Oct. 16, 2006

The University of South Carolina football squad (4-2, 2-2 SEC) returned to work Monday night in preparation for Saturday afternoon’s tilt at Vanderbilt (3-4, 1-3 SEC). That contest will kick off at 3 p.m. ET and will be available throughout the state of South Carolina on a pay-per-view basis. Following the two-hour practice session, USC Head Coach Steve Spurrier addressed the media:

“Everybody came back in good health. Mike West was practicing tonight. He was one guy who’s been hurt. Andy Boyd and Web Brown were back. We’re getting to full speed almost. We’re in good shape.”

On the effect of the Vanderbilt win over Georgia: “We don’t take anybody lightly. We tried our best to beat Wofford and they almost beat us. We don’t have to worry about taking anybody lightly. We take them all the same. We respect everybody we play and we know we’re going to have to play well if we’re going to win. We’re not good enough to just show up and beat anybody. We’re ready to play.”

On USC’s improved chances to win the Eastern Division of the SEC with Georgia and Florida losing: “We know that, but that’s really a long shot. Of course, we were longshots last year. One game at a time with Vandy, then we’ll see where we are after that.”

The Gamecocks will return to the practice fields Tuesday afternoon.