Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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GAME SCHEDULE CONTACT US SWIMMING AND DIVING kt Florida, 4 p.m. Friday VOLLEYBALL at Florida, 5 p.m. Friday Story ideas? Questions? Comments? FOOTBALL at Florida, 6 p.m. Saturday E-mail us at gamecocksports@hotmail.com MEN’S SOCCER vs. Florida International, 2 p.m. Sunday --1 " -- - ■■ - Carolina searching for answers Gamecocks frustrated with 3-game losing skid BY MATT ROTHENBERG THE GAMECOCK When the USC football team travels to Gainesville for this week’s contest with Florida, the coaching staff should bring along a map. After all, the program seems to have a bit of trouble finding its direction lately. The standings clearly show where the Gamecocks are headed — south. Following Saturday’s disaster against the Arkansas Razorbacks, USC head coach Lou Holtz offered little explanation for what went wrong, but let USC fans know he shares their pain. “This was as frustrated as I have ever been in my life,” Holtz said. “Once something goes against us, we just don’t seem to rally back. I really don’t know. I know we have to find a personali iy “I think we don’t have a per sonality on offense. What could we do?” The answer: very little. The running game, anchored by Andrew Pinnock and Thez Robinson, gained 144 yards. However, Corey Jenkins and Erik Kimrey could only manage 89 yards passing, with three inter ceptions. “The passing game the past few weeks has just been absolutely horrendous,” Holtz said. Jenkins himself can’t even fig ure out what’s going wrong. “If I could, I would,” he said. “But right now, I’m lost for words. I really don’t know what to say. We know what we’re supposed to do.” Now, with a 5-5 record, what the Gamecocks must do is win at least one of their remaining two games to become bowl eligible. Spirits are sagging and so are USC’s bowl hopes. Holtz even ad mitted any bowl talk was done. But cornerback Dunta Robinson knows what has to hap pen for a shot at the postseason. “We’ve got to play better. We’re going downhill and we got to pick things up,” he said. “It’s not so much a bowl, as it is pride. We’re not playing for a bowl game; we’re playing for pride.” With awful back-to-back losses, Carolina is trying to avoid any negativity in the locker room by not playing the blame game. “There’s no time to point fin gers because, once you’re in a los ing situation, that’s what people will go to. It’s just a situation where we have to get rolling,” se nior spur Rashad Faison said. Added offensive lineman C.J. Frye, “After any loss, you’re down. But it’s not down to where we’re mad at each other, but where we have to figure out where we went wrung. There’s little hesitation in say ing that the fans are getting tired of USC’s abysmal play. With most of the 79,307 in attendance gone by the fourth quarter, Holtz can em pathize with their distaste to wards the team’s performance. “I don’t doubt that, and I don’t blame them,” he said. The losses have not only made the season feel longer, but they are taking their toll on the team in a variety of ways. “We got a lot of guys who are mentally drained, emotionally drained, so we’ve just got to pick it up, have a good week of practice and stay focused on the plan,” Robinson said. Arkansas is not known for a great defensive secondary, but it managed to keep the Gamecock re ceivers under wraps. Holtz doesn’t ♦ FRUSTRATION, SEE PAGE 12 PHOTO BY TRAVIS LYNN/THE GAMECOCK USC wide receiver Michael Ages, front, fiddles with his kneepad while Andrea Gause, far right, and Mikal Goodman contemplate the team’s loss to Tennessee. A STATE OF CHAOS “This was as frustrated as I have ever been in my life. Once something goes against us, we just don’t seem to rally back. I really don’t know. I know we have to find a personality.” LOU HOLTZ HEAD COACH “Right now, I’m lost for words. I really don’t know what to say. We know what we’re supposed to do.” COREY JENKINS QUARTERBACK “There’s no time to point fingers because, once you’re in a losing situation, that’s what people will go to.” RASHAD FAISON SPUR “We really want to go to a bowl game, but the way we’re playing now, maybe we don’t deserve a bowl.” DUNTA ROBINSON CORNERBACK “After any loss, you’re down. But it’s not down to where we’re mad at each other, but where we have to figure out where we went wrong.” CJ. FRYE CENTER USC’s problems not just the coaches’fault