Sept. 5, 2004

Columbia, S.C. –
South Carolina head football coach Lou Holtz conducted his Sunday teleconference and here are some of his comments. USC defeated Vanderbilt 31-6 to open the season last Saturday at Nashville … “Our backs ran pretty well. We came off the ball decent; not great, but decent. I thought we were patient running the ball. I think our patience more than anything aided our running game. The offensive line played pretty well. We did a variety of things with our running game. I think we ran out of 14 different formations. (any advantage to opening with an SEC game?) “There aren’t many advantages to it. I suppose you have better focus in the off-season, knowing it’s such an important game … Troy Williamson played pretty well at receiver. He played very well without the ball. I think the best thing I could say is that he is becoming a football player … (on USC not receiving much recognition for its players during the preseason) “I think we have some pretty good players. I think we have a lot of players who can play in the SEC. All I’m interested in is winning. We’ve already won one Heisman; we need to win a championship … (on putting Syvelle Newton in at quarterback during the middle of a series) “I think it’s the right thing to do. It keeps the defense thinking a little bit. He’ll play more as we go along … (on the kicking game) “I’m going to make a decision and stick with it. We’re not having open tryouts. We have some things to look at and address and we’ll go from there. I couldn’t tell you right now … (On Georgia) “All Georgia does is change the names on the backs of the jerseys. They are all good players. They may be the best-coached defense I’ve seen in a long, long time. They run well, they perform well. (David) Pollack is a tremendous player. He gives great effort and is playing with some other great players … Two receivers who we need to step up for us are Travis Lee and Sidney Rice … Antonio Lamar is still learning the system. It’s an unfortunate situation for him. It’s very difficult to give him he number of reps that he needs during practice … (on the affects of Hurricane Frances on his home in Orlando) “You don’t know what 80-90 mile an hour wind and 20 inches of rain is going to do. We have some close friends who are looking out for the house and we’ll have to see. We did have some more trees taken out just a couple of weeks ago. But, whatever happens, we should be okay. You just feel so badly for those who are suffering from the storm the most.”

Injury update – RB Cory Boyd (right ankle), RB Gonzie Gray (right knee), DT Darrell Shropshire (calf strain); OG Chris White (lower leg bruise). All will be re-evaluated on Monday.

Saturday’s Game – The South Carolina-Georgia game will be televised live by ESPN. Kickoff at Williams-Brice Stadium is shortly after 5:30 p.m. The game is a sell out.

Press Conference – Coach Holtz will conduct his weekly press conference this Monday, Sept. 6 at 12 noon in the Lettermen’s Lounge of Williams-Brice Stadium.