After South Carolina beat Clemson 34-13 last Saturday, Steve Spurrier supposedly made a disparaging remark about the rival Tigers. The comment was sent via the Gamecocks football Twitter account:
When asked about the insult Thursday, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney went off on a well-prepared, well-supported rant. The only problem is the Gamecocks football account has now backtracked to protect the Ol’ Ball Coach.
They’re saying Spurrier never made that remark (at least not to the media). Instead, they say the quote came from South Carolina play-by-play announcer Todd Ellis.
During the broadcast Saturday, Ellis said, “as Coach Spurrier says, we may not be LSU or Alabama, but we ain’t Clemson folks.”
Here’s the audio:
Swinney said he had heard about Spurrier’s insult, and since it hadn’t been retracted or denied, he responded. In short, Swinney agreed that South Carolina was not Clemson, because the Tigers are a much more accomplished program.
Here is a video of Dabo’s response:
Here’s the full text of Dabo’s response, as transcribed by WLTX:
“It’s kind of crazy. It’s sad that I get asked that on a Thursday before a championship game. Y’know…I heard that. That’s the kind of thing that gets back to you. And I don’t know if he really said that or not. I guess he did. There’s been no rebuttal. But if said that it’s disappointing to be honest with you. Because I was taught to win or lose with class. That’s kind of a childish thing to put out there, to be honest with you.
“I think that our program here speaks for itself. We’re…I guess I’d have to say I agree with him, to be honest with you. If I had to say anything. I guess if I had to respond I’d say he’s right. They’re not Clemson. They’re never going to be Clemson to be honest with you. And you know what? No three-game winning streak is going to change that.
“It’s not the first time they’ve won three in a row and it won’t be the last time. It might be 50 more years. It’ll probably happen again. You know I’ve gone out of my way to be complementary to them and complimentary to Coach Spurrier. I’ve got a lot of respect but I”m going to defend my program. I’m going to defend my players, my coaches, and I’m going to defend Clemson University because I believe in them. Y’know I just think that …I think he’s exactly right. I think that they’re not Clemson, and again they never will be.
“You’re looking at the best era in the history of South Carolina football right now. They just had their second 10 win season, they won a championship in 1969 [ACC Title]…2010 SEC East. And this rivalry? There’s a lot of rivalries out there. This is more of a domination. And that’s a fact. My kids grandkids won’t ever live long enough to ever see this become a rivalry. It is what it is.
“Again I got respect for their program. South Carolina’s not Clemson. A lot of differences. This is a place that’s won a national title, 17 conference titles, 2 division titles. Heck, we’ve won more bowl games than they’ve ever even been to. I think our program’s got a 100 plus more wins than South Carolina. That’s reality. That’s the best era they’ve had in 115 years of South Carolina football is right now. And they’ve done a great job. A great job. And they’ve whipped our butts the last three years. it’s my job to change that.
“Coach Spurrier’s been there seven years. And after five years I think he had 35 wins. A new contract and all that kind of stuff. Y’know after five years at Clemson, if I’ve only got 35 wins there’s going to be a new coach here. And you know what there should be because there’s a different standard. So, he’s exactly right. They ain’t Alabama, they ain’t LSU and they’re certainly not Clemson. That’s why Carolina’s in Chapel Hill and USC’s in California and the University in this state always has been always will be..Clemson. And it’s right here in Clemson, South Carolina.
“So..you can print that, tweet that, whatever. But again it’s ridiculous that I’m getting asked that on a Thursday before a championship game But I’m proud of who we are. I know we are at Clemson. And I know where we’re going. I guess my response is he’s right. He’s exactly right.”
We have a hard time buying the excuse from South Carolina. Even if Spurrier didn’t say that, Dabo’s response was still classy. It was a good reminder to Gamecocks fans to keep their pride in check. Well done Dabo, well done.
Chest bump to TigerNet and WLTX, via Bryan D. Fischer
