It was a day for long faces as thousands of frenzied USC fans filed silently out of Sarge Frye Field in disbelief. Their No. 1 ranking meant nothing. A league championship and a 56-win season suddenly evaporated. All Ray Tanner and his Gamecocks could do was pack up the bats and go home. Tanner said after throwing batting practice on this cool February Friday afternoon.
Sports is about making the clutch play.
We were in position to do it last year and just couldn't push through. We were disappointed that we didn't take that other step. That is the driving force this year for us to get back in that position. If, indeed, sport teaches us life's lessons, this was a tough one for these Gamecocks to learn. To have it all ripped right out from under them as they stood on the threshold of such success was enough to leave a noticeable scar on the psyche.