History of the SEC: South Carolina

Ask a fan of South Carolina what makes football special there and he or she will probably say something along the lines of one word: “Loyalty.”

How else can you explain Williams-Brice Stadium consistently attracting roughly 80,000 fans, regularly putting it in the top 20 nationally for attendance, to support a program that has won no national championships, one conference title and has yet to play in a top-tier bowl game?

Put simply, the Gamecocks are college football’s equivalent to the Chicago Cubs, and similarly even have an animal curse supposedly keeping them from greatness. With the Cubs, it’s the famous goat, which has nothing on South Carolina’s chicken.

According to local legend, Ben “Pitchfork” Tillman, South Carolina’s governor from 1890-94 who helped establish Clemson, is responsible for than a hundred years of mediocrity on the gridiron. It originated from a dispute between Tillman and the state legislature, which didn’t want to support Clemson. Growing increasingly frustrated because the legislature wouldn’t approve a land grant for the state’s poorer farmers, Tillman supposedly slammed a pitchfork into the ground of the Columbia campus and declared it “cursed.”

[Note: Tillman was known as “Pitchfork Ben” because he said in a speech that wanted to “poke” President Grover Cleveland with a pitchfork to prod him into action regarding economics problems in the South. He was also censured in 1902 while serving in the United States Senate for assaulting fellow Senator John L. McLaurin, also of South Carolina, in the Senate chamber.]

At one point, in 1992, a witch doctor was brought in to attempt and remove the curse prior to a game against Georgia. Naturally, the Gamecocks lost, and the football team continued its search for an identity and prominence.

Although it was a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1953, South Carolina left in 1971 due to disputes over recruiting regulations and the dominance of the four North Carolina schools: North Carolina, North Carolina State, Duke and Wake Forest. Until 1983, the school competed as a major independent, when it joined the Metro conference in all sports other than football. When the Southeastern Conference was looking for a 12th member in 1991, South Carolina finally found itself in the right place at the right time and began league play the following season.

And just like the baseball team from the Windy City, fans of the Gamecocks still love them nonetheless.

“I had great feelings for South Carolina, I had great hopes for it,” said Sparky Woods, who was the head coach during the transition to the SEC (1989-93). “They had the means to build that kind of tradition and that was an exciting thing to me. When I went to Appalachian State, they didn’t have any at that either. When I left there, we had won something like 19 conference games in a row, three conference championships. That was a fun thing to be a part of something new, first times ever kind of thing. But it had its own set of problems, obviously. It’s just understanding the situation. Sometimes it’s a hard job having a great tradition where they won all the time, like [Alabama]. But I do think South Carolina has the potential to build that kind of thing."

“Joining the conference was a big deal. We went from playing Duke in our first game to playing Georgia.”

- Sparky Woods

As a whole, South Carolina has enjoyed a lot of success in the SEC, beginning with women's track and field winning the outdoor national championships in 2002. Baseball had played in the College World Series before, but didn't win it until securing back-to-back titles in 201-11 under Ray Tanner. Dawn Staley created a national powerhouse in women' s basketball, winning the 2017, 2022 and 2024 national titles.

Shane Beamer is trying to do something similar in football, as the Gamecocks just missed making the expanded College Football Playoff in 2024 even though it closed the regaulr season with a dramatic 17-14 late win at rival Clemson (which still made the 12-team field as the ACC champion).

“It's hard for me to say we're not one of the 12 best teams in the country,” Beamer said after his team's sixth straight victory, four against ranked opponents. “If the [selection] committee's job is to pick the 12 best teams, you tell me.”

The tradition dtaes back to Dec. 24, 1892 with a 44-0 loss in Charleston to Furman. It wouldn’t score its first point until nearly two years later, and wouldn’t win a bowl game for 103 years. The first time South Carolina posted a winning record for four straight seasons (1902-05) the trustees abolished the sport on campus, a ban that only lasted one year but still set the program back. Nearly three decades later, coach Billy Laval (1928-34) set the school standard by posting a winning record in each of his seven seasons, the best of which was a 6-2-2 finish in 1928.  

