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el IT' 'I'ww^^g . ^ a jp* - ' ^ i sj/amm 'Ji* n^^M Head coach Joe Morrison derella's hall and the crlass slinner was garnet and black. After falling behind 26-14 in the third quarter, USC's bubble had apparently burst But after a touchdown and a two-point conversion, the Gamecocks were back in it, narrowing the score to 26-22. Hold then proceeded to direct a 75-yard drive, scrambling the final 33 for a touchdown to give Carolina a lead it would never relinquish. Beating the Irish 36-32 in the shadow of Touchdown Jesus, the South Carolina Gamecocks were now 6-0. Offensive guard Del Wilkes said after the game that the Gamecocks weren't intimidated by the Irish mystique. "We heard so much about the stadium and so much about Notre Dame," he said. "But we knew we weren't coming up here to play Knute Rockne or the Four Horsemen, we were coming to play the Golics and the Beuerleins and the Pinketts." After the come from behind victo 7 f'l ^ Warn |l^B Hl Runningback Kant Hagood ry at Notre Dame, the term "Black i Magic" was coined for USC's im- c probable victory. It would stick ? throughout the season and is still re- 1 membered by Gamecock fans every- c where. t Carolina Fever had hit the midlands and beyond, as the Cinderella { team of 1984 had cracked the top ten i and landed at number nine in the na- s tional polls. j Coming home against East Car- 1 olina, Carolina quickly found them- s selves quickly down 10-7 to the game ( Pirates. Enter Mike Hold. Hold hit i Ira Hillary on the first play upon en- 1 tering the game with a 71-yard touch- c down pass and Carolina never looked ( back, racing to a 42-20 rout. The win boosted the Gamecocks 1 to fifth in both wire polls and boosted t the record breaking win streak to sev- 1 en games. c On the road again, Carolina took 1 its Black Magic act to North Caroli- ( na State and trailed the Wolipack 15- f 3athalftime. In a comeback typical l of the 1984 season, Carolina pound ed State's defense in the second half f for 423 yards, 20 first downs and 32 ? points. It was a miracle to others, but . Gamecock players, coaches and fans t were used to it, for this was their year, t The exhilaration of victory was sobered by a broken leg suffered late c in the game by leading rusher Kent { Hagood. He gained 111 yards before v he was injured, his second 100 yardplus game. Carolina remained fifth j in both wire service polls. t The South Carolina Gamecocks ]. were 8-0 and headed for a New Year's r TV 1 1 -#L1 -i?- 1 1 uay LHjwi, possmiy a national cnam- ?] pionship. In arguably the biggest c 1984 GAMECOCKS m use-31 Citadel-24 USC* 21 I Duke- 0 i USC -17 Georgia -10 use-49 Kansas State-17 USC-45 Pitt-21 uau - oo s; ivuue L/ajn? 5 USC - 42 E. Carolina - 20 USC-35 |NC State * 28 USC- 38 Florida State - 26 USC - 21: Navy - 38 Pi USC - 22 Clemson - 21 USC - 14 |Okla. State -21 ?ame in USC football history, the Gamecocks were set to take on Bobby Bowden's Florida State Seminoles in WilUams-Brice stadium. TheSemiaoles came into the game with a 6-11 record and a vaunted offense that tiad the potential to put loads of points mi the scoreboard. A record crowd and an ABC national television audience watched South Carolina whip the Seminoles 38-26, all the while silencing the critics who favored Florida State to win. Fhe game wasn't even as close as the score indicated, as USC raced to a 381 lead in front of75,000 Carolina fens. It was the "Fire Ant" defense, credted for much of USC's success, that :ame through for USC. Led by free safety Bryant Gilliard, the unit forced line Seminole turnovers in the sec>nd half, including a record seven interceptions. After each touchdown, a sea of ormges would litter the field from fans n hope of a national championship showdown in the Orange Bowl. Bowl scouts indeed liked the Gamecocks for their unmarked enthusiasm and fan support as well. ESPN's Beano Cook ;ven went so far to say that if Carolila won the next week's game at Navy, hey would be a lock for the national hampionship in Miami against either Dklahoma or Oklahoma State. The next week, the 9-0 and num>er two-ranked Gamecocks traveled to Annapolis, Maryland to play the owly Navy Midshipmen. In what was supposed to be a tune-up for the folowing war versus Clemson, the Gamesocks were treated to a loss that sent 11 11 . i i i . inocK waves ail tne way oacK to uoumbia. In true military fashion, Navy reused to relinquish the battle, and ? stealing a play from USC's playbook ? used enthusiasm, big plays and heir opponent's mistakes to roll to a 18-21 upset over the Gamecocks. "I think we just overlooked them," lefensive back Joe Brooks said after he game. "We were looking more tovard the Orange Bowl and Clemson." USC's bubble had finally burst, eaving them with a 9-1 record and heir national chamDionshin hones all >ut shattered. However, one game renamed: A clash with the Clemson rigers in Death Valley, who were still lavoring a national championship