Jeez, Athlon, give it a rest.
Future Hall of Famer Steve Spurrier — legendary both for this coaching acumen, which included the most prosperous era in South Carolina history, as well as his trash-talking ability — once quipped that playing Georgia early in the season was a boon for the Gamecocks.
While the nature of Spurrier’s trash talk does not apply in 2018, successor Will Muschamp and his South Carolina squad could benefit all the same from a Week 2 showdown. The defending SEC champion Bulldogs head into 2018 with quarterback Jake Fromm, but Kirby Smart’s left replacing several key players integral to last year’s title-game run. Gone are Roquan Smith, Sony Michel and Nick Chubb, among others.
Meanwhile, South Carolina returns one of the most experienced lineups in the SEC, building off a surprise nine-win campaign in 2017. With Gamecocks quarterback Jake Bentley poised for a star season, look for South Carolina to capitalize on the early growing pains Georgia faces and perhaps spring the most important SEC upset of September.
You done there? Good. Allow me to retort.
The last time Steve Spurrier saw Georgia in September, well, let’s just say he didn’t feel like quipping afterwards.
And as far as that returning one of the most experienced lineups in the SEC thing goes, according to Phil Steele, the ‘Cocks return exactly one more starter than does Georgia.
South Carolina’s a quality team, it’s an SEC road game and any given Saturday — I get all that. But for once, how about relying on some real analysis instead of mailing it in with that lazy crap?
Get The Picture 
The last time Steve Spurrier saw Georgia in September, he felt like QUITTING!
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Cue the drama rodent.
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Athlon? This sounds like it was written by some poster on FGF.
Typical Gamecock logic, South Carolina’s returning players are better than those they lost while the opponent’s losses are irreplaceable.
The media is just trying to talk themselves into believing. I look for most in the media to pick SC the week of the game, which is fine.
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fake news!
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Mark Richt made Steve spurrier quit coaching. Fact
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I think you mean NCAA Record Holder Grayson Lambert
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Combo, IYAM. In fact, have to throw a solitary congrat to Schotty for that game, it looked like an alien jumped in his body when compared to the other games that season. I recall thinking, that first game was a set up, this guy can scheme a game. And Lambert implemented perfectly. That was one fun beat down.
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I’m not sorry Spurrier quit mid-season at S Carolina. I’m sorry he didn’t quit at halftime while UGA was routing his ass. At least we were able to send him into retirement wearing a 50 point butt whipping.
This time last year App State has beaten Michigan in the Big House! Notre Dame is a NC contender! Mullen and Nick Fitzgerald and awesome D! THE SKY IS FALLING ON UGA! Quality analysis is hard to find
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Good reminders, 81 for any of our fellow Dawgs who might be tempted to buy this bs. App State was going g to be a big problem and we didn’t have a chance against Notre Dame or Butch Mullen and Fitzgerald.
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Did none of these pundits watch the Dawgs last year? Did they not see the carries of Holyfield and Swift? Now we also add in receivers that were not here last year and I’m pretty sure we rout the chickens in their own roost.
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Did they not watch Georgia beat down South Carolina last year? With a freshman qb operating out of a fraction of the playbook he will know this year?
I am getting sick of the talk about South Carolina. We return a better offense than we had last year and a defense that I suspect will be just as good if not better despite losing Roquan.
I think Georgia wins this game by 3 touchdowns.
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Agree on the UGA win, but there will be cut marks from a passing attack on our secondary. SC will go all-out passing with a run from time to time using Samuels. That’s the only chance they have to leave a mark (going all-out against our secondary) showing that they are competitive and to be taken seriously for the rest of the season. Also don’t forget the attitude the Dawgs had in the NC game: they put on their pants the same way we do.
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Steve Spurrier…the talk machine who will be forever quoted. What league is he in now and what’s the projection on his quit date?
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Ok, I had gone about 14 days without pulling out my copy and paste reply to handwringing over the Cocks, but here goes…
If Carolina beats us either (1) recruiting rankings mean jack shit, or (2) our coaching staff is a bunch of overmatched frauds.
