Palmetto Proving Grounds

We'd all be better off if we trusted our coaching staff and didn't think that only we know what's best for the program.

No he didn't. He fumbled...once. Players catch the dang football and all of a sudden ..we have a qb.

I agree with the original poster. There's a lot of crow to go around but I haven't seen anyone own it

You are exactly right.

I definitely fall into the crowd that believed that SOS thought Garcia was our better QB for this year based on the fact that CS never had any reps despite poor performances from SG. There was nothing silly about making the assumption that SOS felt SG was our best bet. SOS has never hesitated to give a second string qb a chance to win if he felt that he was just as good as the starter. SOS sure didn't have any problems starting CS for game one.

CS looked very good Saturday and I look forward to seeing how he performs against better competition in the coming weeks.

I'm still not convinced tht CS is better than SG; however, he had a better game Saturday than SG has had all year, and that was encouraging to see. Smelly relieved Blake a few years ago and put up some big numbers before the coaching staff realized later in the year that Blake was the better QB at the time. So there is still question on who is our best bet for the remainder of the year. After Saturday, though, the smart money has to believe CS gives us the best chane to win at this point. We will see.

Double Amen!!!

I was one of them. I thought for us to have a big year...SEC Championship...National Championship.... that we would need our 5th year Senior to lead us there. I never gave Shaw a fair chance. I thought Garcia would work it out like he always has in the past when the lights came on. The light just never came on. I hate we had to lose for the team and fans to back Shaw, including myself. I dont think anyone can deny it now. He let his play do the talking. I think Shaw's dad was spot on. The ECU game, Shaw was told he played the 1st quarter and Garcia would play the 2nd quarter and we would go from there. Not a big show of confidence from Spurrier or the team. This weekend, he got the ball. Everyone was backing him. He showed us what he can do will people having confidence in him. Things happen for a reason. So maybe we dont have National Championship hopes. But you can bet your (explicitive) that if we play like we did Saturday, week in week out, we will be playing in a BCS Bowl for the first time. Go Cocks!

I don't buy the "we had to lose" argument at all and think what this comes down to is a poor decision by Spurrier to handle the opening game the way he did.

My feeling then and now is to pick a QB and go with him. I probably would have started Garcia because of his experience, but when it became evident he wasn't going to get the job done, which would have occurred no later than Vanderbilt and probably before, then pull him out and give Shaw a chance. And by chance I don't mean a couple of series, or a quarter, I mean a game or the majority of the game.

The reason people didn't like Shaw is they were mad that Garcia didn't start. Then Shaw fumbled, and everyone felt vindicated, especially when Garcia came in a won the game.

There is a ton of crow eating now, and we will see how things play out, but I think we are about to see the best QB in the Spurrier era take us to a championship. Maybe not this year after the Auburn loss, but I like our chances going forward.

I will definitely show up when/if Shaw falters...only not in the way you are intending. I'll be there to defend Shaw when the same fans turn on him (and they will), just as I was there to defend Garcia. They are all Gamecocks in my book, and I want them all to succeed. It's a shame that so many think that you have to be on one side or the other. These "call-out" posts are childish and take the focus away from a fantastic performance from many individuals (Shaw being on of them, obviously) as well as the team as a whole.

Um really? After 5 games of really poor performance and against a team that had shut down better passers than SG, you think he would have turned it around. Can I ask why you think that?

shaw should have taken over the team the 2nd half of auby, we would have won and put the pressure on georgia. now with uga's schedule, the pressure is on us.

I know we have discussed the fact that the QB gets to pick what ball they want to throw with and all but is it legal to start with one ball and finish with a different type? The reason I ask is because SG likes that slick, tight football as opposed to the softer one with grip. Did Shaw start ECU using SG's ball or did they give him his tacky one and allow SG to get his when he came in? Kinda splitting hairs here but that might explain a little drop in accuracy or the fumble if he had to throw that new slick football instead of the one he was comfortable using.

Been a long time since we've seen that SG.