We need to win 8 games PLUS the bowl game this coming season. If so, I really believe that will turn blue-chip recruits heads. 9-4 record is what to hope for. The program should then take off.
Thoughts on that...... anyone?
In the next
- Thread starter Maccmaine12
- Start date
Thoughts on that...... anyone?
Mmm... Sweet!
But why do you say that? Just because I think we're headed in the right direction? So you think we're not? I mean that's fine if you do. I've learned to spot chicken curse syndrome because I was once afflicted myself. My idea of drinking the kool-aid is believing we win it all this season. I do not. This is the first time I have ever been accused of descending to Jonestown level cult status. And from one of my heroes to boot.
I always cringe when I see early predictions for recruiting classes. This exact type of comment was thrown out last year, "we're higher than clemson, we're x out of 12 in the sec".
Then, as classes filled out, the ranking settled on at 20, pretty much its historic landing spot. (And the comparisons to clemson and other sec schools dried up).
I suppose the short way to say this is to be cautious, it's very early in the recruiting season, and we've seen this before.
I wouldn't hesitate to say that every coach we consider "great" started out just like Shane. No top 10 recruiting classes and conference championships right out of the gate. Beamer didn't jump into a program with stellar history like many great coaches. Let's support him and give him time as he builds the program he wants it to be. I understand the skepticism as we visit this same situation on a regular cycle. I see something different about Shane from past hires.
I wish him the best and I like what I have seen, other than the Kentucky and UPC games last year. Naturally, I hope for great things from him, but I have been at this too long to anoint a coach before he proves himself.
I refer you to the response I gave to the gentleman above a few moments ago.
One thing is certain: you don't win a title without at least one top 10 recruiting class. Period.
OK. When Beamer was hired I thought it was a disaster as I assumed he would have at least 3 years to set our program back even further than the deep pit we were in. I have not been associated with Gamecock football as long as you but it has been 40 years. I got here for Bell's only season as HC. I was still a Bama fan having spent my formative years there. I couldn't think of anyone or any reason to "choose" to be a Gamecock fan. My dad's a graduate and he had season tickets in the new east upper and I went because I love college football. Went week after week, season after season, now knowing all the players and of course I cheered for the good guys. But it wasn't until we played ALA and I wanted to kick their *** that I realized I had become a Gamecock through and through. My siblings are still Bama fans except one brother who went to Clemson on a swimming scholarship after being rejected by Carolina. And now he's "all in".
And I've "seen things" in the last 40 years that makes me understand what you mean. But feeling better about our program and where I hope we're headed is not what I would refer to as drinking garnet kool-aid. But you did.
I always knew that KingWard was Mel Brook's replacement as the "2,000 year-old man".
I did and I do. I'll drink some myself once the boy actually proves himself.
The people I patronize more than once in all of my dealings are people who have convincingly proven their worth.No need to drink kool-aid AFTER he proves himself. Just my worthless opinion
Aww, thanks Mr. Ward. You and Silver Coconut are still my heroes. After years of just reading on these things you guys inspired me to start posting. Once someone on here called Sil Coco a redneck (believe it or not) I really went after them for insulting someone i admired. I guess one day Coco was having a bad day (we all have those. I'm having one today) and responded in what I thought was an inappropriate manner, unusual for him I thought and said something to him about it and he said he would have to reevaluate some things and then just disappeared. And I feel so, so bad about that and I still miss him. It was not my place or business at all. I f'ed up and nothing I can do about it now but try hard to never do it again.
I like your attitude, you remind me of myself when I was young, always optimistic, unforunately reality has set in as I have gotten older. While I think Shane is doing a great job, the other schools in the conference are doing the same thing and adding Okie and Texas will not help our position in the conference. I think Shane can get us in the middle of the pack and if he really recruits good could possibly get us in the top 4-5 top tems in the conference but he has a tough job ahead of him and I hope he can pull it out of the hat.
It’s better to be top 5 in the conference in recruiting no matter the time of the year. We have a lot of great prospects still on the board as well.
I'm not sure that's true. Last years class was top 5 in the Conference at one point, and ended up much lower. That "top five" ended up meaning nothing because it was early.
Edit: I also looked at rivals and 247, each had the class 7th in the sec, not counting OU and Texas, and 30th and 35th overall.
Last edited:
I don't think we will ever win the SEC, much less the national championship. What I believe the program is capable of, and what I hope we become, is a program consistently in the national Top 20.
I just watched Josh Pate and he was talking about how at one point Texas Tech had the number 1 recruiting class for part of this class. You don’t think they would take that? Over not having it and ending up with a lower class anyway??
I think it's meaningless in either scenario. We could sign someone for 2025 now, have the only signed recruit and the #1 class in the country and it wouldn't mean a thing when the class ends up ranked 18-22.
Edit: There's an expression about nothing being more meaningless than the score at halftime. I think that apt here.
Last edited:
Would you like a recruiting momentum of having the #1 class or the 40th class momentum? Cmon man. The point of trying to have the number 1 class early on is to know you won’t be ranked in the 30s. I’m sure Texas tech is still in the top 15, which isn’t normal for them.
I think you're overestimating early recruiting rankings between classes of uneven sizes.
I see TT at number 9 now, although their class is almost full and a lot of teams behind them have a lot less signees.
I guess a good way to put it is, do you think TT fans are still bragging about their #1 class? Or thumping their chests that they were #1 for that week or two before dropping? Or are they talking about how good their current ranking of #9 is?
When reviewing the rankings, I was reminded of this thread. The class is not over, obviously.
But 0n3 has TT at 26, and the 20 or so spots behind them have a lot less signees at this point. They might be lucky to still be in the 30s at the end of the cycle.
Edit: I guess the different services are way different. Rivals has them still up at 17.
The only way to a national title is to have multiple top 5 recruiting classes. You won't find a national champion in recent history who didn't have at least one top 5 class in the 4 classes leading up to the title, the vast majority had multiple (maybe they all had multiple, it's been a while since I looked).
Whatever recruiting rankings mean or don't mean, that's something all champions have in common.
Whatever recruiting rankings mean or don't mean, that's something all champions have in common.
I read something years ago that the average 4-year recruiting ranking for national champions was #6.
As I said before, I don't expect us to ever win the SEC, much less the national championship. If Beamer can make us a consistent Top 20 program, I will be pleased with our football program. Now, let's say like Tom Hanks, in the movie "Big", I went to a carnival fortune teller machine. And the fortune teller said to me that you can take your chances that your Carolina football team will win the SEC and national championship sometime in the next 20 years. Or, you can be guaranteed that, over the next 20 years, Carolina football will be just like Steve Spurrier's best South Carolina teams (years 2010-2013) but never win the SEC nor national championship, I 'd take the latter in a split second, be a happy Carolina football fan and never look back.
Get unlimited access today.