Spurrier pushes for game against Duke

South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier was asked Wednesday about making the team’s rivalry game against North Carolina a more regular occurrence. He used the opportunity to pitch a game against another neighbor to the north.

“I heard there was some interest in maybe playing Duke,” Spurrier said. “Duke is a top-notch program now as we know. I love Duke University. I owe a lot to Duke, and I heard there were some conversations we might play them. If that would happen and it would be good for Duke also, I would like to do that.”

Spurrier’s first collegiate head coaching job came at Duke, where he was 20-13-1 from 1987-1989. The Gamecocks and Blue Devils have not played since 1991, when the teams played to a 24-24 tie. The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 24-17-3.

South Carolina and North Carolina will play Sept. 3 in the Belk College Football Kickoff at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. It will be the third game between the teams since 2007.

“If we had two (non-conference) games we played every year, that would be unusual, but I do like playing maybe an ACC team,” Spurrier said.

The Tar Heels and Gamecocks could not meet again until at least 2019 because of their upcoming schedules. North Carolina coach Larry Fedora would be happy to discuss playing South Carolina more.

“I think it’s good for our program, probably good for their program,” Fedora said. “It has to match up scheduling wise. I like playing the game in Charlotte. I think it could be a good deal. You’ve got the Battle of the Carolinas, and that makes it pretty cool.”