The pride and joy of the program, of course, is George Rogers, who won the Heisman Trophy in 1980. The running back was the nation’s second-leading rusher in 1979, and backed that up with a landmark 1,894 yards as a senior, in the process gaining 100 yards in 22 consecutive games. Rogers solidified his status as the Heisman’s front-runner by gaining more than 140 yards in back-to-back road games at national powers Southern California and Michigan, and led South Carolina to the Gator Bowl against Pittsburgh. Subsequently, the New Orleans Saints made him the first-overall selection in the 1981 NFL Draft.

“George Rogers was the nicest guy you would ever want to meet,” play-by-play Bob Fulton said. “He also happened to be the best player we ever had.”

For a long time, some considered the Michigan game the greatest victory in school history. South Carolina recovered a fumble in its end zone and then drove to the winning touchdown for the 17-14 final score. Rogers finished with 142 yards on 36 carries.

Other top candidates were the 1982 game against No. 3 North Carolina, when quarterback Gordon Backham completed 16 or 17 passes to lead the 31-13 upset, and the 1952 game at Virginia, sponsored by the Shriners and dubbed the Oyster Bowl. With Notre Dame transfer Dick Balka sparking the comeback with his passing, South Carolina recovered a fumble inside its own 5-yard-line, and then another in the end zone to score its third touchdown in less than two minutes during the fourth quarter to win 21-14.

Considering its history, that was the kind of thing that almost always went against the Gamecocks. Before Rogers, the school rushing record was held by Steve “The Cadillac” Wadiak, who had 2,878 yards despite never playing football in high school. Instead, he learned the game in the Navy during World War II.

Shortly after graduating in 1951, he was killed in an automobile accident before playing a single game as a professional. South Carolina’s most valuable player award is named in his honor.

The tales of heartbreak are many, both on and off the field.

In 1984, coach Joe Morrison’s team got on an unprecedented roll, defeating Georgia, Pittsburgh, Kansas State, Florida State, and even won at Notre Dame to be ranked second behind Washington. However, the Gamecocks surprisingly slipped at Navy, a game that was rescheduled on the road so South Carolina could have an extra home date the following season. Doubling the disappointment was that Washington lost on the same day, depriving the Gamecocks of their first No. 1 ranking. South Carolina went on to rally from an 18-point deficit to defeat Clemson 22-21, only to lose 21-14 to Oklahoma State in the Gator Bowl and finish No. 11. The Gamecocks mustered only 71 yards of total offense and lost three of six fumbles. Quinton Lewis and Mike Hold threw touchdown passes to Chris Wade and Ira Hillary, respectively, for a late lead that was answered by an 88-yard touchdown drive by the Cowboys.

There was also “Black Magic” — the nickname associated with defensive coordinator Tom Gadd (1983-86), who always wore the color on the sideline. Gadd was also credited for giving players another nickname, the “Fire Ants” after he described the defense as looking like a “bunch of fire ants getting after the football.” Whatever it was, the years 1979 to 1984 saw some of the best teams in school history, with three winning seasons and one .500 season, capped by the first 10-win campaign in 1984, which fans considered “magic.”

Those were among the program highlights when South Carolina entered the SEC with an all-time record under .500. At the time:

Fast forward a little, and heading into the 2005 season, The Citadel and Davidson College had each defeated South Carolina more times than the Gamecocks had defeated SEC Eastern Division rivals Florida and Tennessee combined. At that point, of the 56 programs which had played more than 1,000 games all-time, only four had scored fewer points; and of the 46 teams that had played at least 1,050 games only South Carolina and Northwestern had failed to reach 500 wins.

And yet the fans still packed the stadium, demonstrating endless loyalty in the face of adversity. It's directed not only to the school and program, but especially to the legends who did find success despite all that adversity. They include Rogers, two-time All-American Sterling Sharpe, the Gamecocks’ all-time leading pass receiver with 169 career catches for 2,497 yards, and Dan Reeves who holds the record for most Super Bowl appearances as a player or a coach with nine.

