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Clemson vs. Carolina: A Week 1 Rivalry???
Nov 25, 2009, 2:13 AM
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Ron Morris, the senior sports writer for The State, South Carolina's most well-known newspaper, has recently suggested that Clemson and South Carolina move the annual Palmetto Bowl to the first week of the season.
He defends his stance by saying:
1) "The move to the season-opener for both teams would help the rivalry garner more national attention."
2) "In the case of USC-Clemson, the game has been played in that schedule slot for the past 50 years. Prior to that, the game was played midseason on Big Thursday, so another move would not be unprecedented."
3) "You have to believe a television network - ESPN comes to mind - would love to feature and promote USC-Clemson among its opening weekend of games every season. "
Ron Morris goes on to cite the Colorado/Colorado State rivalry as a success, and also cites how UNC and Duke successfully moved their end-of-season rivalry for scheduling purposes. Really, Ron? The Clemson-Carolina rivalry is comparable to such oh-so prestigious matchups as Colorado/Colorado State and UNC/Duke? But this is also the same genius who thinks it would be a good idea to bench Spiller to "rest him" for the Clemson's ACC championship game. Back to my point...
People...let me fill you in on some history regarding our precious rivalry:
Starting in 1896, Clemson and South Carolina began what would become this heated rivalry as a Thursday game to collaborate with the South Carolina State Fair in Columbia, SC. This tradition ran until 1900, then took a year off in 1901, and then resumed in 1902. However, during the 1902 game's festivities, some Carolina students were found heckling the Clemson corps of cadets (Clemson was a military school until 1955). In response, the Clemson corps fixed bayonets on the Carolina students, and the rivalry was put on hold until 1909.
From 1909 until 1959, the rivalry was again resumed on Thursday in tandem with celebrating the South Carolina State Fair and to draw national attention. "Big Thursday" was the only college football game on Thursday at that time. The Big Thursday series came to an end on October 22, 1959, however. Legendary Clemson coach Frank Howard had grown increasingly agitated that every game in the series up to that point had been played in Columbia. Howard wanted an alternating series instead of an annual home field advantage for Clemson's chief rival.
1960 was the first year to see what would become the Palmetto Bowl played in Clemson. 1960 and 1961 were transition years for the rivalry. During these two seasons, the game remained during the week of the South Carolina State Fair, but was played on Saturdays instead of Thursdays. Then beginning in 1962, the rivalry was moved to the final game of the season, and the Palmetto Bowl became what we have come to know it as today.
For the past 47 years, the annual rivalry game has been the last game on each team's respective schedules. In those 47 years, the rivalry has seen South Carolina move from the ACC to Independent status in 1970, and from Independent status to the SEC in 1992.
Now, after 47 consecutive years as the season finale for each team, Ron Morris and countless others associated with South Carolina football, Steve Spurrier and Athletic Director Eric Hyman included, all of the sudden want the beloved rivalry moved to the start of the season.
Why?
They cite the same reasons Ron Morris does. However, South Carolina's recent history sheds more light on their desire to move the rivalry than any fabricated excuse that Morris, a man who did not grow up in this rivalry, or any other Gamecock affiliate can muster.
This season, South Carolina is on the verge of rounding out its 2009 campaign 0-4 in its final four games. In 2008, the Gamecocks lost their final three games of the season. In 2007, South Carolina famously went "from #6 to 6-6" when they lost the final FIVE games of their season. In both 2005 and 2004, they wrapped up the year 0-2. In 2003, Carolina went 0-4 in its last four games, and in 2002, they finished things up 0-5.
This is the real reason Carolina fans want the game moved. They complain that rounding out every season with consecutive games versus Tennessee, Arkansas, Florida, and Clemson diminishes their chances of winning the Palmetto Bowl. Afterall, Clemson has won 10 of the last 12, 16 of the last 21, and 24 of the last 33.
To be fair, their claim is a valid one. Few teams in the country could emerge from an annual four game stretch like the one they face unscathed. It's a brutal way to end a season, and there's a reason South Carolina consistently has one of the toughest schedules in the country.
However, South Carolina voluntarily left the ACC after their 1970 campaign, and voluntarily joined the SEC in 1992. The Gamecocks enlisted into the ranks of the SEC knowing good and well that after facing stern competition week in and week out, Clemson would be waiting at the end of the season, just like we always had since 1962.
Simply put, the fans of South Carolina want to ruin one of the nation's oldest and longest rivalries because they can't follow the old adage of: You made your bed, now lie in it.
Unfortunately for Tiger fans, Clemson athletic director Terry Don Phillips appears to be falling right in line with the Gamecock faithful. "That's not a bad idea," Phillips told Morris, "because, if you think about it, you have the whole summer leading up to that game. And, should you not win that game, you have the entire season to recover from it."
And what's worse is that Phillips made this statement despite obvious objections from Clemson's own head coach, Dabo Swinney. "That's hard for me to grasp hold of because my background is the big rival game always has been at the end," Swinney told Morris. But is this behavior from Phillips really that surprising? After all, he completely and totally trashed rivalry protocall once before when he allowed South Carolina's athletic director Eric Hyman to play the lead role in one of Clemson's most time-honored traditions: dotting the "i" in Tiger Band's traditional ###### "Tigers."
Perhaps I am biased in combatting the stance presented by Phillips and Gamecock fans. Afterall, my father, mother, aunt, uncle, and brother all graduated from Clemson. I am a current student at Clemson. My girlfriend received her Masters from Clemson. My best friends came to Clemson.
Looking past my own interests and attempting to view the situation objectively, however, still leads me to conclude that taking part in the annual Palmetto Bowl in any form other than the last week of the season is nothing short of bastardizing this great rivalry. Sure, the rivalry encounted dramatic change in the transition from Big Thursday to the Palmetto Bowl, but even then the game was played at a consistent time in the schedule, maintaining the same Thursday time frame for over 50 years.
South Carolina fans and players had their chance to dominate the rivalry. For over 50 consecituve years the game was played in Columbia on their home turf. Even today, Clemson has experienced home field advantage only 25 times as opposed to Carolina's 82, if you include this year's game. They let their opportunity slip away.
There's more on the line in the rivalry now than there has been in a long time. Clemson has a chance to round out a great season as they enter into a conference championship game, and Carolina has the opportunity to reign SEC supremecy over the ACC and, more importantly, a potential conference champion. Nothing is at stake to open the season. Everything is at stake to close it.
Morris is wrong. Phillips is a disappointment. Keep tradition. Leave the rivalry alone.
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