Ex-Gamecocks coach remembers turbulent 1992

Posted 7:11AM on Thursday 3rd October 2002 ( 22 years ago )

COLUMBIA, S.C. - It stands out as one of the lowest and oddly one of the highest points in South Carolina football history. A decade later, no Gamecock team may have been in more disarray or stood prouder than the 1992 team that split apart in mutiny and then came together in belief to play some of the best football it ever had. ``Sometimes in crisis, people pull together,'' said Sparky Woods, then South Carolina's coach and now offensive coordinator for Mississippi State. Woods returns to Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday when the Bulldogs (1-3, 0-2 SEC) face the Gamecocks (3-2, 1-1). ``I saw it as a real positive. It showed the value of teamwork.'' Woods knew things would not be easy for the Gamecocks that year. They were in their first Southeastern Conference season and were immediately blitzed at home by Georgia (28-6) and Arkansas (45-7). By the time they fell to 0-5 after a 48-7 loss to defending national champion Alabama, the players were angry, frustrated and looking for a target. Woods was it. Some players thought their coach played favorites. Others cited Woods' comments in a local newspaper about South Carolina having fewer seniors than the rest of the SEC. No matter the reason, the discontent caught fire on the team's bye week and reached unexpected levels. The players met on their own. It was widely reported the team voted 62-24 in favor of their coach with the result left on a sketch board for Woods to see. But the coach, in the middle of his fourth season at South Carolina, held firm. ``A lot of people acted like I laid down the law,'' Woods said. ``I wanted everybody to stay. I corrected some misinformation and reminded them of their responsibilities to the team.'' Woods simply told his team, `` 'This way is where we practice. Those of you who want to leave, there's the door,' `` South Carolina associate athletic director Kerry Tharp said. Not one player left, Woods said. Woods leaned on his assistants more the second half of the season. Despite how it looked, Woods says he and his staff decided to start Steve Taneyhill before the revolt took place. No one could have expected what happened next. The hapless Gamecocks suddenly played inspired football. ``Those two months,'' says Steve Taneyhill, the long-haired, earring-wearing freshman who became the starter after the revolt, ``I think that's what college football is all about.'' South Carolina knocked off 15th-ranked Mississippi State - and Woods' future employer in coach Jackie Sherrill - in a lopsided game, 21-6, only five days after the mutiny. Sherrill says the Gamecocks he saw on the field didn't resemble the ones on film or portrayed in national headlines. ``Those players that played in that game against us made the decision they were going to win,'' Sherrill said. Taneyhill knew his team was better than their 0-5 start, but he said it took a solid all-around performance against the Bulldogs to prove it. The freshman threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns in his first start. Runners Brandon Bennett and Rob DeBoer each gained 100 yards. And the defense came up with every critical stop. Things continued the next week at Vanderbilt, the 21-17 victory South Carolina's first road win in two seasons. Back home a week later, the Gamecocks defeated No. 16 Tennessee 24-23, still their only win against the Volunteers since joining the SEC. South Carolina carried a four-game win streak and renewed confidence into The Swamp against the defending SEC champions No. 11 Florida. The Gamecocks again played strongly, leading 3-0 at the half. Florida scored twice down the stretch for the 14-9 victory. ``We thought we were going to win that game, too,'' said Taneyhill, who has won two straight state titles coaching eight-man high school football at Cambridge Academy. The run finished wonderfully at Clemson as Taneyhill threw for 296 yards in a 24-13. Tigers fans booed as Taneyhill, his brash side showing, autographed the Tiger Paw in broad, exaggerated strokes. ``We just won the Super Bowl of South Carolina,'' Woods said at the time. Even at the players-only meeting with teammates arguing for solutions, ``no one got up and left,'' Taneyhill said. ``Right then we knew we were all together.'' It showed on the field and off. Woods and Taneyhill said the team's 5-1 finish made them instant folk heroes to fans hungry for big-time success. ``I remember thinking this is what it must be like every week at Nebraska or Florida State,'' Taneyhill said. Things wouldn't last, though. The Gamecocks went 4-7 the following season. Woods was fired in November 1993 and replaced by Brad Scott. Taneyhill, a coach himself, regrets the revolt. ``You can't ever tell the head coach you won't play unless he quits,'' he said. ``But we got a couple of changes we wanted. Without that, I don't think we win those five games.'' Woods, 48, has had chances to be a head coach again, but wants the right situation. When he sees South Carolina's lighted practice field, its football office or expanded stadium - work all completed after his dismissal - he recalls how he helped come up with those plans. The mutiny has left few scars on him. ``I think I was able to take some real values out of it,'' Woods said. ``It was a real interesting experience.'' One that few Gamecock fans will ever forget.

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