At 3-3, the Gamecocks had a simple message for their sports coach

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“They said nothing other than ‘win.’ “There is no other option,” Beamer said. “I said, ‘Okay, that’s great to say, but there are some things we need to do better. “We have to train better and play better.”

“They committed themselves to it and have been on a mission ever since to not just say it, but also do it. To do it.”

The story could have ended here. Another loss could have ruined the season and relegated the impassioned speeches to the rest of the drawers that were never published because, um, they didn’t work.

But the Gamecocks went to Oklahoma — admittedly, a team that had a dismal season, but still a team that played at home on a field USC had never played on — and nearly beat the Sooners back into the Big 12 They roared to a 44-10 win over Texas A&M, which was ranked 10th at the time, sprinted past a surprisingly strong and ranked Vanderbilt team and then met the Archenemy Missouri.

One winning drive later, USC had won four straight and would easily rattle off five wins the next week against Wofford, setting up the rivalry showdown with Clemson. LaNorris Sellers donned his Superman cape again, Demetrius Knight flashed the soft hands needed to catch a tipping ball, and…

This group of players who swore in that meeting room that they would win were not liars.

Not done

The Gamecocks won at least ten games in a season for the fifth time in 131 attempts. The only thing standing in the way is Illinois, also seeking a rare 10th win.

It’s been an incredible season, no matter what happens on Tuesday. But the Gamecocks feel like they’re not done yet, that they can’t really be prophets or live up to their words if they somehow lose.

Victory meant every game. Not just the regular season. This is why so many have chosen to stay and play rather than make the simple decision and log out.

“All year long we knew what we could be. It was one of those moments if we wanted to accomplish what we wanted to accomplish, we had to win,” defensive tackle Boogie Huntley said. “We all knew it was possible and we all knew we could do it.”