KYLE ALMOND GAMECOCKSPORTS@HOTMAIL.COM The players have to be held accountable for not executing on the field. Before the college football sea son kicked off, my roommates and I tried to predict what was in store for the Gamecocks. Most of us were well off the mark. Who knew we’d look as bad as we did these past two week ends? But I do remember one of my roommates coming through like Miss Cleo: “We’ll either be really good this year or painfully mediocre.” raiuiuiijr mcuiocre. i can i think of a better way to describe the team as it is now. > It doesn’t get much more painful than a shutout loss in the season’s final game at Willie Brice. Most of the students were gone by the start of the fourth quarter, and those that stayed spent more time shaking their heads and complaining than they did watching the game. You can’t blame either group for their actions because this sea son has been frustrating to say the least. We all see Ohio State, the team we’ve spanked the last two seasons in the postseason, at the top of the BCS. And then here we are, getting abused by Matt Jones and throwing passes to the wrong team. No, you can’t blame the fans for being upset. But whom can you blame? Who is at fault for this for gettable season? I Some will say the coaches de serve all the blame. After all, it’s their job to form a winner—that’s what they’re paid to do. If we have the right players, they have no ex cuse for failure. And if we don’t have the right players, then it’s their job to recruit them. It’s sim ple. But, then again, the coaches can’t go out there and complete the passes for the players. They can’t make the tackles. When all is said and done, the players have to go out and execute. Now I realize that we’re dealing with college athletes here. They’re just like you and me, trying to do the best they can. They don’t de serve the scrutiny that comes with a professional athlete’s million dollar contract. But, to an extent, they have to be held accountable for their performance. I’ve always respected Corey Jenkins for acknowledging that that is the case. If he makes a cou ple of bad throws or poor deci sions, he comes forward and ad unis ii. ne aoesn t Diame ine coaching staff, his linemen or his receivers for his miscues — even if they deserve it sometimes. He takes full responsibility for the way he played. Regardless of if you are a Jenkins fan or not, you have to appreciate that honesty. When you fail your biology test, no one’s going to feel sympathy when you blame your professor. When you rear-end someone on the highway, you can’t blame it on your driving instructor. The same should hold true on the playing field. Everyone must take respon sibility for his own actions. Some people might think that, no matter what, it’s unfair to ever criticize college athletes. They think that by booing, you’re being disloyal to the team. I disagree with that. There’s nothing wrong with having high expectations. There’s nothing wrong with hold ing your team to a higher stan dard. It is a fan’s right to voice their displeasure because they know their team is capable of so much more. And if the fans don’t boo — if they don’t hold the players to a higher standard — then why should the players hold them selves to a higher standard? How can they improve if no one expects more out of them and if under achieving is tolerated? A big part of the reason why Lou Holtz was so successful when he came here was because he asked a lot out of his players and wouldn’t settle for anything less than their best. The truth is, there’s not one person or thing you can point the finger to and say, “That’s why we’re losing.” Part of it is the coaches’ fault. Some of it is the players’ fault. Some of it, like in juries and poor officiating, is nei ther’s fault. Let’s just hope that something changes soon because, with a win, we can still salvage the season somewhat with a bowl bid. Weekly Awards Pimp Daddy of the Week: Devery Henderson The LSU wide receiver finished off one of the most unbelievable endings to a game ever when he caught a 75-yard game-winning pass Saturday to defeat Kentucky. The “Hail Mary” came on the last play of the game, after Kentucky head coach Guy Morriss already had received a celebratory Gatorade shower. Wildcat fans were ready to run on the field. Instead, they could only stare in horror as Washington tore their hearts out. Toolbox of the Week: 989 Sports The video