The SEC is leaving the punishment of South Carolina defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles up to his coach.  Quarles threw a clear punch at LSU offensive lineman PJ Lonergan following a first-quarter play in the Gamecocks’ 23-21 loss last Saturday.

Yesterday, Steve Spurrier said he will punish Quarles for his action (which can be seen here)… even though he also said he’s seen much harder punches during games than the one Quarles delivered to Lonergan’s facemask:

“Yes, we do have plans to discipline Kelcy for that.  It was a… I guess you would call it a punch.  I’ve seen a lot bigger punches.  But he did sort of throw at him.  I don’t even know if the LSU guy knew he threw a punch.  I think it just sort of glanced off his shoulder pad or helmet or something in there.  But I saw it, yeah.  We don’t condone that.”

Spurrier might not condone it — he even said the player “possibly could” miss playing time — but he sure seems to be playing the incident down, doesn’t he?  Here’s the rule: You don’t throw a punch on a football field.  Whether it connects or not, whether it’s thrown with great force or not, you don’t do it.  Period.  End of story.  Every coach, every player and every fan knows this.

But as it turns out, Quarles doesn’t sound like he’ll be a go for Florida this weekend due to injury.

Spurrier said it’s “very doubtful” his D-tackle will be ready to play Saturday after spraining his shoulder against LSU (photo at left).

Carolina’s two other top tackles — starter Byron Jerideau and backup JT Surratt — are currently dealing with sprained ankles.  Spurrier said the two “hopefully could be ready” for this weekend’s showdown with Florida.  Surratt would likely take Quarles spot in the starting lineup if he’s not healthy enough to play.

South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore may not start vs. Florida due to a bruised hip
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said Wednesday that defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles likely will face some sort of discipline for punching a player at LSU last week
SEC Executive Associate Commissioner Mark Womack says at least four SEC teams may change “permanent” cross-divisional opponents in 2013
Georgia LB Jarvis Jones is questionable for Saturday’s game with Kentucky
Tennessee OL Antonio Richardson on three SEC foes who’s beaten UT: “I think we were better than all three of them.”
Texas A&M S Steven Campbell is quitting football due to concussions and recurring headaches
Follow all the news from the SEC on MrSEC.com, twitter.com/mrsec, and on Facebook

Alabama and Florida rank #1 and #2 in the first BCS standings
The SEC has four of the top seven teams in the rankings and six of the top 12
Alabama QB AJ McCarron is expected to play against Tennessee after bruising his knee
Tennessee RB Rajion Neal is not expected to play against Alabama due to an ankle injury
Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel is on pace to break Cam Newton’s SEC total offense record
Steve Spurrier on some South Carolina players: “They acted like they were scared of LSU.”
Get all your SEC news by visiting MrSEC.com every single day!

1. Steve Spurrier is going for another first at South Carolina.

2. Will South Carolina live up to the hype as it goes on the road to LSU?

3. Louisiana Tech hosts Texas A&M tonight. Can La. Tech bust the BCS?

4. Kentucky put on a show at its Big Blue Madness Friday night.

5. Here’s a picture/video look at Midnight Madness around the country.

6. What will Kentucky’s basketball team look like this year? That’s what Mike DeCourcy wonders.

7. A computer error appears to be the reason for the spike in John L. Smith’s debt listing.

8. Another discrimination lawsuit has been filed against Tennessee.

If a person were to build a Mt. Rushmore-style monument to SEC football coaches somewhere in the Smokies or the Ozarks, the debate over who should fill slots #3 and #4 on the mountain would likely grow pretty heated.  Georgia’s Vince Dooley is the second winningest coach in history (all games included) from an SEC institution.  Tennessee’s Robert Neyland ranks first in winning percentage in all-games and in all-SEC game coached.  Were it not for his military service, there’s no telling what numbers he could have posted.  Ole Miss’ Johnny Vaught and Georgia’s Vince Dooley rank #3 and #4 respectively in terms of all-time wins in conference games.

The debate could rage for days.

But there would be no argument over who’d take up the first two slots on such a shrine — Alabama’s Paul “Bear” Bryant and South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier.

Bryant is a legend.  Say his name anywhere in the country and even non-football fans will likely recognize his name today, 30 years after he hung up his houndstooth hat.  The more Spurrier wins at Carolina, the more he closes in on Bryant territory.  And the more the man with the visor distances himself from everyone else in SEC coaching history.