“Difficulties in life are intended to make us better, not bitter,” Reeves said.

Quarterback Tommy Suggs (1968-70) never lost to Clemson. Halfback Alex Hawkins was the 1958 ACC Player of the Year. Fullback Bill Wohrman (1953-54) and tackle Jim Moss (1961-62) were only players in team history to win multiple Jacobs Blocking Trophies as best blocker in the state. Additionally, the practice fields are named after Enright, not so much because he served in World War II or his coaching record, but rather due to his beating Clemson in seven of his last 10 seasons.

There’s also quarterback Todd Ellis, who in throwing for 9,953 yards set more than 20 school passing records in leading the Gamecocks to the 1987 Gator Bowl and the 1988 Liberty Bowl. Other prominent names include Robert Brooks, Duce Staley, Brandon Bennett, Jeff Grantz, Troy Williamson, Andrew Provence, Sheldon Brown and John Abraham. Many are in the Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame along with Ed Boineau, Bobby Bryant, Earl Clary, Larry Craig, Leon Cunningham, Earl Dunham, Brad Edwards, Dominic Fusci, Billy Gambrell, Johnny Gramling, Harold Green, Tatum Gressette, Fred Hambright, Dickie Harris, Luther Hill, Kevin Long, Harold Mauney, Bryant Meeks Jr., Frank Mincevich, Jim Moss, Warren Muir, Ed Pitts, Mackie Prickett, Bill Rogers, Rick Sanford, James Seawright, Larry Smith, Lou Sossamon, Bishop Strickland, Alfred Van Kolnitz, J.R. Wilburn, Roger “Red Wilson” and Fred Zeigler.

Dondrial Pinkins added his name to Gamecock lore in 2003 when he became the only person in SEC history to throw both a 99-yard touchdown pass and a 98-yard touchdown pass during the same season. The league-tying record was to Troy Williamson against Virginia. The “shorter” pass went to Matthew Thomas against Ole Miss.

In 2004, the most famous player on the team was wide receiver Tim Frisby, a 39-year-old father of six and a 20-year Army veteran who had served with the 82nd Airborne Division. Exempt from National Collegiate Athletic Association age rules because of his military service, Frisby walked on and made the team (prompting coach Lou Holtz to joke that was because of the attendance boost his children could provide). One day during summer practice a strip of tape was placed above his locker with the word “Pops” on it. The nickname stuck, literally and figuratively.

Otherwise, many of program’s most memorable moments have to do with personalities or recent instances that inspired catch phrases.

For example, “Fade to Glory” made backup Eric Kimrey a South Carolina folk hero, even though he was the backup quarterback on the 2000 team. When Phil Petty sustained a sprained ankle in the fourth quarter with the Gamecocks trailing Mississippi State 19-13, Kimrey supposedly told Holtz, “I can throw the fade route.” He did, perfectly to receiver Jermale Kelly, for a touchdown and South Carolina went on to win 23-19.

“Lay Down Dogs” originated with 1993 game against Georgia. Down 21-17 in the closing moments, South Carolina had fourth down at the Georgia 1, prompting Bulldogs broadcaster Larry Munson to say, “Lay down Dawgs. Lay Down Dawgs. Don’t get up,” in hopes time would expire before South Carolina could get off another play. Tailback Brandon Bennett took the handoff, with Munson calling: “The great back goes over the top. He scores and breaks our hearts.”

Quarterback Steve Taneyhill was one of the most colorful players to suit up for South Carolina, and not just because he compiled 8,380 yards of total offense and led the Gamecocks to their first bowl victory in nine tries _ 24-21 over West Virginia in the 1994 Carquest Bowl at Joe Robbie Stadium near Miami. Taneyhill wore an earring and had a long ponytail that stuck out of his helmet. He would practice his golf swing during pauses in the game and hit fungoes with an imaginary baseball bat after touchdowns. After victories at Clemson’s Memorial Stadium, Taneyhill would autograph the Tiger paw in the middle of the field. When asked by a sportswriter how he would like to remembered by South Carolina fans, he replied: “That crazy Yankee quarterback.” Taneyhill hailed from Altoona, Penn.

