Steve Spurrier's New Interview Method

[Mystical]

Well, you can tell the sports reporters there have never worked on a political beat or they would have banded together and told Spurrier no interviews today after Spurrier divided the media against each other. Instead, the reporters just let Spurrier divide TV guys against newspaper guys. I don't know a thing about this reporter and don't have the true story (it's he said/he said), but I think the media guys should have stuck together and told Spurrier to try and promote his team without TV or newspaper. Maybe by next week they'll have it figured out since they apparently got blind-sided this week. Spurrier may have the right, but I guess the reporters have the right to not talk about his program in a positice light, too.

If all those guys decided to do that some other reporter who was not even there at the time would climb up the ladder from having exclusive coverage of SC football. I did not think what Spurrier did was childish at all. Freedom of speech goes both ways. From talking to some SC fans sounds like this reporter never has a positive thing to say about the program EVER. The constant bashing has to be bad for recruiting not to mention kids like this sort of outburst. The best thing that could happen to that program is they keep showing it like they did the Gundy episode (seems to me that turned out so far pretty good for Ok State). I have no horse in this race but it is refreshing to sometimes here the other side of the story.

 

[BAMA1979]

Well the whole thing with Garcia begs the question of timing. That was my problem with the infamous blowup by Mike Gundy a few years ago. It reeked of a diversion.

...so does this.

 

[SimplyTide]

Liar? Based on what? A coach's statement. That's exactly what Gundy did, and Gundy baldly brought down the house on a reporter that had written something true that he didn't like. In other words, the only liar in the room was the coach.

Sorry - you are correct. I have no direct information. Certainly not enough to label any man as a liar. Now, if I were in the media I would have plenty.

 

[CoastGhost]

Its a better plan to avoid tough questions and cutting stories that dialing up the Ag dept for a dying oak trees rehash.

 

[BamaBeta]

South Carolina fans will eat this up because they feel Morris is a flame thrower writer. They fail to mention that Morris picked USC to win the East last year before the season, when most had Georgia or Florida. Spurrier should have done this at a different time than on the day he decided to dismiss Garcia. It makes him look bad and the fact that the story he did not like was published in March does not help.

 

[USCBAMA]

As for Morris, I don't know his sources in the aforementioned story. Spurrier says it's untrue. That doesn't mean it's so.

Everyone involved says it's untrue.

Spurrier was accused of poaching USC's star PG from the b-ball team. Story has been proven to be 100% false by multiple sources including all parties invovled. The player had been promised an opportunity to play b-ball by Horn (b-ball coach) when he was recruited. The player actually approached Horn about playing football before going to Spurrier (I had it backwards before). Once he cleared it with Horn he went to Spurrier, then Horn and Spurrier and the player worked it out so the player could participate in both sports. All three (player and both coaches) have confirmed this and all three have completely contradicted Morris' version, which basically has Spurrier sneaking behind Horn's back and secretly contacting the player and convincing him to switch to football and quit basketball (note - he plans on playing b-ball this fall/winter). Despite the story being proven to be completely false, Morris has stood by it and The State will not retract it or apologize. Spurrier and USC have tried for months to resolve this quietly behind the scenes, but it has only ignited Morris to go on into constant attack-mode against Spurrier and his football program. Spurrier has been beyond tolerant of this guy, but enough is enough. He is making things up about Spurrier, his program, and the players and writing them as true.

Trust me, there is no exaggeration here, it has gotten this bad in Columbia with The State Paper. At least one long-time advertiser has pulled ads over this, I expect more to follow if The State does not back down.

 

[redrock]

If this reporter lied about facts associated with Spurrier, then I agree with Spurrier's take on the situation. Don't allow this person to be part of the media coverage of yourself or your football team.

Personally, I can't stand a liar and will avoid them like the plague. I know Spurrier makes a big paycheck and all that, but that is not the point. The point is "Do you support someone who distorts the truth and lies about you?" Answer = no.

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

USC,

I don't read the story that way. Morris noted that Horn had agreed to let the kid play football. He said Spurrier was interested in having him, and that the three of them worked it out. All he said was it would hurt the basketball team -- the very thing that we said might be the case for our football team if we sign Jameis Winston. He said the starting point guard would be compromised on the USC basketball team. I kept looking for "blame" and really didn't find any. Thanks for the background of what followed.

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

The State's story this morning. No Morris column in response. From the reaction, fan support slightly favors Spurrier.:wink:

 

[Bama Reb]

A number of the local TV and radio guys recognize Ron Morris for the boob he is.

We have such a boob of our own in Birmingham. His name is Scarbinsky. (aka. Scab, Scabarnsky, Scaubumsky, etc.. etc.)
He's a barner who works for another barner, so pretty much every negative thing he can dig up in relation to the Tide, whether true or false, goes to print.

 

[USCBAMA]

USC,

I don't read the story that way. Morris noted that Horn had agreed to let the kid play football. He said Spurrier was interested in having him, and that the three of them worked it out. All he said was it would hurt the basketball team -- the very thing that we said might be the case for our football team if we sign Jameis Winston. He said the starting point guard would be compromised on the USC basketball team. I kept looking for "blame" and really didn't find any. Thanks for the background of what followed.

