The game last night game showed the definition of leadership and the man behind the word was Connor Shaw.
 
In a very "old school" SEC game, South Carolina (8-2 overall, 6-2 conference) managed to eclipse the Florida Gators 17-12. Coach Steve Spurrier kept the offensive on a tight leash, with short slant passes and a grinding run game that focused on a tenacious Brandon Wilds and an ever-scrambling Shaw who read the Gator defense at key points for successful run gains.

Carolina has swept the SEC East, and the old Ball Coach must be having a great breakfast in Columbia today.

Let's dive into this game further...

Here are two video highlights of South Carolina's 17-12 win versus the Florida Gators -

The No. 13 South Carolina Gamecocks will host the Florida Gators on Saturday in an effort to keep pace in the SEC East Division.

South Carolina has been strong at 7-2 despite being bitten by the injury-bug and losing their starting quarterback earlier in the year. The Gamecocks were beat pretty handily by the No. 8 Arkansas Razorbacks last week, but will look to rebound against Florida.

The post-Tim Tebow era has continued to be a struggle for the Gators, as they sit at 5-4. While Florida has feasted on lower-level competition in the SEC, it will prove interesting to see how they fend off the Gamecocks.

Florida doesn't stand much of a chance to play in the SEC Championship Game, but it will have the opportunity to play spoiler on Saturday. South Carolina needs the game, but the Gators certainly won't go down without a fight.

Let’s look at what each team needs to do to win:

Listen to Coach Steve Spurrier talk about his Gamecocks taking on the University of Florida -

South Carolina will clash against Floriday on Saturday. Let’s look at some key stats and players between these two squads:

South Carolina's Alshon Jeffery could rewrite the University of South Carolina Gamecocks football records books this week against the Florida Gators.

Here is where he stands entering the game on some key receiving records:

The South Carolina Gamecocks (7-2, 5-2 SEC) will have their SEC finale against the Florida Gators (5-4, 3-4 SEC) set for noon on Saturday, Nov. 12. The game will be televised nationally on CBS. Carolina enters the contest ranked 15th in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches poll, and are 13th in the latest BCS Standings. The Gators are unranked.

Despite the Gators being out of the SEC East title race they are positioned to play a crucial role in helping to determine who the representative of the East will be.  If they successfully upset South Carolina, then it’s Georgia’s.  A Gators loss at the hands of USC, keeps the hopes of the “garnet & black” faithful alive for a SEC East repeat.

For South Carolina to taste gridiron glory, these five players will need to step up big for the Gamecocks against the Florida Gators:

University of Florida
 
Location: Gainesville, Florida

Students: 50,116 (32,064 undergrad)

2011 record: 5-4 overall, 3-4 SEC

Overall record vs. USC: Florida leads the series with a 23-5-3 record

Head Coach: Will Muschamp (5-4 in his first season) 

Famous Alumni: Stephen Ross (Owner of Miami Dolphins), Bob Vila (Home Improvement Guru), Gene Chizik (Auburn Coach), Erin Andrews (ESPN), Steve Spurrier (USC Coach) and Tim Tebow (inventor of being Tebowed)

Let's breakdown the game for ya:

This year I will be voting in the Mumme Poll again.  For those of you who are unfamiliar the Mumme Poll is an ongoing attempt to to find a viable method to rank college football teams absent the bias and conflicts of interest inherent in the current ranking systems.  The poll was created by the guys at Get The Picture and Third Saturday in Blogtober.

The poll works by having each voter identify the top ten teams in no particular order.  For tie breaking purposes a number one team is designated.  Here is this week's ballot with explanations.

LSU (1)

They beat Alabama on the road.  Unless they lose, they are staying number 1 the rest of the season.

Alabama

Tough overtime loss at home to LSU.  They're still one of the top 10 in the country.

For the third time in four weeks my wife and I hit the road to see the Gamecocks play.  Unlike the past two trips, we had to fly to this one.  We drove up to Charlotte on Friday and caught a direct flight to XNA, Northwest Arkansas Airport.  The flight was full of optimistic Gamecocks who had similarly taken time off to make the trip.

We arrived in Northwest Arkansas, rented a car and found the airport to be about 20 minutes into the country away from Fayetteville.  We set out in search of barbecue and after some poor navigating found Whole Hog Cafe on North College Street.  We walked in and were surrounded by trophies won at several competitions.  We were greeted by the smell of good barbecue and then by the lady working behind the counter.  We order pork sandwich plates and found a table.