South Carolina Football: Best and Worst Coaching Hires in Program History
By Jacob Elsey
THE BEST
STEVE SPURRIER
The Head Ball Coach won more games than anyone in program history, going 86-49 between 2005-2015. He led the Gamecocks to their first and only SEC title game, and made nine bowl appearances, six more than the next closest coach.
His five bowl wins are also a program best, as is the No. 4 final ranking that South Carolina attained in 2013. Spurrier finished with a 44-40 record in SEC play while in Columbia, and had the Gamecocks on the cusp of national relevance after recording three-straight top 10 finishes between ’11-’13.
He’s one of only a handful of coaches to be all-time wins leader at multiple schools (Florida, South Carolina). Unfortunately, Spurrier’s tenure ended on a sour note, as he left midseason in 2015, but his overall success with the Gamecocks can’t be denied.
JOE MORRISON
Morrison had the Gamecock program the closest its ever been to a national title. His 1984 Black Magic team finished 10-1 in the regular season, and had it not been for a loss to Navy late in the year, South Carolina would’ve played for a championship.
He’d win National Coach of the Year for the team’s performance, with the Gamecocks defeating storied programs Georgia, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Florida State, and Clemson.
Overall, Morrison was 39-28-2 as Carolina head coach between ’83-’88. He led the Gamecocks to eight or more wins in three of his six seasons, making three bowl appearances, and finishing ranked in the top 15 twice. He is also well-known for employing the pregame music Also sprach Zarathustra or ‘2001: A Space Odyssey,’ which the Gamecocks come onto the field to prior to each contest.
Tragedy struck prior to the ’89 season, as Morrison collapsed following a game of racquetball and died of congestive heart failure at the age of 51.
JIM CARLEN
Carlen took over as head coach in 1975, following the departure of longtime coach Paul Dietzel. He led the Gamecocks to bowl appearances in the ’75, ’79, ’80 seasons.
In 1980, Carlen coached a team that won eight games and saw running back George Rogers take home the Heisman trophy. He ended his career in Columbia with a 45-36-1 final record. Those 45 wins rank third-most in program history.
Carlen was elected into the South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.