Steve Spurrier's tenure at South Carolina

Brandon Larrabee is as good a South Carolina slanted writer as there is, so it makes sense that he'd have the most thoughtful piece on Spurrier's turnaround job at South Carolina. Spurrier was really close to 35-28 after five season in Columbia, now he is 77-39.

Larrabee hits on the reasons for the turnaround:

In a way, it's not really surprising to say that facilities, recruiting and coaching all played a role in South Carolina's emergence as a power in the SEC East.

I think all three are intertwined in a way that it is nearly impossible to not consider those things to be the reasons for turnarounds, but them locking down their own state was a huge deal. Any coach will tell you winning recruiting at home is a big deal. Spurrier and his staff made it a priority.

You could say the same thing about other coaches that have pulled a mid-tenure turnaround. But Larrabee also notes something else about Spurrier: he's been able to let go of the tight control that was hallmark of his run at Florida and listen to other coaches.

That is a take away that is evolving in Athens, I think for the better.
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