Read the rest of this entry »

SEC West

1. LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger: “If I can just be half the quarterback that Jarrett Lee was last year for this team and really lead us like he did, I’d be happy,”

2. Matt Hayes: “You have no one to blame but yourself, LSU.”

3. The many changes for the Tigers “In all, 15 players have been injured, suspended, dismissed, ruled academically ineligible or transferred.”

4. Accentuating the positives at Arkansas. Could the Razorbacks be 5-4 heading into their November 10th game against South Carolina?

5. Kevin Scarbinsky: “Truth is, there’s a thin line between Auburn and Arkansas at the moment,…”

6. When it comes to the Razorbacks and Tigers – which team is most likely to turn it around?

7. Gene Chizik on his wide receivers: “They’ve got to grow up, they’ve got to step up and they’ve got to play better. It’s that simple.”

8. Texas A&M has won their last three games by an average of 50 points.  Is Kevin Sumlin upset his 3-1 Aggies aren’t ranked? “It doesn’t really matter where you are (ranked), unless it’s the end of the year.”

9. The Aggies scored 58 points against Arkansas but offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury says there’s room for improvement: “We have to get better in the Red Zone.”

10. Parrish Alford on Ole Miss: “Warm fuzzies, though, don’t have a very long shelf life, and this one is about to expire.”

11. With four interceptions, Mississippi State cornerback Darius Slay is tied for second in the country.

12. Off week at Alabama means the Crimson Tide look ahead. Nick Saban: “We worked on two different teams today.”

SEC East

13. What Steve Spurrier can learn from Mark Richt.

14. When Georgia plays at South Carolina, the offense traditionally struggles – average of just 14 points in last eight visits, haven’t topped 20 since 1994.

15. NFL general manager on Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones: “He’s going to be a top-round talent, no question.” Jones and the rest of the Bulldogs defense focused on Marcus Lattimore.

16. Steve Spurrier on his offensive line: “We’re not dominating as we hope we can.”

17. Mizzou’s offensive line played better against South Carolina than it did Central Florida.  Co-offensive line coach Josh Henson: “It frustrated the heck out of me.”

18. Is Missouri defensive tackle Sheldon Richardon too warm and fuzzy on the football field? “My dad told me (to) quit helping people up,” he said. “But I hit ‘em pretty hard, so helping them up ain’t that bad.”

19. Gary Pinkel on Vanderbilt coach James Franklin: “He’s got a good scheme, good system.”

20. Gators quarterback Jeff Driskel on his offensive line: “They’re the strength of the offense.”

21. Mark Wiedmar on Tyler Bray: “Probably half the quarterbacks in the National Football League would trade their second home and third foreign car to be able to sling it like you.”

22. John Adams on Tennessee’s schedule: ” By the end of the month, the Vols likely will have played 11 nationally ranked teams in October during a four-year stretch.”

23. Kentucky football injuries – the curse of Steve Spurrier?

24. Kentucky offensive coordinator Randy Sanders on his two freshman quarterbacks: “We set a new record for knucklehead calls a couple times – calling them knuckleheads or something pretty close to that.”

SEC/College News

25. SI’s Andy Staples puts Georgia in front of LSU and has Texas A&M in his top 25.

26. Ed O’ Bannon’s lawsuit against the NCAA now turns the focus to ESPN.

27. “60 Minutes “correspondent at Alabama.

28. Alabama is the third-best tailgating school in the South according to Southern Living magazine.

29. Harvey Updyke’s trial could be delayed by psychiatric testing.

30. Former Penn State assistant coach Mike McQueary is suing the university for millions in damages

31. Terrance Donnels – you may not know the name but you know his work: “An invisible sensation dancing in the shadows of the Internet”

SEC Basketball

32. “(T)he Calipari we’ve come to know at Kentucky has never lost out on a prospect that he truly wanted.”

33. Impact freshmen to watch this year in college basketball.

Gregg Doyel can get ready for some ugly emails from South Carolina Gamecock fans.  Here’s guessing he won’t care because Doyel’s a guy who lives for ugly emails and insults.  He’s made a career out of it.

In his latest column, Doyel first tackles Ron Morris’ Penn State comment from a week ago.  It seems he took it the same way I did last week (which might be the first time I’ve agreed with Doyel on anything as well as the first time I’d ever defended Morris):

“‘This,’ Morris said on the radio, ‘is how things like Penn State happen.’

