An interim head coach is expected to be named Tuesday.
Advertisement
The Gamecocks are 2-4 overall and have lost all four of their Southeastern Conference games. Under Spurrier, South Carolina landed in the top 10 of 25 Associated Press polls, something that had happened 13 times before he arrived. Quarterback Michael Scarnecchia tweeted: “Spurrier personally recruited me and gave me an opportunity of life time!!” South Carolina is set to play Vanderbilt Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Spurrier, 70, coached a Heisman victor (Danny Wuerffel) and dozens of All-Americans and All-SEC players during his time with the Gators. After two unsuccessful seasons, he returned to college in 2005 to take over South Carolina, but never recaptured the magic he had in Gainesville, posting an 86-49 record with the Gamecocks. He won a National Championship at Florida and took teams to 21 bowl games.
Spurrier also coached the Florida Gators for 12 seasons from 1990 to 2001 and the Duke Blue Devils from 1987 to 1989.
Well, UF’s computer software turned out to be a tremendous within Spurrier’s management. He left the Gators to coach the NFL’s Washington Redskins but went 12-20 in two seasons before returning to the SEC at South Carolina.
He steadily built an average South Carolina program into one that posted three straight 11-win seasons from 2011-13. Should he truly be done, he’ll walk away with a career record of 228-89-2 and one national championship to his name.
While Floyd did not expect Spurrier to quit, he noticed a change in the coach during recent losses at Missouri and Louisiana State.
For years, Bryant watched coach after coach fail to unearth the potential at Florida, which he once called “a sleeping giant”.
Saban didn’t necessarily agree with everything Spurrier said, but respected the fact that Spurrier had the guts to say what was on his mind. He played for the San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers during a 10-year pro career, appearing in 106 games and throwing for 6,878 yards, 40 touchdowns and 60 interceptions.
Spurrier was an original and authentic coach, a true character in a job that often causes people to be wooden and withholding, refusing to show their human side.
There was widespread speculation about the possibility of Spurrier retiring after this season coming into the year, but he denied those reports publicly. Spurrier was in danger of having his first losing season since 1987. He joked about his golf game, cracked wise about his rivals, and seemed to delight in not just beating the hell out of you, but then pointing to the scoreboard afterwards.
He’s dreamed about to complete aspects no other brand of trainers previously did and it also emerges Steve Spurrier has did so again. “We feel comfortable there”.
Advertisement
Almost 20 years later, Stoops still laughs when he thinks about Spurrier looking at him out in the surf while riding waves near Spurrier’s Crescent Beach, Florida beach house one early September day and chirping, “Bobby, you think those Tennessee boys are body-surfing right now?”