I believe the exact word Morris used was that Spurrier "poached" Ellington from the basketball program. In other articles and in interviews on local radio he made it very clear that he meant that Spurrier went behind Horn's back. Have followed this story for 6-months and there is no gray area in what Morris was insinuating. Spurrier, Horn, and Ellington have all disputed Morris' claims, yet he stands by his story. Coach Spurrier has many flaws, dishonesty is not one of them - in fact he is honest to a flaw.

Also, there is much more to this than just the Ellington story. Morris has been blending fact and fiction in his attacks of Spurrier since he arrived in Columbia.

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

The story dominated Charlotte sports talk radio this morning . . . the radio guys criticizing Spurrier; the callers saying this was long overdue.

I believe the exact word Morris used was that Spurrier "poached" Ellington from the basketball program. In other articles and in interviews on local radio he made it very clear that he meant that Spurrier went behind Horn's back. Have followed this story for 6-months and there is no gray area in what Morris was insinuating. Spurrier, Horn, and Ellington have all disputed Morris' claims, yet he stands by his story. Coach Spurrier has many flaws, dishonesty is not one of them - in fact he is honest to a flaw.

Also, there is much more to this than just the Ellington story. Morris has been blending fact and fiction in his attacks of Spurrier since he arrived in Columbia.

 

[Crimson_Knight]

Even when people beat Bama they still loose. Awesome!!

 

[SimplyTide]

I believe the exact word Morris used was that Spurrier "poached" Ellington from the basketball program. In other articles and in interviews on local radio he made it very clear that he meant that Spurrier went behind Horn's back. Have followed this story for 6-months and there is no gray area in what Morris was insinuating. Spurrier, Horn, and Ellington have all disputed Morris' claims, yet he stands by his story. Coach Spurrier has many flaws, dishonesty is not one of them - in fact he is honest to a flaw.

Also, there is much more to this than just the Ellington story. Morris has been blending fact and fiction in his attacks of Spurrier since he arrived in Columbia.

I decided to read a bit more about this yesterday, and the fans all seemed to indicate that MoRon was a transplant from the west coast who never liked his assignment to cover USCe, which has led to negative articles from the outset. One of the USCe fan forums provided links to old articles in which he has ripped just about everyone associated with the USCe program from the day that he arrived. This stuff dates back to the Lou Holtz era at USCe.

I don't know why he chose yesterday to make this stand. It was probably timed carefully. But that doesn't change the facts of the case. This guy should have been run off long ago. I am not sure how guys like him survive. I guess they do so because too few people are willing to stand up to them the way that Spurrier did yesterday - in such a public way that something has to change.

I am no PR guy, and they say that there is no such thing as "bad" publicity, but I get the sense that Spurrier accomplished exactly what he set out to do.

 

[BAMA1979]

I decided to read a bit more about this yesterday, and the fans all seemed to indicate that MoRon was a transplant from the west coast who never liked his assignment to cover USCe, which has led to negative articles from the outset. One of the USCe fan forums provided links to old articles in which he has ripped just about everyone associated with the USCe program from the day that he arrived. This stuff dates back to the Lou Holtz era at USCe.

I don't know why he chose yesterday to make this stand. It was probably timed carefully. But that doesn't change the facts of the case. This guy should have been run off long ago. I am not sure how guys like him survive. I guess they do so because too few people are willing to stand up to them the way that Spurrier did yesterday - in such a public way that something has to change.

I am no PR guy, and they say that there is no such thing as "bad" publicity, but I get the sense that Spurrier accomplished exactly what he set out to do.

I'm not arguing whether this reporter was right or wrong or whether Spurrier was right or wrong, but I do have one question...what exactly have the South Carolina football and basketball programs done recently (or ever for that matter) to deserve lots of praise and positive words from writers and reporters?

 

[BAMA1979]

The story dominated Charlotte sports talk radio this morning . . . the radio guys criticizing Spurrier; the callers saying this was long overdue.

That's no surprise. The callers are fans and the radio guys are more than likely impartial observers.

 

[tidedog67]

Spurrier looks like a petulent teen explaining his latest automotive mishap to his Daddy.

Unprofessional for someone in his position.

 

[Jack Bourbon]

It seems like a no-brainer maneuver to deflect attention away from Garcia. I don't understand the problem.

 

[BAMA1979]

It seems like a no-brainer maneuver to deflect attention away from Garcia. I don't understand the problem.

I agree and it was very ineffective.

 

[SimplyTide]

I'm not arguing whether this reporter was right or wrong or whether Spurrier was right or wrong, but I do have one question...what exactly have the South Carolina football and basketball programs done recently (or ever for that matter) to deserve lots of praise and positive words from writers and reporters?

You have to consider the USCe program with respect its own history, not ours. They have achieved unprecedented success under Holtz and Spurrier (especially Spurrier). They have been bowl elidgible 7 times in the last 10 years - and will make it 8 of 11 this year. They qualified for one more, but chose not to go because of the huge on-field fight.

For that program, they have been remarkably good. When their program is placed in the correct context, there has been a great deal of positive to write about.