Associated Press
COLUMBIA, S.C. ó For Steve Spurrier, South Carolina’s struggles didn’t stop at the end of last season.
He couldn’t keep his first pick for a new defensive coordinator, his incoming class lost some luster and some players seemed to spend more time in legal trouble than on the field.
How long the on- and off-the-field problems linger will determine whether Spurrier can bring the Gamecocks the SEC success that fans here desire.
Spurrier looked like he’d gotten the job done a year ago. South Carolina shot to a 6-1 start and No. 6 ranking. That created some buzz about Spurrier vying to add a BCS title to the national crown he won at Florida more than a decade earlier.
The Gamecocks’ joyride quickly broke down, starting with a dreadful performance at home in a loss to underdog Vanderbilt in mid-October. The slide stretched all the way to Mark Buchholz’s game-winning field goal for hated rival Clemson to end the season. Five straight defeats marked the longest streak of futility in Spurrier’s stellar college career.
Spurrier said those losses “probably didn’t help” convince recruits to come to South Carolina, a disappointment one year after analysts labeled the incoming class a top-five group.
Meanwhile, eight players were suspended since the spring semester began ó most after run-ins with police.
Among those was one of Spurrier’s highest-profile recruits from 2007, freshman quarterback Stephen Garcia. He was barred from team activities until August following his third run-in with authorities in 15 months on campus.
Spurrier says the transgressions, which range from one player being accused of marijuana possession to Garcia being charged with underage drinking, are the most he’s dealt with as a coach. He’s spoken to his players about avoiding trouble and, with a week left in spring practice, said he’s eager to put the focus back on the field.
“Maybe,” Spurrier said, “we ought to start talking about the guys who’re playing.”