ESPN College Football

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Went to see the new ballcoach at South Carolina. Not a big believer in personal pronouns. Philosophy? Just wants to pitch it and catch it. And, yeah, says what he thinks. Loves doing that.

Never had all the answers. Got some of 'em, though.

Left his school, Florida, the one where he won the Heisman in '66, where he made those Bull Gators so proud, winning it all in '96. Got to the point where nothing he did was enough for 'em, though. Went to the NFL in 2002.

Spent two seasons getting a dose of humility with the Redskins. Learned a lesson there. Decided he wanted to coach again, because how much golf can you play? Wanted to come back to college last November. Perfect timing, because the Gators needed a coach again.

But the new president at Florida didn't want the Ol' Ballcoach. Awwright. Been there, done that. Be more fun to go somewhere where they haven't won. Show 'em what it feels like. Same deal as coming back to Florida in '90. Gators had never won an SEC championship. Won six of 'em in Gainesville. Four in a row. Time to do that in Columbia.

Don't know if he can. Sure gon' give it a try.

Gamecocks and Heismans
"Make yourself at home," Steve Spurrier said, before running down the hall for a moment. He pointed to a clear case on his credenza. "That one in there, the guy that gave him to me told me he fought to his death. Then they fixed him up."

Inside the case is a gamecock, wings flared, claws ready to sink into some flesh. It would seem as if Spurrier would rather have the winner, not the one that fought to his death. The trophy might be more symbolic of South Carolina football than Spurrier realizes.

Next to the gamecock is a trophy symbolic of the success Spurrier enjoyed at Florida. Not as a coach, when he installed the Fun 'n' Gun and proved wrong every piece of football wisdom accepted on faith in the Southeastern Conference. When Spurrier returned to his alma mater in 1990 and began to dominate the SEC, it was as if Charles Darwin walked into the Southern Baptist Convention and proved the theory of evolution. The true believers had to stomach the fact that the running game, and stopping the run, was no longer enough.

No, the trophy next to the gamecock is the Heisman, the one engraved a long time ago with the name Stephen Spurrier. The bronze stiff-arm and the stuffed chicken press up against a window that looks out on Williams-Brice Stadium, where 80,000 people show up wearing the garnet and black at every home game. The Gamecocks' fans don't just want Spurrier because of his style of offense. They want him because he represents success.

The lovefest has continued, even as Spurrier has had to answer for nine player arrests since his arrival. Spurrier has not made the excuses he could have. He didn't recruit these guys, for instance, and most of the arrests came when he had been on campus for a matter of hours.

In November, when the university announced its refusal to allow the team to go to a bowl game after an on-field brawl with archrival Clemson, six players responded by either removing their framed photos from the wall of an athletic building -- a form of social protest -- or by removing laptops and video equipment from the same building -- a form of stealing.

Since then, four players have been thrown off the team for breaking either the law or a team rule. The coach who brought the players in, Lou Holtz, had a reputation as a disciplinarian, while Spurrier does not. The truth is, Holtz's career ended with his team in an on-field brawl, and Spurrier is a minister's son who sees the world in black and white. There's not a whole lot of gray.

"All of them chose to do those actions. All of them knew they were finished as South Carolina football players," Spurrier said. "It's unfortunate they chose to do that. It's too bad this reflects on us. Time will [help us] live it down. I can't guarantee how they are going to act all the time. The only thing we can guarantee is how we will react. We can guarantee who will wear the garnet and black."

Spurrier walked into a wasp's nest of player behavior. He didn't bat an eye. Far from it, according to the people who know him best.

"He's the happiest I've seen him in a long time," said Norm Carlson, who, as the longtime Florida media official, worked with Spurrier the player and Spurrier the coach.

"His wife says it's the happiest she's ever seen him," said Ray Graves, Spurrier's coach at Florida and godfather to one of Steve and Jerri Spurrier's four children. "He had to keep coaching somewhere. He wanted to be in the [SEC] Eastern Division again. No question, that's the challenge he wanted to accept."

"He feels it's a really good fit for him," said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, Spurrier's former defensive coordinator at Florida and a close friend. "He likes the people he's working for and the way he's been embraced. I think he's excited for the challenge of it."

Jamie Speronis is the director of football operations for Spurrier and has worked for him for years.

"I read an article about [Louisville coach Rick] Pitino on the Internet, talking about how he's much more appreciative after 9-11," Speronis said. "I think there are some parallels there. Friendship and family mean more to Coach now. He's still the same competitor. Not having success in the NFL, he's realizing you don't know how much longer you'll be doing this and working to make sure that you did all you could."

"A new environment revives your interest," said Spurrier, who turns 60 on April 20. "This has been a really fun, challenging deal. I get excited, come to work every day, try to get these quarterbacks ready."

Pass or fail
Spurrier serves as his own quarterback coach, and either his passers pass the way he wants them to pass or they pass him on their way back to the bench.

"When the quarterback drops back, Coach always watches the defense," Stoops said with a fond laugh. "When he sees where the hole is, he thinks, 'Where is the ball?' He stares at the defense, and he can't believe it wasn't there."

"I tell them, 'You may be benched for a minute, but don't worry. You'll get another chance,'" Spurrier said.

All three quarterbacks in contention this spring have been the No. 1 at some point, which is what happens when you take players recruited for running offenses and try to turn them into Danny Wuerffel. Even Wuerffel got benched on his way to the Heisman.

Gamecocks sophomore Blake Mitchell has shown promise, but he threw 113 passes as a senior in high school. Freshman Antonio Heffner can buy himself some time in the backfield. Junior walk-on Brett Nichols has shown promise.

"They're doing Oooohhh.K.," Spurrier said, drawing out the first letter. "They're not doing too bad. It's their first time in a pass offense where they've got to make decisions and pick out one guy and try to hit him. ... If we had to play today, we would throw 15 or 20 times and see how our defense plays. You can't throw 40 times if you can't complete a pass."

The spring game is Saturday. It will be televised by ESPN2 and ESPNU. Spurrier will be interviewed throughout the game. He turned down the opportunity to wear a mike during the game. The coach is much more concerned about how much work his quarterbacks do over the summer than he is about coaching before a half-filled stadium in April. When asked whether the Gamecocks are prepared, Spurrier giggled and noted how the defenses won't be allowed to blitz.

"Between April 16 and August 4, the beginning of fall practice, is about 130 days," Spurrier said. Actually, it's 109, and if his quarterbacks were that accurate, they would be on the sideline next to Spurrier. But, anyway. "That's the time that hopefully one or two of them will really try to learn to play the game. The quarterbacks need a whole summer of watching tape, drawing up plays, learning where everyone goes. They're not supposed to be ready right now."

The SEC awaits, with fans ready to exact revenge, not just for the beatings Florida gave their teams, but for the delight that Spurrier took in doling them out.

"I think he may enjoy the fact that he's an underdog," Stoops said. "He likes that fight."

Don't have all the answers. Got a few of them, though.

Ivan Maisel is a senior writer for ESPN.com. He can be reached at ivan.maisel@espn3.com.