Five roles that South Carolina should have given Steve Spurrier instead of special assistant to the President and AD
Steve Spurrier was great at a number of things during his long and storied tenure as a head coach, and as well known as he is for his accomplishments on the field, he's equally as highly regarded for his personality off the field.
As part of his contract extension that was signed in 2013, Spurrier was given the option to remain at the school in an ambassador role following his retirement. Spurrier recently started that new role as a special assistant to both President Harris Pastides and Athletic Director Ray Tanner, making an annual salary of $100,000.
That appointment, coupled with Spurrier's unique set of skills, got me to thinking: There have to be some other roles that South Carolina could have given to Spurrier that would allow him to fully utilize his unique set of talents. Here's what I came up with, with a little help from Zach and Scott.
1. The Zinger: Need to take a jab at Clemson... or any other program.... or, heck, anyone you think can use one? Spurrier can handle that for you.
Next to coaching, that's one of his strongest talents.
2. Golf Czar: Got some celebrities, influential people/groups, or international dignitaries on campus that need to relax with a round of golf? Having Spurrier on retainer for rounds on the drop of a hat would be great for all parties...especially the Head Ball Coach.
3. Designated Interviewer: Got a coach feeling like they might be too emotional for the media and there's a good chance they channel their inner Cam Newton or Randy Edsall and leave the press conference (really) early? No problem, just call in Spurrier, and he'll step into the presser in the coaches shoes. The media will not be disappointed.
4. Mr. Cut-Through-the-BS: One of Spurrier's greatest strengths was cutting through the crap and speaking exactly what was on his mind, for better or worse...but 99% of the time it was for the better. This would come in handy when you've got a coach is at the podium lobbing out traditional, boring coach-speak for 15 minutes straight putting everyone in the room to sleep. Need to cut through all that BS and liven up the room? Call Spurrier. He'll handle it.
5. HBC Emeritus / HBC OG: There really is only one HBC, and he'll always be the only Head Ball Coach to us.
