Monday Musings will be a weekly feature (on Mondays, of course) that provides some reflection on the previous week in Gamecock athletics.
New format hits a home run
Count me as one of those in favor of the new format for the South Carolina vs. Clemson baseball series. While it didn't finish with the preferred winner, the buzz and excitement created by the three-game series was more than it had been in recent years.
Over 21,000 fans attended the series with Sunday's finale setting a new Carolina Stadium attendance record. But beyond the numbers at the turnstiles, the series produced some intense, drama-filled action on the baseball diamond. How often do you get the chance to experience a play-off level atmosphere over an entire weekend when you're just ten games into the regular season?
Sure, Clemson did win this year's series with their victory on Sunday. But since 2000, South Carolina leads the series with 24 wins and 19 losses. The Gamecocks have won 10 of the last 15 games against the Tigers.
The Gamecocks will have the chance to get back on track starting Tuesday with a stretch that will see South Carolina play nine of their next ten games at Carolina Stadium. The Gamecocks will also return to Fluor Field next Tuesday to face Furman.
Downey not done yet
Lost among the intensity of the weekend series against Clemson was another game-changing performance from senior guard Devan Downey as the Gamecocks spoiled Senior Night for the No. 13/19 Commodores in Nashville on Saturday afternoon.
Downey scored just four points in the opening half, but followed that with 22 second-half points on 8-of-12 shooting. The guard scored ten points in a 16-0 run that propelled South Carolina to the upset victory.
The win earned South Carolina the East No. 5 seed and set up a rematch with Alabama on Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m. in the opening game of the SEC Tournament. A loss on Saturday would've pushed South Carolina down to the No. 6 seed and forced the Gamecocks to play at 9:45 p.m. ET on the first day of the tournament.
As the '09-'10 season winds down, I've wondered lately how Gamecock faithful will remember Devan Downey after he pulls off the garnet and black uniform for the last time. Each of us can think back to a play that he made where you turned to the person beside you and said "Did you see that?" It's hard to think of a player at the college level can wow the masses quite like Downey.
But the one thing that I think I'll take away from the Devan Downey Era is the opportunity to watch a guy who just refused to quit. I remember interviewing Downey earlier in the season for a Q&A for the blog and he said his most treasured possession was his pride. Interesting answer, right? His response:
"I feel like I have pride and that's what really drives me - my ability to not want to fail and do whatever it takes to see that I succeed," he said.
The next quote adds more perspective to his answer:
"Being my size and considering basketball is usually for the bigger guys - I could've listened to people and told myself I wasn't good enough but instead I fought and now I am where I am today."
Athletics Director Eric Hyman has talked before about the Gamecock programs establishing a reputation of being a team that will fight to the end and wear opponents down. To me, Downey is the embodiment of that blue-collar mentality.
Hope Springs eternal
The Gamecock football team opened spring practice last Thursday and will practice thirteen more times before the annual Garnet & Black Spring Game on April 10th. Excitement and anticipation is high for South Carolina this season as the Gamecocks return 54 lettermen and 17 starters from last year's squad. Only seven players who saw significant playing time in 2009 have left the team.
You can follow 2010 Spring Practice with our brand-new Spring Practice Central page on GamecocksOnline.com featuring videos, links around the Web, practice reports and photo galleries.
New format hits a home run
Count me as one of those in favor of the new format for the South Carolina vs. Clemson baseball series. While it didn't finish with the preferred winner, the buzz and excitement created by the three-game series was more than it had been in recent years.
Over 21,000 fans attended the series with Sunday's finale setting a new Carolina Stadium attendance record. But beyond the numbers at the turnstiles, the series produced some intense, drama-filled action on the baseball diamond. How often do you get the chance to experience a play-off level atmosphere over an entire weekend when you're just ten games into the regular season?
Sure, Clemson did win this year's series with their victory on Sunday. But since 2000, South Carolina leads the series with 24 wins and 19 losses. The Gamecocks have won 10 of the last 15 games against the Tigers.
The Gamecocks will have the chance to get back on track starting Tuesday with a stretch that will see South Carolina play nine of their next ten games at Carolina Stadium. The Gamecocks will also return to Fluor Field next Tuesday to face Furman.
Downey not done yet
Lost among the intensity of the weekend series against Clemson was another game-changing performance from senior guard Devan Downey as the Gamecocks spoiled Senior Night for the No. 13/19 Commodores in Nashville on Saturday afternoon.
Downey scored just four points in the opening half, but followed that with 22 second-half points on 8-of-12 shooting. The guard scored ten points in a 16-0 run that propelled South Carolina to the upset victory.
The win earned South Carolina the East No. 5 seed and set up a rematch with Alabama on Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m. in the opening game of the SEC Tournament. A loss on Saturday would've pushed South Carolina down to the No. 6 seed and forced the Gamecocks to play at 9:45 p.m. ET on the first day of the tournament.
As the '09-'10 season winds down, I've wondered lately how Gamecock faithful will remember Devan Downey after he pulls off the garnet and black uniform for the last time. Each of us can think back to a play that he made where you turned to the person beside you and said "Did you see that?" It's hard to think of a player at the college level can wow the masses quite like Downey.
But the one thing that I think I'll take away from the Devan Downey Era is the opportunity to watch a guy who just refused to quit. I remember interviewing Downey earlier in the season for a Q&A for the blog and he said his most treasured possession was his pride. Interesting answer, right? His response:
"I feel like I have pride and that's what really drives me - my ability to not want to fail and do whatever it takes to see that I succeed," he said.
The next quote adds more perspective to his answer:
"Being my size and considering basketball is usually for the bigger guys - I could've listened to people and told myself I wasn't good enough but instead I fought and now I am where I am today."
Athletics Director Eric Hyman has talked before about the Gamecock programs establishing a reputation of being a team that will fight to the end and wear opponents down. To me, Downey is the embodiment of that blue-collar mentality.
Hope Springs eternal
The Gamecock football team opened spring practice last Thursday and will practice thirteen more times before the annual Garnet & Black Spring Game on April 10th. Excitement and anticipation is high for South Carolina this season as the Gamecocks return 54 lettermen and 17 starters from last year's squad. Only seven players who saw significant playing time in 2009 have left the team.
You can follow 2010 Spring Practice with our brand-new Spring Practice Central page on GamecocksOnline.com featuring videos, links around the Web, practice reports and photo galleries.
Leave a comment