(As an interesting side note, Taneyhill’s career began as a freshman in 1992 when five straight losses supposedly resulted in what was described a “players revolt.” After inserting Taneyhill, South Carolina won five of its last six games, including 24-13 to Clemson, as Woods received a one-year reprieve.)

In the mid-1980s, many South Carolina fans had bumper stickers proclaiming, “If it ain’t swaying, we ain’t playing.” Its a reference to the “harmonic vibrations” that caused the newly constricted upper deck on the east side to sway during exciting moments. Eventually, the phenomenon was blamed on the marching band for playing the song “Louie, Louie,” which was subsequently banned by school officials. When the band director defied the order, he was censured, the band was moved to another section of the stadium, and the student section also relocated. Although some fans claimed to have feared for their lives, the stadium remained packed and engineering officials repeatedly signed off on the structure’s safety.

In part because of the limited in-state recruiting base, with two top programs competing for talent in a small state, not to mention desirable powers in neighboring states, South Carolina has on three occasions hired someone who both won a national title and coached a Heisman Trophy winner at another school.

The first was Dietzel, who had been at LSU. From 1966 to 1974, he provided legitimacy to a program that had endured a 15-game winless streak in 1963-64, even though his first season resulted in a 1-9 finish. By finishing 6-0 in the ACC in 1969, the Gamecocks won their first (and still only) conference title, and with a 7-4 overall record received an invitation to the Peach Bowl (a 14-3 loss to West Virginia). Dietzel had three winning seasons, the last in 1973 at 7-4, but like so many others had an overall record below .500 at 42-53-1.

“It’s a short trip from the penthouse to the outhouse,” Dietzel said. But his most famous quote may have been, “You can learn more character on the two-yard line than anywhere else in life.”

Holtz had similar success after a 0-11 finish during his first season in 1999.

“First we will be best, then we will be first,” Holtz said.

He backed it up with records of 8-4 and 9-3, finishing second in the Eastern Division in 2000 and 2001. Both seasons concluded with victories against Ohio State in the Outback Bowl _ 24-7 and 31-28 _ with the 17 victories the most ever in a two-year span.

“I can’t believe God put us on this earth to be ordinary,” Holtz said.

South Carolina finished in the Top 25 under Holtz, who became the only coach in NCAA history to lead six different programs to bowl games, and likewise was the only coach to have four different programs finish ranked in the Top 20. However, critics claimed he also set the record for programs involved in NCAA investigations and/or probation during his reign, which happened at Arkansas, Minnesota, and Notre Dame. He retired after the 2004 season with a 33-37 record leading the Gamecocks.

“We have the greatest fans in the world,” Holtz said. “We raise more money per win than any school in America.”

Although Holtz’s reign ended under a cloud of disappointment, with his final game marred by a viscous pre-game fight with Clemson that resulted in both teams withdrawing from bowl eligibility, twelve of his players arrested prior to the start of following season (and even more dismissed from the team), and the NCAA placing the program on three year of probation, Gamecock fans went into 2005 more optimistic than ever.

On November 23, 2004, South Carolina named Steve Spurrier as its new head coach, prompting every other Eastern Division coach to mutter words that can’t be reprinted here. Though Spurrier had been unsuccessful in the National Football League with the Washington Redskins, his college resume included a .777 winning percentage, six SEC championships, one ACC title, and a national championship at Florida.

He had the all-time highest winning percentage in SEC play, led the Gators to 12 consecutive Top 15 finishes in the Associated Press, and was 11-1 against South Carolina’s second-biggest rival, Georgia.

“I’ve got my enthusiasm, my passion, my fire … I’ve got that back in me,” Spurrier said at his introductory press conference. “I’m excited to be here and ready to go. I pledge to you you’re going to get my best shot.

“I know our history is not the greatest in the world as far as winning the conference, but we’ve got everything here. I’d like to borrow a phrase from the Boston Red Sox, ‘Why not us?’ Why can’t we get to the top of the SEC? Certainly that’s going to be my dream.”

