Back to the Swamp II

COLUMBIA — A whole lot was made of Steve Spurrier's first game back in Florida's Swamp — his Swamp, really — two years ago.

Maybe more should be made of this week's game there, which will be a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on WCSC (CBS).

Not because of another trip back for the Ball Coach. But because the two teams are better, according to Spurrier.

"I would really say Florida has a better team this year than two years ago, when they won the national championship," Spurrier said Sunday on his teleconference. "Two years ago, you felt like you had a chance."

Now? Well, maybe not quite as much after watching the Gators (8-1, 6-1 SEC) rip Kentucky and Vanderbilt

in consecutive weeks by a combined score of 105-22.

You would have to add up South Carolina's past five weeks to eclipse 105 points.

USC has opened, somewhat stunningly, as a 21-point underdog this week.

"Now, they're sort of blowing out people pretty regularly," Spurrier said. "Yeah, it'll probably be two better teams than the two that played down there two years ago."

And, sure, that extends to the Gamecocks (7-3, 4-3), too.

The seven wins match the 2005 regular-season high in Spurrier's USC tenure. There are two shots left to get to eight, and the Gamecocks figure to be favored at Clemson in three weeks.

South Carolina returned to the top 25 polls for the first time since the second week of the season, just before the Sept. 4 Vanderbilt loss. USC is ranked No. 24 in the AP poll and 23rd in the coaches' poll.

"That's good. We hope to finish ranked when the season's over," Spurrier said. "We've had a pretty good little run here thus far. We've got two big, big games left to see how we can finish the regular season."

Being ranked at the end of the year is one of Spurrier's team goals. So is going to a New Year's bowl game. That, likewise, seems within reach. The Chick-fil-A (Dec. 31) and Outback (Jan. 1) bowls seem high on the Gamecocks, with teams like Tennessee and Auburn down this year.

USC hasn't played in Atlanta since joining the SEC. The Gamecocks were well received in Tampa, Fla., for the wins against Ohio State in the 2000 and 2001 seasons.

Spurrier again lauded the USC defense, still ranked No. 1 in the league. And he said as much as the offense has struggled at times, it's still ranked higher in the SEC than some of his USC offenses have been.

"Yeah, it is our best team," he said, when asked by a Florida reporter if this is as good as it's been at South Carolina.

But it's not an unflawed best team. There's still no word how the quarterback rotation will work Saturday. Against Arkansas, Spurrier was comfortable swapping Chris Smelley and Stephen Garcia on just about every play for the entire game.

And, after his ejection for fighting, USC will be without starting free safety Chris Culliver for the first half. On top of that, freshman Akeem Auguste, the backup at free safety, is nursing a sprained ankle. But Spurrier said Auguste should be OK to play.

Reach Travis Haney at thaney@postandcourier.com and check out the South Carolina blog at charleston.net/blogs/gamecocks/.