I printed in the SEC Weekly Preview that the difference in the Thursday night Ole Miss @ South Carolina game would be the quarterbacks - with the edge going to the Ole Miss because "Ole Miss has one and South Carolina doesn't."
My bad.
Mr. Dark Horse-Heisman-Going-To-Give-Tim-Tebow-a-Run-For-His-Money went a blistering 7-of-21 for 107 yards and one touchdown which, at best, was a lucky throw late in the game that saw the Gamecocks knock off the #4 ranked Rebels 16-10.
The South Carolina defense rattled, confused, and, largely, controlled the Ole Miss offense all night. In spite of an offense that started and sputtered like an old Chevy, the Gamecocks had enough of an attack to get points when they needs it led by Stephen Garcia's 221 passing yards.
So, what does this all mean in the grand scheme of the SEC?
South Carolina will probably win some more and lose some more close games, but they have the horses to hang in there with just about anyone on the schedule.
Ole Miss was clearly a team of preseason hype most likely stemming from their bowl win over Texas Tech. Is their season lost? Not entirely, but the blueprint is there for the rest of the SEC teams on their schedule - especially the two leaders in the SEC West, Alabama and LSU.
It's a long season still, but tonight's upset proves preseason hype will get you in the dance but you still have to make the steps to move to the next level.
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Sorta kinda probably stole your thunder there.
Line of the night goes to SportsPickle: "Nice win by Spurrier. His stock is on the rise. Replacement for Zorn in Washington, DC?"