidate running back Marcus Lattimore.Steve Spurrier will be taking a lot of flack for his role in kicking Garcia of the squad now that Lattimore is out, but he shouldn't be taking any blame for the future offensive struggles of the Gamecocks. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, the offensive load will now be carried by backup quarterback Connor Shaw for an unknown future.  Nickoe Whitley tackled Marcus Lattimore in the fourth quarter on what seemed like a harmless play. The play saw Lattimore seem to hyper extend his leg and buckle it. Lattimore had to be helped off the field and left the game with a full leg brace and crutches. Early reports have the injury listed as a knee sprain, but obviously they will need to review the injury tomorrow morning. This injury causes huge problems for Steve Spurrier's football team. Connor Shaw is a good quarterback, but despite his inflated numbers against a terrible Kentucky team, he is still a first time starter and just a sophomore. He isn't ready to be the full-fledged leader of this South Carolina football team. Lattimore's 779 yards (129 per game) and nine touchdowns leads the SEC, but without him the Gamecocks and freshman running back Brandon Wilds aren't ready to run defenses over.  The Gamecocks still have to face Clemson, Arkansas and Florida, and although those teams defenses aren't tops in the nation, the lack of an offensive standout on the South Carolina roster will prove costly in those games. All of the pressure is on the Gamecocks defense to perform now and limit oppositions to the minimum points possible.Spurrier will struggle to get his team to put up points in the coming weeks, but Gamecocks fans should not be sour about his coaching ability. Spurrier had no way of knowing Lattimore would get hurt the same week he kicked Garcia off the team. The Garcia issue was a long time coming, and after five previous suspensions Garcia had to be gone. If any other big time college football program in the SEC had to deal with that many mistakes by a player, they would have kicked him off a long time ago. It is just a case of bad timing, and the fans of South Carolina football have no reason to be upset with head coach Steve Spurrier. Steve Spurrier and the South Carolina Gamecocks are going to have a rough ride towards the end of the season and could even fall from 11th in the polls all the way out of the Top 25 if Lattimore cannot return and be effective, but to come back from such huge losses would be amazing, though unlikely, but it should not result in Spurrier's job coming into question.Read more South Carolina Football news on BleacherReport.com

Stephen Garcia is the epitome of a student-athlete that forgot he was a student.Garcia had every opportunity to succeed at the University of South Carolina, and with every chance he was given, he chose to throw it away.The Gamecocks quarterback flashed greatness and had spurts of impressive production.Now those moments will quickly be erased from fan's memories as they are forced to look back in disdain at the troubled path Garcia went down.Begin Slideshow

South Carolina thought they were ready to move on from the NCAA issues they had with freshman Damiere Byrd. Not so fast my friend. A new issue has been brought up to Coach Steve Spurrier and his staff and now the status of Damiere Byrd is back in question for the Gamecocks. Byrd was recently suspended for four games by the NCAA due to his receipt of impermissible benefits in relation to the S.A.M. Foundation that he was involved in. Spurrier announced this information during his call-in-show on Thursday night and declined to go into further detail other than to say the NCAA is related. Byrd spoke to reporters for the first time on Wednesday after his four-game suspension and was excited about the opportunity to finally suit up and play for the Gamecocks. He mentioned how this had been a long week and that the past four weeks have been an extended preseason camp for him. The Gamecocks were hoping that Damiere Byrd would be an answer, or at least, provide a spark for their struggling passing game through the first four games. Stephen Garcia would certainly love to have that speed on the field this weekend. Spurrier said he hoped that Damiere Byrd would be cleared in time to play against Auburn but won't know more until sometime Friday. And the wait continues....Read more South Carolina Football news on BleacherReport.com