game producer has to be commended for taking a full page advertisement out of The Gamecock to promote its “NCAA Gamebreaker 2003” game. . ♦ ALMOND, SEE PAGE 12 Pinkins to start Saturday BY KYLE ALMOND THE GAMECOCK With the USC football team desperate for offensive produc tion, the coaching staff has made a change at quarterback for this Saturday’s game at Florida. Backup quarterback Dondrial Pinkins told The State newspa per Monday night that he will be getting the start this weekend in Gainesville, not regular starter Corey Jenkins. Pinkins, a red shirt sophomore, has seen plenty of playing time this season relieving Jenkins. But this will be his first ca- Pinkins reer start. Pinkins said he received the news from the coaches Monday morning. “I was pretty excited,” he said. “It's something I've been waiting on. “It’s going to be difficult going into the Swamp, a hostile envi ronment. I'm just a little worried about going to the Swamp for my first start, but it's just something I have to deal with.” According to Pinkins, Jenkins might be spending the rest of the season on defense. “I think he's going to play a lit tle defense, but I don't know if he's going to continue to play quarterback,” Pinkins said. The coaching staff is ready to see what Pinkins can do. “I think we have to find some answers on Dondrial,” Holtz said at his weekly news conference on Monday. “I don't think there’s any doubt.” The passing game has been downright terrible for the Gamecocks the past two weeks, and it hasn’t been just the quar terback’s fault. Most of the team’s wide receivers have been suffer ing from injuries. More injuries were suffered last weekend against Arkansas, and it’s anyone’s guess as to who will play in Gainesville. Ryan Brewer saw action for only one play against the Razorbacks. He’s still suffering from a sprained ankle, and his sta tus is doubtful for this weekend. Michael Ages strained his shoulder, and Matthew Thomas (ankle), James Adkisson (ham string) and Gonzie Gray (ankle) are also struggling to recover. Andrea Gause had knee surgery last week and is definitely out. Holtz said he doesn’t expect most of those players to make it to the Swamp. “Injury-wise, I don’t think Michael Ages will be back and I don’t think Ryan Brewer will be back,” he said. “Adkisson and Thomas are out. So you go from there.” If all those players are out for this weekend, that leaves junior Corey Taylor, senior Mikal Goodman and freshmen Troy Williamson, Kris Clark, Andre Hemphill and Jared Farabee. The Gamecocks are 5-5,3-4 in the SEC, and they still need one more victory to become bowl-el igible. After the Florida game, Carolina finishes its regular sea son at Clemson. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@hotmail.com BRIEFLY beason concludes for women’s tennis The USC women’s tennis team ended its fall season this past weekend at the SEC Coaches Tournament in Peachtree, Ga. Danielle Wiggins and Ayako Suzuki continued their solid fall performance by finishing second in the Women’s B Doubles competition. Wiggins and Suzuki tpok their first three matches before losing. The duo of Jodi Kenoyer and Audrey George took three of four doubles matches. The pah lost its first-round match hut went on to defeat its next three opponents. Catherine Brown and Magda Wojdylo took two of their three matches. In singles play, Catherine Brown gave the Gamecocks their best performance, taking three out of four matches. The Gamecocks will start their spring schedule Jan. 29 against the College of Charleston. Men’s basketball to play exhibition The USC men’s basketball team plays Latvia’s Unibanka Cesis on Wednesday night in its second and final exhibition game this season. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Carolina Coliseum. USC won 80;64 agamst Team Nike in its first exhibition. USC misses out on NCAA Tournament The brackets for the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament are out, and USC is not among the 64-team field. Despite finishing with a 13 6-2 record, the Gamecocks will have to try their luck again next year. Representing the state of South Carolina in the tourna ment will be Clemson (14-6-0) and Furman (16-5-1). USC de feated Furman but lost to Clemson earlier this season. Some teams with records worse than USC’s made the tournament field, such as Ohio State (8-10-3), American (10-8-2), Oakland (10-11-1) and Florida State (11-6-3).