The SEC tournament has a new format, but the Gamecocks are having a very familiar experience.  In Carolina's first game of the 2013 tournament they got off to a rough start and ended up in the losers' bracket.

Nolan Belcher clearly didn't have his best stuff and he didn't get enough run support to overcome it.  After giving up 2 in the first and another in the third Belcher battled into the 7th inning.  The offense showed some life in the fourth and tied the game at three.  That was about it.

For the rest of the game the offense squandered every opportunity it generated.  In the 5th, Carolina had runners on 1st and 3rd with one out; they got no runs.  In the 6th they couldn't move a lead off single.  In the 7th, they got a runner in scoring position to no avail.  The 8th started with a lead off walk, which can so often be a team's undoing, but it also went for naught.

One clutch hit and the Gamecocks are probably still in the winners' bracket.  Sometimes those hits come; last night they didn't.  Now Carolina gets to play Vanderbilt in the losers' bracket.

There has been some talk about how solid Carolina's hosting resume is.  Overall it is strong.  Losing 3 of 4 to Mississippi State and 4 of 5 overall wouldn't be ideal, but the Gamecocks should be fine.  They might be punished with a very strong regional field, but they probably aren't going to have to leave Columbia until the Supers, assuming they get that far.

Side Note:  Does anyone know why Hoover has been so unkind to the Gamecocks?  I used to think that the power hitting teams of the mid 2000s didn't do well in the cavernous park, but even Carolina's national championship teams don't seem to do well there.  

A few quick facts: 

• Since winning the SEC Tournament in 2004, Carolina has not had a winning record in any tournament since.  in fact, they've only finished .500 once.
• Since 2000 South Carolina is the winningest program in the SEC.  They've won 13 more games than second place LSU. (excluding the SEC tournament, of course)
• Since 2000 Carolina's SEC regular season winning percentage is .616
• Since 2000 Carolina's SEC tournament winning percentage is .468
• Since the 2004 SEC Championship the winning percentage is only .320

All that being said, this team isn't responsible for that long term trend.  They play #1 Vanderbilt today, and if they win, not only will they lock in their regional, but they will have something positive to build on for the rest of the tournament and the post season.

Carolina starts the SEC tournament tonight against Mississippi State. You may recall that the Gamecocks just played a three game set against the Bulldogs and lost two of three. Tonight's game will be on CSS or ESPN3 and will start 30 minutes after the Vandy - Texas A&M game concludes. The Dores and Aggies play at 5:30 eastern. USC will send their #1 pitcher, Nolan Belcher, to the mound.

This year's SEC tournament has a new format. On the first day 8 teams play 4 games. The losers are eliminated, and the winners join the top 4 seeds in the main bracket. The 8 teams that remain are divided into two (predetermined) sides of 4. Those 4 teams play a traditional double elimination tournament with one exception. Usually the winner of the losers' bracket must beat the winner of the winners' bracket twice. In this tournament the winners of the brackets play once and that winner moves to the final. Clear as mud?

What the Gamecocks have to Win

What the Gamecocks have to Lose

• Trail the season series with Miss State 1-3
• Move to the Losers' Bracket
• End their national seed hopes
• Threaten their hosting position. (They may have this sewn up, but if they go 0-2 and the other teams in consideration do well, they could conceivably lose their site.)

Posted with Blogsy

Darius Rucker gave the commencement speech at the recent University of South Carolina, here is a snipit of his pep talk and as he states, through all of what life provides - Be A Gamecock....

The South Carolina Gamecocks should pursue Kendal Vickers again to be a member of the football team.

Vickers, of Havelock, N.C., has always wanted to be a member of USC but his standing on the academic side questioned his ability to play Division I. Now, he has the grades and USC should give him a chance. To me it shows the determination of the young man and this is exactly the kind of man USC needs. One that wants to be a Gamecock and one that will give it his all to make that happent.

Vickers will enroll at Georgia Military Junior College this fall and hopes to transfer to USC in January according to his coach. That transfer, of course, hinges on USC re-evaluating Vickers in the fall and deciding to take him. Vickers, a defensive end, would have four years to play three at USC. If USC "takes him" he will count towards the 2014 class.

Here is video of him in action:

In case you missed it, the South Carolina Gamecocks got a verbal pledge from D.J. Neal. This was on the heels of him making it known that it was on the horizon. On the surface, this may not appear like a big deal but it is for USC.

Here are the main reasons on why we think so:

- Neal chose USC over Tennessee. Always good to beat the other SEC teams for top recruits.