of their own. ri\ There was no doubt, this game mi wasn't a gimme. Along with the fact to of it being a heated rivalry, the odds- th makers even favored the Tigers as a im slight one- to two-point favorite. Clemson, on probation, had no bowl tin game to look forward to, and consid- Ca ered this game their postseason play, de Signs hanging from the upper deck pa taunted the Gamecocks, issuing such Le phrases as "Welcome to your Orange str Bowl, South Carolina." Because of their boi defeat a week earlier, the Gamecocks dei had spoiled their chances at an ap- qu pearaiice in Miami. Going into the game, Clemson's se- toe niors were 27-0 at Death Valley. The as true seniors at Clemson had never lost 3:4 at home. To make matters worse for th< Carolina, the Tigers ran down the hill ^ before the game in their fabled orange toi pants. The Tigers were 10-0 in the or- An ange britches. wo Clemson raced to a 21-3 lead in the wa second quarter, and it appeared that hai the Gamecocks were still suffering m from the effects of the Navy game; ^ however, Black Magic was not to be th< denied, as USC battled back in the sec- ^ * ond half to close the gap to 21-15. 21With just minutes left in the game, USC found itself with the ball at their ter pa* Hilti just minules lefl in Itie game. US fheir own lfi-pd-line and 84 qards mould summarize Hie season. Carolifli ing and timing Hie ball miH own 16-yard-line and 84 yards from ou* victory. In a drive that would sum- 860 marize the season, Carolina raced down the field, passing and throwing 000 the ball with a reckless abandon. With koi 54 seconds left, Hold dashed into the end zone to cap off the drive and tie the game. Scott Haglefs record 43rd 8111 extra point gave Carolina the improb- naj able victory. Nu Jubilant receiver Bill Bradshaw er ^ had this to say after the win: "If s the greatest feeling I've ever had," Brad- P^ shawsaid. "It's so sweet after three ^ straight years. This is something a lot 863 of people aren't able to do ? beat them P^3 in those orange britches and take away ^ their winning streak at home. It's a 1113 super feeling." J After the game, South Carolina was rea rewarded for their stellar season with an invitation to play in the Gator Bowl ^ on December 28 against the Oklahoma rei State Cowboys. Despite the loss to ^rl Navy, this was a fine reward for a man- ^ orable season. 8013 In the Gator Bowl, the South Car- ^ olina Gamecocks went up against an ^ Oklahoma State Cowboy team that tea- 618 tured such stars as Thurman Thomas, we Leslie U'JNeal and Kusty Hilger. The 11 a Cowboys, still smarting over a loss to ^a me ral Oklahoma, was more than a for dableopponent The game was played a partisan Gamecock crowd, wKh e sea of black making an indelible pression on all who were present The Cowboys raced to a 13-0 half le lead, but as the custom was in M irolina got rolling quickly to close the ficit to 13-7 on a 24-yard halfback 3s from Quintan Lewis to Chris Wade nn 4-V* n? T*-V as Lxiciii uvc iiiiiiuuca icxvci, v^oiuuiua uck again as Hold threw a 57-yard mb to Ira Hillary to give USC a sudti 14-13 lead to close out the third arter. As fate would have it, Carolina left > much time on the clock this time, the Cowboys mounted a drive with 1 left in the game. The Pokes moved 3 ball slowly upfield and with 1:54 t, the Cowboys were faced with a irth-and-six situation. If the Fire t defense could hold them now, they iuld surely win the game, but this s not to be Carolina's day, and OSU i a first down. Finally, with 1:04 left the game, Cowboy tight end Barry nnah caught a pass and tiptoed down } sideline for a 25 yard touchdown, wo-point conversion made the score 14, Oklahoma State. Carolina's last minute comeback atopt was stopped by an intercepted 3S with 54 seconds left and OSU ran C found ilself with lite ball ar from victory. In o drive \M a raced doinn toe field nass i] iiTh wTi rrnrn ; the clock. USC suffered only their ond loss of the season, 21-14. Despite the bowl loss, thel984 Gamek football team was recognized natially for their efforts. The late Joe irrison was named national coach of syear. Offensive guard Del Wilkes 1 linebacker James Seawright were ned to the AP Ail-American team, merous other players received othlonors. For a team that was not even pxrted to have a winning season, the 34 team defied all odds to end the son with a 10-2 record and an 11th ce finish nationally (both were school ords). The squad captured the imagtion of thousands and led their fans a level of excitement never before iched. Mike Bender, who was the offene line coach of the ^ team and curltly holds the same position at tansas, had this to say about the *84 lerience: "Without a doubt, that seai was the most exciting, most exhiliting, and most satisfying of my *a ; coaching career. The young playon that team were so special; there re no dominating players, they did is a unit The 1984 season at South rolina is truly my most cherished mory in the coaching profession."