Gamecocks Tank Half Full, Not Half Empty

There can be no doubt that plenty of pundits see the 6th-ranked USC Gamecocks football team as anything but a team that should be ranked so high. Even Coach Steve Spurrier agrees his team probably isn't the sixth-best team in the nation.

It all has to do with the weak performance of the USC offense so far this season, particularly the inability of the offensive line to perform up to expectations. And there's no guarantee the O-line will grow up in time for big tilts against Tennessee, Arkansas, Florida, and Clemson to close out the regular season.

All of which sounds possibly very foreboding. A fall is in store, and Gamecock fans everywhere are going to be mighty disappointed in the coming weeks, after a 6-1 start (hopefully 7-1 after this weekend's Vanderbilt game).

But is the glass really half empty? Technically, a half empty glass is just as empty as it is full. But there are plenty of reasons for USC fans to think positively now, perhaps more than ever about a program that has worn the "mediocre" label for most of its existence.

Yes, it is entirely possible South Carolina could lose every one of those final four games and end with a thud at 7-5. That's a killer gauntlet this team must run through. How about a 1-3 finish? That amounts to an 8-4 record, and still no SEC East title. Even at a 2-2 finish, the result would be a 9-3 record, and probably no SEC East title. A 3-1 finish would be great; 10-2, and maybe, just maybe, a rematch with LSU in the SEC title game. 4-0? Are you kidding me?

Just how many times have Gamecock fans felt terrible about a 7-5 record? 8-4? 9-3? We aren't that far removed from being overjoyed with such results.

The facts, as the record stands on October 18, 2007, this South Carolina team is 6-1, and off to as good a start ever, outside of 1984's team that started 9-0, in an 11 or 12 game schedule. USC is ranked higher than at anytime since that 1984 team rose to second in the polls. The Gamecocks might have done it ugly, but win they have for the most part, and it is possible they can continue to do so against the upcoming stiff competition. The USC football program is in the best shape in the entire history of the school, under Spurrier. And, with so many young players, so many returning players in 2008, and with great recruiting, this team is poised to be legitimate Top Ten material and a top SEC contender when the curtain is raised on that 2008 season. And 2007 could yet hold magic untold for this team.

Half empty, or half full?

If it's all the same, I'll take half full.