Eric Douglas comments on South Carolina's turnaround in his career

South Carolina offensive lineman Eric Douglas has seen a lot during his time with the Gamecocks. However, he’s confident the best has yet to come, saying the Gator Bowl isn’t the height of the program.

Douglas explained what he meant when he was asked about the progress that the program has made during his time there.

“Just looking at what Coach [Shane] Beamer has built. Everybody in the locker room, they believe in it. It shows. You see the enthusiasm. You see the fight, the will that we go out there with,” Douglas explained.

“Like Spencer [Rattler] said, they remember November. We went out there, and a lot of the world didn’t believe in us, but we knew what we had in that locker room. We locked on and threw away all the trash that was going on. We locked in.”

Douglas was a three-star recruit in the Class of 2017. He’s been with the program for a long time and seen the team go through a number of changes, including the transition from Will Muschamp to Beamer.

“Like I said, this is not the height of the program because you see what Coach Beamer is bringing in. We got guys out there was just in high school two weeks ago, out there looking like grown men, you know what I’m saying?” Douglas continued.

When I say this is not the height of the program, I mean that. Everything that this man right here is building, a lot of people believe it. If anybody out there doubts and they say they a fan of this team, they not.”

At this point, Beamer jumped in to point out that any growth under him has been due to players like Douglas.

“I appreciate that. Anything we do from here on out is going to be because the foundation these guys laid and their leadership as well. This group will always be remembered here at Carolina, and rightfully so.”

Shane Beamer on why bowl games matter

South Carolina head coach Beamer made a passionate case for why bowl games matter.

“I’m a bowl game guy. Love bowl games, what they mean to college football, for sure. I’ve been a part of a lot of different bowl games. This bowl is first class with the way they do things, the excitement level here. I think they’ve done a great job of giving our guys activities and things to do but also giving them their free time. We’re staying out by the beach. That’s been great. We’ve really enjoyed it,” Beamer said.

“To me, that’s what bowl games are, you’re there to win a football game, it’s a lot of work, but there needs to be some fun and enjoyment as well because these guys have worked their butts off to get to this point.”