Spurrier even took a stab at debunking the Chicken Curse during his preseason press conference at Media Days in Birmingham, pointing out that 1969, when South Carolina won the ACC title, and 2005 were both the Year of the Rooster on the Chinese calendar.

“I’m just saying, we’ve got the rooster on our side ... That’s all I'm saying, we got it really going for us now,” he said smiling. If anything, he embellished the mascot’s name better than any other coach in South Carolina history — Cocky.

It was the season that the bar was raised for the entire program. Though South Carolina didn’t win the 2005 SEC East Division, the “Head Ball Coach” (a famous phrase of Spurrier’s) was named the league's Coach of the Year by The Associated Press after doing more with less than anyone else in the league, while simultaneously setting the groundwork for future success. Gamecock Club donations rose dramatically, each of the first three games were nationally televised, and the Gamecocks went from losing three of their first five games to winning five of the final six. Two of those victories came against ranked teams, No. 23 Tennessee (16-15) and No. 12 Florida (30-22). 

Spurrier stayed 11 seasons, eventually stepping down after a slow start in 2015. His teams went 86–49. South Carolina reached the 2010 SEC Championship Game, and subsequently enjoyed the first, and only, 11-wins seasons in program history, back-to-back-to-back in 2011-13. The No. 4 final ranking in the AP Top 25 in 2013 was its best finish to date.

He also got to enjoy the biggest win in program history, and the only time the Gamecocks have knocked off the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25. Reigning national champion Alabama was undefeated, and beginning a brutal stretch of facing six straight SEC opponents coming off a bye, but Nick Saban's Crimson Tide essentially walked into an ambush. Quarterback Stephen Garcia completed 17 of 20 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns, including two to wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, and running back Marcus Lattimore ran for 93 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns as No. 19 South Carolina pulled off the 35-21 victory.

“I think that this game was meant to be," Spurrier said.

This is the seventh part of an extended series about the history of SEC football. Some of the material was used in the book "Where Football is King," by Christopher Walsh. For more, check out South Carolina Gamecocks On SI.

Three things that stand out about South Carolina football:

1. The Cockaboose Railroad

Located approximately 50 yards from the main entrance to 80,000-seat Williams-Brice Stadium, the 22 luxurious rail-bound cabooses may be the ultimate in decadent tailgating. Originally opened in 1990 for $40,000 each, it wasn't long before there was a wait list. They now go for $300,000-plus. The cars are 30 x 9, resting on an unused track of railroad, Each has a kitchenette, bathroom and deck.

2. The Odyssey Opening

The team assembles in the southwest corner tunnel as the theme song from “2001 — A Space Odyssey” (also known as Richard Strauss’ “Thus Spake Zarathustra”) is played. Players take the field in conjunction with the music, emerging from a lot of smoke. Even without the fanfare, Williams-Brice Stadium is a tough place to visit for opposing teams. It was originally constructed as part of the New Deal’s Works Progress Administration in 1934, seating 17,600. Since then, it’s seen numerous renovations and additions, including the enlarging to 53,000 in 1972 that was financed by the estate of Mrs. Martha Williams Brice, whose husband had been a letterman (1922-24). Capacity was increased to 80,250 in 1996, but somehow 85,000 crammed in to see the 2001 Clemson game (a 20-15 victory). A 2004 addition to the south end zone included a 30,000 square-foot football complex, but the addition of club spaces in 2020 decreased the capacity to 77,559.

3. The Mascot

After having numerous nicknames during the early years, the football players were described in a 1920 newspaper article as having “fought like gamecocks,” and it stuck. The following year, Columbia’s morning newspaper, The State, shortened it to one word. FYI, a gamecock is a pugnacious roster, bred for fighting. While cockfighting has been outlawed, for years it was considered acceptable. General Thomas Sumter, a Revolutionary War figure from South Carolina, was also nicknamed “The Gamecock.” Of course, the fort named after him saw the first engagement of the Civil War (April 12, 1861).