#15 South Carolina -4.5 vs Mississippi
- Thread starter RUMMENIGGE
- Start date
Yep. We know the team can play with a chip on their shoulder. Now we have to do it with a target on our backs.
Are you saying that South Carolina's mentality is going to change since they are now listed in the top 25?
It certainly could. Happens to teams all the time when they start reading their own press. Do I think their mentality will change? No idea. It will be the test of Lamont's coaching to keep the team playing hungry. Anyone could guess any way on it but it would be just a guess.
I think South Carolina hungers for a double bye position in the SEC tournament. I think South Carolina hungers for a spot in the NCAA tournament. I think the team is aware of how important each conference game is and especially a home conference game. While I appreciate your post and I am not attacking you, but it seems people are waiting for this team to lose so they can say I told you so.
I am certainly in the camp of waiting for us to fail so I can say "I told you so" but I have been a Gamecock for a long time. I am conditioned not to get too excited.
Anyway, the only point in all of this is that the team is now in a very different position than it was a week ago. Some teams have the mentality to play with a chip on their shoulder but can't handle playing with expectations. This team has created BIG expectations among the fan base. I am not suggesting they can or cannot play to expectations.
The failure question is a moving target.
If we don't win another game this year, this team has already surpassed my prersonal expectations and I would have considered this season a huge success.
Midway through non-conference, I thought a 50% conference win rate would be a huge success. This goal was not even imaginable in preseason.
Now we are looking at a possibility of winning the SEC or being in the top 2-4 teams in the SEC. Beyond unimaginable prior to the start of the season.
In mind, given where we are, here is my only measurment for success and failure.
Success- dancing
Failure- not dancing
Personally, I don't give a rats *** about anything else, including rankings, SEC standings etc. It's all noise that doesn't interest me.
I agree that the season will be a success, no matter what.
My initial prediction was a 19 win season with a 7 win SEC slate.
We have already surpassed my expectations, as well as many Gamecocks who wrote this team off before the season started. I mean, we had posters in the Insiders Forum that thought this team was going to win 13 games.
Even if we go on a late skid and end up in the NIT, this season was a success.
