Don’t cry for me, Columbia.

You’ll have to pardon me if I don’t pick up a shovel to toss some dirt on the grave of Stephen Garcia’s career just yet.

After all, the flip side of being suspended four out of five offseasons is that he’s been reinstated to the team four times in five seasons.

The OBC is nothing if not practical.  If none of the other quarterbacks on South Carolina’s roster are ready to be declared the full-time starter, prepare to hear about Garcia being given one more chance.

Maybe they can bring Ken Stabler in to mentor Garcia.

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UPDATE: Also, this.

… We would remind Carolina fans that Garcia is at worst the second or third best quarterback in the history of your program, took a flyer on your program at a time when other teams were very interested in having him start for them, and has done very little in the way of anything actually nasty or felonious. Dude likes beer, sweet, life-giving beer. At this point it’s Stabler-esque in the charming way, not in the multiple DUI manner.

We would also remind you that every quarterback who ever played under Steve Spurrier has been on the verge of benching at every second of their tenure, so this does not represent a real diversion from the overall historical path of Spurrier quarterback management. If you look at it from a wagering perspective, Garcia will probably still end up being the starter at one point if he’s not thrown off the team. He will likely not be thrown off the team because he’s less malicious and more like the family Labrador who likes to drink beer out of his dog dish, and has one more year to show something like the kind of talent a typical Spurrier quarterback can deliver for NFL scouts: I am just good enough to earn my pension and then immediately retire after spending five years on the bench.