Alabama vs South Carolina: Will Steve Spurrier Stay with Stephen Garcia?

Same ol' song and dance for Steve Spurrier once again. He cannot be satisfied with one quarterback for the season, much less a game. For years now, Spurrier has become the iconic coach with a dour facial expression, tusselled hair hanging over the front and sides of his trademark visor, jumping up and down or throwing his play-card to the ground due to his tireless frustration with what he considers an inept college quarterback.

If not jerking around Stephen Garcia, then Chris Smelley. If not a South Carolina quarterback then back to the days of UF when tandem quarterbacks were the norm with the lone exception of wonder boy, Danny Wuerffel. Don't get me wrong, I liked DW then, and like him now, he was nearly perfect.

But not everyone can do what DW did and it is not necessary for a championship.

Spurrier is tough on his QB, tougher on the signal caller than any other player on the field. He played the position and knows what it takes. He was above average, one of the best, in fact, and he expects it from everyone he places in the position.

Spurrier's wife attributes it to his desire to be perfect and to make those around him perfect. Perfection is an ideal, not reality, even ol' Steve wasn't perfect. And he is still growing as a head coach.

During the most recent USC spring practice, Coach Spurrier went as far as to tape a camera to the helmet of Stephen Garcia in an attempt to track what his starter sees in practice. Spurrier was quoted as saying, "We want to see what the heck he's looking at, we're going to go back and review—see what Stephen's looking at."

The comments from the head coach sounded more like sarcasm than genuine interest and concern.

After going through the first half of practice without too much going wrong, as grace would have it, Garcia threw interceptions on consecutive passes. One to safety Akeem Auguste and another to cornerback C.C. Whitlock. Things continued to spiral downward for the remainder of that dismal day.

"He threw a handful of them," Spurrier chuckled. "We'll go and see what he's looking at."

Spurrier had his skull sessions with Garcia during the spring and during fall camp. The humbled, humiliated quarterback retained his status as starter for the Ol' Ball Coach.

The 2010 season started pretty well for Stephen Garcia. The Gamecocks began the season 3-0 with wins against Southern Mississippi, UGA, and Furman. Garcia was 20-30 against Southern Miss for 225 yards passing. Nine Carolina receivers caught passes in the game. Garcia threw one pick. The Golden Eagle was trounced 41-13.

Against Georgia, Garcia was 12-17 passing for 165 yards and run support from Marcus Lattimore carried the day. The Gamecocks won the SEC victory at home against the hungry, hurting Bulldogs. Garcia did not throw an interception in the game. Time of possession for the Gamecocks was better than 35 minutes.

Garcia continued to make progress against Furman. He was 13-20 for 150 yards and had two touchdowns against the Paladins but threw two interceptions in the 38-19 victory. Time of possession for the Gamecocks was 33:30 and victory was never in doubt.

But during the Auburn game, the shaky leadership of Stephen Garcia got him into the dog house once again. In the fourth quarter, Garcia fumbled twice on consecutive drives, inciting the rage in Spurrier.

Despite Garcia showing excellent marksmanship against the Auburn defense, completing 15 of 21 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns, Spurrier yanked his starter and replaced him with true freshman Connor Shaw. It was the first time Spurrier had shown disgust for Garcia during a game in the 2010 season.

But you could sense his outright disgust and Garcia avoided Darth Visor like the plague. It was not the kind of interaction you typically see from a coach and player with mutual respect. It was an expectant moment, that finally broke through.

Shaw was 4-8 passing against the Tigers, his receivers accumulated 70 yards. But the young freshman threw two critical interceptions giving the Auburn offense opportunities to score and then control the game. Spurrier's pride kept him from putting Garcia back in the game. It likely cost them a victory on the Plains.

For Alabama, the formula will remain the same. Saban at the helm, pacing McElroy. Guiding him through the murky waters. Inspiring him to greatness.

Nick Saban desires to be a close to perfect as possible but he realizes that perfection is an ideal, not attainable in this life. Being a champion is not about being perfect. It is about doing your job to the best of your ability on every play and dominating your opponent, breaking him down over a 60 minute game until you "make his ass quit." That's about as good as it gets!

Balance running and throwing the ball. That will get it done.

For Alabama, Ingram and Richardson will lead the offense while the opportunistic McElroy will take what the defense offers in the passing game. The corps of receivers led by Julio Jones has been reliable through the first half of the season.

This is a critical game for both teams. In fact, every game is more critical for the Crimson Tide than for the Gamecocks. Alabama players have aspirations to contend for the national title. A loss anywhere along the way could derail that train.

For South Carolina, a second SEC loss will dampen their hopes of securing their first SEC east division crown, but not put the lights out. Their destiny will still be in their own hands on the head to head match-ups in the east.

The game will be hard fought from both sides of the ball, from both teams. Marcus Lattimore is probably the best freshman running back in the country, he is by far the best freshman running back in the conference. He runs tough and gritty, much like Ingram and Richardson, for the Tide.

Both teams have solid defenses with excellent defensive coordinators. They will make appropriate half time adjustments to make it even more difficult for the opposing offenses. Both offenses will struggle during the game, at some point. When they do, the head coach will have to remain level headed.

If Connor Shaw gets the nod at any point in this game, it's sayonara for the Gamecocks. If Spurrier will stick with Garcia to the end, they will have a legitimate shot at upsetting the Crimson Tide.

In my opinion, it will be the Alabama running game that will spell doom for the Gamecocks. Like last year, Ingram will have a breakout game and climb higher into Heisman contention. If not Ingram, then Richardson or Lacy.

If Garcia can keep from throwing interceptions or fumbling the football, the 'Cocks will contend until the end.

Alshon Jeffery is a stud. He will make life difficult for any one of the Tide defenders and he will garner a double team most of  the game. Someone else in the pass receiving corp will have to help out. Jeffery was shut down by an incredible effort from senior Marquis Johnson last year. I suspect Dre Kirkpatrick will be up to the task, with help from Robert Lester or Mark Barron.

If D.L. Moore or Tori Gurley can add to the effort by Jeffery, they can give fits to the Alabama secondary. But in the end, Spurrier will lose his cool. The Alabama defense will pressure Garcia into mistakes and he will not be able to contain himself. He will pull the trigger, the trigger of self-destruction.