HOOVER, Ala. - At Southeastern Conference Media Days last year, South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said his team finally had enough talent to compete for the conference title.
Midway through the season, it looked like he was right.
The Gamecocks started the year 6-1, including a 16-12 win at Georgia, but fell apart down the stretch to finish 6-6 and miss out on the bowl season.
That period included a home loss to Vanderbilt and narrow misses against Tennessee (overtime) and rival Clemson. This didn't give Spurrier the momentum he hoped for coming into 2008.
"The two losses to Tennessee and Clemson were heartbreakers," he said. "They were games that were within our grasp. It didn't work out, and it's history now. You have to put it aside. You can't mope and cry about it for too long. Like I said, 8-4 is a huge difference from 6-6."
Hoping to erase the bad ending, Spurrier is calling this season a fresh start, even more so because he has new coordinators on defense and special teams and must break in starters at running back and quarterback.
Senior back Mike Davis will replace Cory Boyd, the only USC player taken in the 2008 NFL Draft, and junior Tommy Beecher will take over for Blake Mitchell at quarterback.
Sophomore Chris Smelley was expected to compete as well, but Spurrier said he didn't want Beecher looking over his shoulder.
"Tommy has performed a little bit better in the scrimmages in the spring, so it was time to make him the starter, tell him he's the starter, and tell him he's going the distance," Spurrier said. "And he doesn't have to worry about one interception, he's our guy. We're going to give him a chance. We believe he deserves a chance to run with it, and we're going to find out if he can take us a long way."
Stephen Garcia could also have been in the discussion, but legal troubles have kept him off the team. Spurrier said Garcia's status is in the hands of university officials.
Beecher - one of Spurrier's first recruits at South Carolina - sports a strong arm and better speed than his competition. Spurrier was also quick to point out that he has the highest grade point average on the team.
The Gamecocks will need consistency from Beecher to mask a shaky defense. USC was 110th in the nation last year in run defense, but preseason All-SEC selections Captain Munnerlyn (cornerback), Jasper Brinkley and Eric Norwood (linebackers) should help turn that around.
"When you look at what we've done statistically, you have to say, 'Hey, we've got to do some things differently, especially on defense,'" Spurrier said. "We haven't had a defensive lineman or linebackers drafted since I've been there, so I'm not blaming the coaches. I'm just saying that, as a head coach, I have to do something differently to try and get a spark."
As always, references to his 12 years spent coaching at UF were peppered throughout the interview, and he also took time to offer his thoughts on quarterback Tim Tebow's chances to win another Heisman Trophy.
"I don't know. He certainly could, I guess. If he runs for about five touchdowns a game like he did against us, he'll do it," Spurrier said, smiling.
It's the likes of Tebow and Georgia's Knowshon Moreno who will give Spurrier's squad a serious uphill battle in the SEC East, no matter how good the Gamecocks are.
"In the back of our minds we still want to win the SEC," Spurrier said. "I don't think we need to talk about it this year - we probably don't need to talk about it any year, really. But if we're lucky enough to get in position, we won't be afraid to think we're as good as the other guy.
"So that's sort of maybe where we are. If we get in position, let's believe we can play with any team in our conference."
