The Verdict: This isn’t a video game 

South Carolina football superfan Chris Paschal, a lawyer at Goings Law Firm, writes a column for Gamecock Central called “The Verdict.”

The Verdict: This isn’t a video game 

When I was younger, I (like many of you) played EA Sports’ NCAA Football video game. In fact, that was all I played. There was no other game in my opinion.

The best feature on that game was “Dynasty Mode”.

On Dynasty Mode, you would select a team and become the head coach of that football team. So as the head coach of Toledo, you would recruit prospects to sign with Toledo, you would make a schedule for Toledo, you would pick the offensive and defensive scheme for Toledo, and you would go through the season with Toledo.

Maybe not in year one, but by years two or three you had rigged the computer system to the point of signing the best recruiting class in the nation and going to the Rose Bowl and winning a National Title. All of that was possible on Dynasty Mode because it was a video game. You can sign elite recruiting classes and win national championships with Toledo in a video game. 

This is not a video game. This is real life. And this is real life in the Southeastern Conference. ESPN’s Chris Low tweeted yesterday morning the following: 

A look at how @CoachSBeamer, who's 12-8 in his first 20 games as @GamecockFB's coach, compares to his predecessors at South Carolina:

Muschamp 11-9
Spurrier 12-8
Holtz 7-13
Scott 11-8-1
Woods 11-8-1
Morrison 14-6
Carlen 12-8
Dietzel 6-14

— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) October 27, 2022

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How I took that tweet (and how I think it was intended) was an acknowledgment that Shane Beamer is on par with (if not exceeding the marks of) former Gamecock coaches. Others did not have that takeaway.

The comment section of Twitter is always a cesspool, but the texts I got from a couple of buddies confirmed that some Gamecock fans are not satisfied with the start of the 2022 season. On top of that, a Tweet I saw circulating twitter was that Will Muschamp was also 5-2 through seven games in his second season.

People are fed up with the offensive output, and fed up with not scoring points, and fed up with not being one of the elite programs of the SEC and in response to all of that I say, “this is not a video game.”

One of the interesting dichotomies of the modern-day sports fan is the need to be entertained regardless of outcome. As a Wofford graduate, I saw it all the time.

Wofford Football made the playoffs four straight seasons from 2016-2019. And in the latter three seasons, the Terriers won the conference title. In all four of those seasons, Wofford’s offense was run by Wade Lang.

Coach Lang was the Terrier offensive coordinator for over 30 years. From 2016-2019, Wofford ran its signature triple option, both out of the flexbone and out of the shotgun. And they ran a lot of it. Between those four seasons, Wofford ranked either first or second in the conference in rushing offense. That offense won a lot of football games. And fans (especially younger fans) still hated it.

There is nothing glamorous about triple-option football. It is meticulous which to fans can become monotonous. You didn’t go to a Wofford game expecting to see 50 points of offense and long passing touchdowns and a back-and-forth affair. You went to a Wofford game knowing it was going to be over within two hours because Wofford was going to run the ball, and kill the clock, and play good defense. 

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Well, a couple of years ago, many of those Wofford fans got their wish as Wofford abandoned the triple option in favor of a more modern offense. And as a result, in many ways, Wofford is now 3-20 in their last 23 games. (A lot more went into that disastrous downturn, but I don’t have the space or the audience for that.) 

Fans want to be entertained. They want to see points. They want to see high-flying offenses. They don’t see the big picture or the importance of building a program. All they want to see is the scoreboard light up. For many fans, reality must be a video game. 

Thankfully, Shane Beamer knows that this 2022 season is not a video game.

Carolina is finding ways to win football games. Carolina is not panicking when trailing. Carolina is learning how to lean on the defense and special teams. Carolina is learning how to run the football and control the lines of scrimmage. Carolina is learning to gut wins out in the fourth quarter. Carolina is learning how to play for a full 60 minutes. 

Yes, the offensive performance has left a lot to be desired. And Marcus Satterfield deserves a lot of critique and criticism. But he also deserves to be commended for the fact that since the Georgia game, Carolina’s offense has not done anything to lose a football game. And in both the Kentucky game and the Texas A&M game, Carolina mustered together strong fourth-quarter drives that put the opponent away. 

Football is a sixty-minute game. And the college football regular season lasts 12 games. This has been an impressive and crucial stretch in the building of this program under Shane Beamer. This Saturday will be another important test. And while I would love to see our offense score 40 points, I am not going to leave Williams-Brice disappointed if we found a way to win the game.

Despite the offensive numbers not looking like a video game, I am enjoying watching this team win games and this program continuing to build. 

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