I don’t think either is the case. Take the Dawgs and give the 2 TDs.
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Hmmm…. Let’s see…. Georgia rotated a lot of players in and out of games last year. They were ‘up’ by the middle of the 3rd quarter – early 4th quarter that starters were being pulled. That is ‘never’ in anyone’s calculations for this year. And there is a significant difference in talent between the two teams and Georgia’s offense is pretty much in tact with the players being replaced with (wait for it) better players. And last year South Carolina had Vandy at home the week before, while Georgia traveled for an emotional game against UF…
Dawgs run over the Cocks
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I’ll agree with everything but the players replacing offensive seniors as better.
Don’t was the #1 RB in the country and Chubb has the second most rushing yards in UGA history.
Swift is comparable, the rest of the RB’s are likely a long way from better. I’ll give you Thomas being better than Wynn, but that’s a pretty close trade too given Wynn’s leadership and experience.
Now on defense I’d say everyone except Roquan’s replacement is likely better.
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Should stab Sony was #1 RB
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@Randy: I have pointed that out several times, UGA’s starters played three quarters of football or less almost the entire season. What do you think Fromm’s, Sony’s, or Nick’s stats would have looked like, (and the already lopsided scopes) had Kirby pulled a Spurrier and left the 1st team in against an already beaten opponent?
But you must remember that Jake “Preseason Heisman Trophy Winner” Bentley will finally live up to his reputation this season, and Deebo (Deebo?) Samuel is not only the fastest man alive but is probably going to score every time he touches the ball because, well, you know… you know?
Year of the Gamecock, indeed.
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Time to bury these guys.
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It’s South Carolina! They ski in their jeans!
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I thought that was Clemson . . .
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I know Kirby and Muschump are supposedly friends but Kirby needs to put a 2017 Tennessee style whipping on the chickens this season. Their fans are perpetually delusional but their pie hole running this year would have you believe they won the SEC last season. The whole chicken nation needs to be shown what their true place in the SEC is and an apocalyptic beatdown by Georgia in week 2 is desperately needed.
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Yeah, we intercept the first play from scrimmage, I can live with that.
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Speaking of..can the Lexicon for Beyond Crompton be changed to Beyond Greyson? I liked that game a little better.
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That is some truly lazy assed assessing.
Athlon should be embarrassed
” CKS having lost Sony and Chubb to graduation, is now walking the campus begging kids to walk on as running backs. Meanwhile, over at Usc, CWM has built a monster that, like the last several years, should challenge Alabama for the National Championship”.
Truly lazy and dumb, Athlon..
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So according to another idiot sports reporter we’re the underdawgs against scu? Fine by me. A little push will start the 2018 version of the revenge tour. All we need now is some smack talk from scu coaches and players.
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Slow your roll everybody. Don’t forget… USCe will give us there best shot!
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Oh damn…there is a their fail in that there post.
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Media has to hype the game otherwise TV viewing will be down.
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Once again, it’s amazing that South Carolina returns the most experienced team in the universe every single year. Do their guys get 7 years of eligibility or something?
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It’s honestly astounding to me that nobody seems to bring up Carolina’s loss of Skai Moore and Hayden Hurst. Say what you will about Chubb, Sony, Roquan, etc moving on but those two were arguably bigger losses for Carolina than any of the losses for UGA.
And when we meet on the 8th, it will literally have been 357 days since Deebo Samuel last faced an opposing defense with a pulse (Kentucky on 9/16/17), let alone one the caliber of Georgia’s. He’s an incredible athlete but why is it that only UGA is going to be rusty? Did Carolina play 4 preseason games against NFL teams that I’m just not aware of?
Do I even need to address the massive comparative depth elephant in the room?
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If it is getting tiring to us, and it is, imagine the effect it might have on superior athletes who might feel belittled. They have nothing else to challenge themselves with in early September. Complacency shouldn’t be an issue, our guys should be dead red on September 8.
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