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September 9, 2005

Dissecting a Tradition: Gamecocks 2001 Intro

The South Carolina Gamecocks pre-game tradition of running into Williams-Brice Stadium to the notes of 2001 is considered by Carolina fans to be one of the greatest entrance traditions in all of college football.

[Above: Click to listen to 2001 via Real Audio]

I'll give the Gamecocks the point that their intro beats the hell out of the ridiculous rock rubbin' that Clemson does, but it just isn't that impressive. Auburn's Eagle circling the stadium or LSU's Band walking onto the field at night to the first 4 notes of "Hold That Tiger" all blow 2001 away. Even the Vols running through the T as Rocky Top blares out is better than the 2001. Greatest in all of football? Puhlease.

[Photo: Carolina fans are continually disappointed that the football team runs out to this music instead of Ric Flair. At least Flair still wins a few.]

Origins
Color commentator and former SC quarterback Tommy Suggs knows the real story behind the energetic entrance (Link requires password).

"I felt like we needed something to excite the crowd," Suggs said. "I got the idea when I saw an Elvis Presley show at the Carolina Coliseum, and I just thought it would be great for Carolina. I thought: If it's good enough for Elvis, then it's good enough for the Gamecocks."

Now, to give credit where credit is due, the Elvis line of thinking is solid. Unlike the Gamecocks, he is in fact a winner.

What could have Been
Luckily for Gamecock fans, Suggs saw Elvis do the 2001 intro live in concert. But, what if his only experiences with Elvis had been from the movies? Would the Gamecocks now be coming out of the tunnel to the bustling cords of Blue Hawaii?

Given their complete lack of institutional excellence, I would think "In the Ghetto" would make a ton of sense.

The Future: Is 2001 in Jeopardy?
Gamecock fans have already adopted Steve Spurrier's accomplishments at Florida as their own -- much as they did with Notre Dame and Holtz. This is evidence by gamecock fans asking "What was Spurrier's record against the Dawgs again?"

One wonders if South Carolina fans will attempt to adopt other Florida traditions such as the singing of "We are the Boys" before the 4th Quarter? And more importantly, will they ditch 2001 in favor of mass Gator chomp hand gestures to the tune of "Theme from Jaws".

Conclusion:
For a program without a pot to piss in from a tradition standpoint, the 2001 intro is pretty good. But like all things Carolina, it's grossly over blown. On Sept. 10th, the Dawgs cover the 17 point spread. Cock-a-doodle-doo indeed.

pwd

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Notice your last line, talking about the DAWGS (always misspelled), covering the 17 point spread.

Yeah, right? Didn't happen, huh?.
You won by two at home! It will get worse.

We owned your butt twice during Holtz 6 years and blown an easy win in 2002 at the Brice. Not to mention played you close every single year except '04.

Spurrier will do much better than that.

Anonymous said...

You 'cocks need to do yourselves a favor and quit humiliating yourselves with your ridiculous boasts...At least our boasts have some history behind them.BTW...you have NEVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION "OWNED OUR BUTTS"!!...What a maroon you truly are.Not to mention an idiot.

Unknown said...

The reason that the Gamecocks don't have more Bandwagon fans is simple.

No one cheers for a loser. Unless they are forced to.

The thing I love about Gamecock fans is they are the only school in the SEC where you can't play a guessing game of Alumni or Non-Alumni.

I'm a UGA Grad. Dawgnoxious has 2 degrees from UGA. But thanks for playing.

pwd

Anonymous said...

Astro is pretty typical of South Carolina fans that I know. Self awareness is not one of their strengths - of their program or of their own fan behavior. UGA band members have some humdingers to tell about their visit to Columbia in 2004.

I will give them credit for their creative and imaginative exagerations about UGA fans. But it's mostly just make believe. Just like their "almost wins." I respect their team because they play us well. But I don't respect people like Astro.

Anonymous said...

It's always fun to hear a Gamecock talk smack by bragging about only losing by 2 points. Yes, I was impressed you only lost by 2 as well. Way to go! Clap. Clap.

Anonymous said...

The most pathetic thing is that the band doesn't even play the intro. It's a piped-in recording.

Anonymous said...

So Dawgs, what happened in 2007 tween the hedges? I think the score was 16-12 in The USC's favor. Then I believe you guys lost again after getting your rank back up to #12 to TN and I believe TN is unranked. Don't know about owning your butts, but we did win tween the hedges.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

uga has no class, just b/c i td is scored, doesn't mean u have to bring the whole team on the the field to celebrate. typical ga. i knew the fans were terrible. but the players and coaches too? dang. no class, what so ever. worst fans in the nation. espn should publish a top 10 list.

Anonymous said...

Over Rated Uga is this year. O line weak when Ga comes to the Cock Pit this season our d line will be all over stafford and moreno please he has work to do before being compared to walker and this year fl will probally beat u guys by 20+. I do have to say Richt is the best coach that GA has ever had and the national championship u guys won well if the ncaa was as strict as it is now lets just say we know where ga would be. I lived in GA for a year ATL GA fans are the dumbest hicks i have ever come across. Sincerely Tru Gamecock Fan (Go Cocks)

 
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