- He is a member of the Class of 2015 and he is a wide receiver that stands at 6-foot-2, 195 pounds. Read into this that the Spurrier factor still matters and this is a big target for the future USC QBs.

- His skill set is similar to the receivers who have been successful in Columbia, along with excellent hands to go with great body control. So expect to hear his name called in Willy B.

- He hails from one of the most successful programs in Georgia - Stephenson High. Getting another recruit out of that program helps establish roots for USC.

There you have it. Good pickup for USC football. Welcome, Mr. Neal.

South Carolina dominated Georgia this weekend and won by scores of 7-2, 7-1 and 8-3. The Gamecocks appear to be putting all the pieces together at the right time. Starting pitching was excellent all three days, and the bullpen continues its late surge. Adam Westmoreland and Tyler Webb continue to pitch like All-SEC pitchers, and players like Colby Holmes appear to be stepping up out of the pen. This team has needed another bullpen option, and if Holmes is returning to form, they've found it.

Carolina's bats also had a productive weekend. Joey Pankake and Grayson Greiner are striping the ball. Chase Vergason and Max Schrock are putting together good approaches, and struggling Graham Saiko is getting back on track. English and Bright have had better weekends, numbers wise, but they'll be fine.

After DH'ing Friday and Saturday LB Dantzler took Sunday off because of continued discomfort in his shoulder. He should be back soon, but I wouldn't mind seeing him sit Tuesday to make sure he's healthy for the stretch run.

SEC Standings and Tournament

The Gamecocks are 16-10 in conference. They can't catch Vanderbilt, and Florida can't catch them, so they'll finish 2nd in the East.

The top 4 SEC finishers will get first round byes in the SEC tournament. After the two division champs take spots one and two, three and four are determined by overall conference record without reference to division. Carolina is in 4th with a 2.5 game lead on Miss State and Ole Miss. USC can clinch 4th with just one win this weekend.

The Gamecocks can still get the #3 seed by catching Arkansas. The Hogs have a one game lead and hold the tiebreaker, so Carolina will essentially have to make up two games. If USC sweeps, Arkansas can win no more than two. If USC wins the series but drops a game, Arkansas must be swept. The Hogs are playing Auburn, so I don't expect them to lose the series.

NCAA Tournament

The Gamecocks are in. It's just a question of seeding. Barring a complete collapse Carolina will be one of the 16 regional hosts. They are not now in a position for a national seed. The difference is that a national seed will play all of their games at home until the College World Series; a regional host would play on the road in the super regionals against the national seed.

If Carolina beats Presbyterian and takes the series at Mississippi State, they'll be squarely on the national seed bubble. The finishes of other teams with good resumes and the Gamecocks performance in Hoover will determine who gets the last national seeds.

Posted with Blogsy

Here is the reaction from the graduate assistants for the South Carolina Gamecocks football team after getting the email from quarterbacks coach G.A. Mangus about losing out on Drew Barker....

Somewhere we missed that former South Carolina standout Eric Norwood was exploring his options in the Arena Football League. He recently signed a one-year contract with the San Jose SaberCats.

We knew last season, Norwood played for the Virginia Destroyers of the United Football League and seemed to be doing well since his Panther playing days with the goal of getting back to the NFL. We hope that happens for him again.

As a member of the SaberCats, he has recorded two tackles in playing just one game thus far. Good luck in the future Eric.

South Carolina missed out on their top quarterback target for the Class of 2014 as Drew Barker chose Kentucky over being a member of the Gamecocks.

Barker was the only quarterback, thus far, that USC had offered.

Last season, Barker passed for 2,072 yards and 22  touchdowns while rushing for 1,455 yards and 18 touchdowns. No doubt he is good and this is a setback for USC in the recruiting hunt but life goes on. In fact, USC is pretty loaded at the QB slot and a result of that, they may not recruit a QB this cycle since losing out on Barker. So don't think the world has ended.

Our reaction....oh well. This again shows the beauty of recruiting as you feel you have a legit shot but don't count your "gamecocks until they hatch."

One thing is for sure, he may enjoy being closer to home and be the "big man on campus" at UK but I hope he enjoys looking up to USC in the SEC East.

Cool video from James Quantz Jr. and Dust of the Ground showing a recent photo shoot for the 2013 South Carolina Gamecock football team. Images from this shoot will be used for various publications to promote this upcoming season. Check it out:

Gamecock Athletics Behind the Scenes Photo Shoot from James Quantz Jr on Vimeo.