Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

11/2/2011 at 12:30pm

Image by Mark Wagner

South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier has not forgotten the performance offered by Ryan Mallett and Knile Davis on his home turf a year ago.

Even in its biggest home game of the season, Arkansas will get second-billing on the national stage.

South Carolina will likely be the highest-ranked team Arkansas faces at home this season. The Associated Press ranks the Razorbacks (7-1, 3-1) and the visitng South Carolina Gamecocks (7-1, 5-1) Nos. 8 and 10. The BCS has them ranked at Nos. 7 and 9 respectively. It's the first time that Razorback Stadium has played host to a contest between two Top 10 teams since last year's Alabama-Arkansas game. For the Gamecocks, it's their first Top 10 meeting since the 1987 Gator Bowl.

And the funny thing is that this won't even be the most-watched regular season SEC game of the night as No. 1 LSU attempts to knock off No. 2 Alabama at Tuscaloosa. The Tide and Tigers kick off 45 minutes after the Hogs and Cocks get started.

South Carolina is in a good spot to win the SEC East and earn the opportunity to be crushed by either LSU or Alabama in the SEC Championship game. Georgia may be nipping on the Gamecocks' heels (talons?), but South Carolina holds a tie-breaker having beat the Bulldogs 45-42 in Week 2.

That said, South Carolina knows it has to keep winning games to stay in front of Georgia, who has won all six of its games since getting beat by the Gamecocks and faces New Mexico State, Auburn, Kentucky and Georgia Tech in its final games – every one of them played at home in Athens.

Coach Steve Spurrier is aware that his team has reached the "now it gets interesting" rung of the schedule and knows that Bobby Petrino and the Arkansas Razorbacks are a bit cagier than several too-close-for-comfort wins indicate. "They have a knack of winning. They haven't played extremely well the last couple of games, but they found a way to win them," Spurrier said in his weekly press conference. "Their defense scores... They're the best passing team in the conference, no question about it."

Spurrier was apparently so shocked and awed by the Razorback offense in last year's meeting – when quarterback Ryan Mallett threw for 303 yards and Knile Davis rushed for three touchdowns – he shut down practice for two days to make his team watch the videotape from the game. (No word on whether he played Beethoven during the screenings.) Another nagging stat: Spurrier has lost four of his last five games played against Arkansas.

It hasn't been easy getting the Good Ship Gamecock off the ground in 2011. Spurrier has dealt with suspended players, injured players, a ne'er-do-well quarterback booted off the team and has even thrown tantrums in front of the press every once in awhile.

But the Gamecocks have adopted a better-late-than-never approach to the season and are adjusting to the roster changes well. Freshman tailback Brandon Wilds rushed for 131 yards and caught three passes in the Gamecocks' 14-3 win over Tennessee last week. Connor Shaw has stepped into the quarterback role without stumbling, even throwing four touchdown passes against Kentucky.

So here it is November, and there are four SEC teams in the Top 10. Despite the challenges, the Gamecocks could end the season as the best SEC team located in the Eastern Time Zone. Bobby Petrino says he sees similarities between his team and this weekend's visitors.

Both coaches are much the same in another aspect: Saturday's game may get second billing on the network television schedule, but neither coach thinks his team should be in second-place.

Tagged: Southeastern Conference, 2011 BCS Standings, AP Top 10, Steve Spurrier, Bobby Petrino, South Carolina Gamecocks, Arkansas Razorbacks