Morris wasn’t saying a pedophile will strike South Carolina, or that Spurrier would allow a pedophile to run unchecked. Morris was saying, quite clearly, that it’s a bad idea for a coach to become too powerful at his school, just as Joe Paterno grew to be too powerful at Penn State. That’s what Morris meant.

But it was a bad analogy — wrong time, wrong situation — and Spurrier flipped.

And in the process, Spurrier is confirming Morris’ overall point.”

Doyel writes that Spurrier’s remark last week that good things are about to happen because he’s complaining and his bosses are complaining, too, suggests Morris might just lose his job.  (We’ll pause for Gamecock fans to cheer.)  Doyel doesn’t think that’s a good thing.

Read the rest of this entry »

1. Steve Spurrier and the Carolina Media War

Monday: Spurrier Stops Answering Questions From The Media

Wednesday: Spurrier Speaks, Morris Apologizes, And A Penn State Comparison That Does Make Sense

Friday: No Speculating: Spurrier Hits Morris With Both Barrels, Says He May “Head To The Beach.”

2. We Must Be Nearing October…The Gruden Talk Has Begun

3. Why Bobby Petrino Will Be Back In The Big Leagues Next Season

4. UK’s Benton Avoids Suspension: SEC Needs To Be More Consistent

5. The Brother Of UT’s Stokes One Big 8th Grader

On Saturday and Sunday, Steve Spurrier refused to take questions from the media covering his South Carolina football team.  On Monday, we suggested that Spurrier a) was feeling pretty good because he’s winning and that usually means he’ll do things other coaches won’t and b) was probably ticked at Columbia columnist Ron Morris — again — over a column he’d penned earlier in the week claiming that Steve Spurrier shouldn’t have played injured quarterback Connor Shaw against UAB.

On Wednesday, Morris responded with a column.  Yesterday, Spurrier refused to make peace and made it clear on WNKT-FM in Columbia that he and the South Carolina administration have had it up to here with Morris.

Our “speculation” on Monday that Spurrier was mad at Morris and feeling 10-feet-tall and bulletproof was met with a lot of angry words from a few Carolina fans.  Well, once again, this site was able to put two and two together long before any coach had to spell out matters word for word.  I’m sure the fact that we were correct will tick off a few people.  But they’ll get over it.  Mainly ’cause they’ll be cheering the comments their  head coach made during his weekly radio show:

“One of the local writers wrote another nasty article last week.  It was very negative and critical towards me.  It slandered my name and my integrity.  The guy is trying to tarnish and ruin my reputation as a coach.  That’s OK.  I don’t dislike this guy, I really don’t.  Because we all know who the guy is and that’s the kind of person he is…

I told my wife after the last article, ‘I’ve had it. I’ve had enough.  I’m not going to take it anymore.  I’ve had enough.’  Almost all of the Gamecocks say, ‘Coach, don’t pay any attention to him, he’s insignificant,’ which he is.  He is not an important person.  But they’re not having their name and reputation slandered.  So, I’m the one.  It’s not my mode of operation to not say anything about it.  So, this is my voice here.  He gets his voice in the newspaper, which he uses…

I think we need to make some changes. I think some positive changes are going to happen.  They have a little problem over there that we know about, but they’re working on it.  Our president and our athletic director, they’re all backing me in this.”

If Spurrier feels slandered, he has every right to use his own radio platform to say so.  As the coach states, Morris has his venue, Spurrier has his.  A winning coach versus the media?  You can guess who’s going to get the backing of the public on that one.

Read the rest of this entry »

Linebacker Yannick Ngakoue from Friendship Collegiate Academy in Washington, D.C., has decommitted from Maryland.

He told Rivals.com on Sunday he’ll continue to consider Maryland along with South Carolina, Tennessee, Miami and West Virginia.

“I have decided to decommit so I can truly make sure that the school I’m going to will truly be my best decision and comes from my heart,” Ngakoue told Rivals. “There is nothing wrong with Maryland. If it is meant to be then I’ll be attending there next fall.”

Ngakoue told Rivals he’s impressed by the improvement of South Carolina’s program under head coach Steve Spurrier.

“I love that they’re on the come up and the conference that they’re in,” Ngakoue said.

The presence of the SEC could help Tennessee, too. So could the recruiting effort of defensive coordinator Sal Sunseri.

“I have a great relationship with Coach Sal, and I can be used up there with their scheme,” said Ngakoue, who’s ranked the nation’s No. 13 outside linebacker by Rivals.

Ngakoue said he hasn’t scheduled his official visits.