Muschamp Tied With Spurrier, Morrison For Most Wins at Two-Year Mark
By Ryan Fleming
Many college football fans, some Gamecock fans included, still have yet to be sold on Will Muschamp. His debacle in Gainesville made him the laughingstock of the SEC East, until Butch Jones outdid him last season. However, sharing this bit of food for thought may change some minds. One day, Coach Muschamp’s name may well be mentioned in the same breath as names like Joe Morrison and Steve Spurrier. “Coach Boom” may be heralded alongside titles such as “Black Magic” and the “Head Ball Coach.”
”How’s that,” you may ask. Well, I’m glad you did. Two years into his tenure, Coach Muschamp has notched fifteen wins into his belt. Coaches Spurrier and Morrison claimed fifteen victories each at the same point during their stints in Columbia.
Joe Morrison lead USC to a mediocre five-win season his inaugural year. He bounced back with one of the best seasons in school history with ten wins in 1984. Two years in, fifteen wins. Steve Spurrier lead Carolina to a seven-win season his first year, followed by an eight win season in 2006. Also fifteen wins.
Does this necessarily mean Will Muschamp will be the next Steve Spurrier? Of course not. Though we hope and pray otherwise, he could well fall flat on his face similar to the way he did his third year as a Gator. Is that likely? In my humble opinion, no. While Muschamp has grown on Gamecock fans, he’s still held at arm’s length by some. In contrast, the team adores him. He brings discipline and order to the team, something Holtz and Spurrier lacked their last years.
In my opinion, while not a solid roadmap of where the team may be headed, Muschamp’s two-year record seems a good indicator. Until proven otherwise, I believe Coach Muschamp has earned the due respect of his team’s fan base. Certainly, he has fared better than Holtz up to this point, who won only eight games in two years (they all came in his second year; I suppose a case could be made for his second and third years, in which Holtz won seventeen games.)