The most popular Gamecock of all time is ...
The most popular Gamecock of all time? It's Connor Shaw.
The man many consider to be South Carolina's greatest quarterback outlasted 63 other USC legends in our first-ever Gamecock Madness competition. The just-for-fun fan vote concluded Friday.
Shaw topped George Rogers, the Gamecocks' beloved Heisman Trophy winner, for the top spot in fans' hearts.
A headline from 2013 simply said: Connor Shaw: “He runs ... He throws ... He wins.”
“That’s Superman right there. I don’t think anything can hold him back,” former teammate T.J. Holloman said.
“He doesn’t do those stupid things a lot of quarterbacks do,” former USC coach Steve Spurrier said.
Shaw played under Spurrier from 2010-2013 and left as the school’s winningest all-time quarterback with 27 victories. He’s also first in school history in touchdown responsibility (74), second in passing touchdowns (56), fourth in passing yards (6,074 yards) and 22nd in rushing yards (1,683 yards).
He also threw a school-best 177 passes without an interception.
“He takes care of the ball extremely well,” Spurrier said ahead of the 2013 season. “I watched some of those NFL guys toss those careless interceptions, and I say, ’Our guy doesn’t do that.’ So he’s careful where he throws it, and of course his ability to run out is very helpful also.”
Shaw in January landed a job coaching tight ends at Furman, ending an NFL playing career that saw him spend parts of four seasons in professional football after starring with the Gamecocks from 2010-2013.
In Gamecock Madness, Shaw won in matchups over USC greats Brad Edwards, Ryan Brewer, Jackie Bradley Jr., Alshon Jeffery and Marcus Lattimore.
He's perhaps most remembered for his toughness and gameday grit, his knack for making a first down and the 2013 win known as The Miracle at Mizzou when the injured Shaw rallied the Gamecocks to an overtime win over Missouri.
“He’s out there playing hurt, he pushes through practice. He comes back when we need him in clutch moments,” Gamecock great Jadeveon Clowney. ”Against Missouri, he came back hurt and gave us a chance to win that game. He’s a great quarterback. He can throw it, he can run, makes great calls out there. My hats off to Connor Shaw.”
Just tuning in to Gamecock Madness?
Below are all the Gamecock greats who made the initial 64 list and the results that followed.
Voting results
First round
The Tanner Region
1-George Rogers (FB) defeated 16-Mookie Wilson (BB)
9-Stephon Gilmore (FB) defeated 8-Tom Owens (MBB)
12-Pharoh Cooper (FB) defeated 5-Steve Wadiak (FB)
4-BJ McKie (MBB) defeated 13-Savannah McCaskill (Soc)
11-Eric Norwood (FB) defeated 6-Sheila Foster (WBB)
3-Whit Merrifield (BB) defeated 14-Martha Parker (WBB)
10-Matt Price (BB) defeated 7-Tommy Suggs (FB)
2-Jadeveon Clowney (FB) defeated 15-Wesley Bryan (Golf)
The Staley Region
1-A’ja Wilson (WBB) defeated 16-Dickie Harris (FB)
8-DJ Swearinger (FB) defeated 9-Sidney Rice (FB)
5-Devan Downey (MBB) defeated 12-Trey Dyson (BB)
4-Steve Taneyhill (FB) defeated 13-The Killer B’s (BB)
6-Todd Ellis (FB) defeated 11-Melvin Watson (MBB)
3-Sterling Sharpe (FB) defeated 14-Mike Hold (FB)
10-Bruce Ellington (FB) defeated 7-Hank Small (BB)
2-Michael Roth (BB) defeated 15-Brian Winters (MBB)
The Spurrier Region
1-Marcus Lattimore (FB) defeated 16-Ryan Succop (FB)
8-Duce Staley (FB) defeated 9-Jimmy Foster (MBB)
12-Ace Sanders (FB) defeated 5-Stephen Garcia (FB)
4-Earl Bass (BB) defeated 13-Brandon Bennett (FB)
11-Melvin Ingram (FB) defeated 6-Jeff Grantz (FB)
3-Sindarius Thornwell (MBB) defeated 14-Justin Smoak (BB)
10-Landon Powell (BB) defeated 7-Kevin Joyce (MBB)
2-Alex English (MBB) defeated 15-John Abraham (FB)
The Frank Region
1-John Roche (MBB) defeated 16-Trinity Johnson (SB)
8-Tiffany Mitchell (WBB) defeated 9-Kenny McKinley (FB)
5-Scott Wingo (BB) defeated 12-Elliott Fry (FB)
4-Alshon Jeffery (FB) defeated 13-Michael Carrera (MBB)
6-Christian Walker (BB) defeated 11-Alex Hawkins (FB)
3-Jackie Bradley Jr. (BB) defeated 14-Mike Dunleavy (MBB)
7-Ryan Brewer (FB) defeated 10-Shannon Johnson (WBB)
2-Connor Shaw (FB) defeated 15-Brad Edwards (FB)
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Second round
The Tanner Region
1-George Rogers (FB) defeated 9-Stephon Gilmore (FB)
4-BJ McKie (MBB) defeated 12-Pharoh Cooper (FB)
3-Whit Merrifield (BB) defeated 11-Eric Norwood (FB)
2-Jadeveon Clowney (FB) defeated 10-Matt Price (BB)
The Staley Region
1-A’ja Wilson (WBB) defeated 8-DJ Swearinger (FB)
4-Steve Taneyhill (FB) defeated 5-Devan Downey (MBB)
3-Sterling Sharpe (FB) defeated 6-Todd Ellis (FB)
2-Michael Roth (BB) defeated 10-Bruce Ellington (FB)
The Spurrier Region
1-Marcus Lattimore (FB) defeated 8-Duce Staley (FB)
4-Earl Bass (BB) defeated 12-Ace Sanders (FB)
3-Sindarius Thornwell (MBB) defeated 11-Melvin Ingram (FB)
2-Alex English (MBB) defeated 10-Landon Powell (BB)
The Frank Region
1-John Roche (MBB) defeated 8-Tiffany Mitchell (WBB)
4-Alshon Jeffery (FB) defeated 5-Scott Wingo (BB)
3-Jackie Bradley Jr. (BB) defeated 6-Christian Walker (BB)
2-Connor Shaw (FB) defeated 7-Ryan Brewer (FB)
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Sweet 16
The Tanner Region
1-George Rogers (FB) defeated 4-BJ McKie (MBB)
2-Jadeveon Clowney (FB) defeated 3-Whit Merrifield (BB)
The Staley Region
1-A’ja Wilson (WBB) defeated 4-Steve Taneyhill (FB)
2-Michael Roth (BB) defeated 3-Sterling Sharpe (FB)
The Spurrier Region
1-Marcus Lattimore (FB) defeated 4-Earl Bass (BB)
3-Sindarius Thornwell (MBB) defeated 2-Alex English (MBB)
The Frank Region
4-Alshon Jeffery (FB) defeated 1-John Roche (MBB)
2-Connor Shaw (FB) defeated 3-Jackie Bradley Jr. (BB)
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Elite Eight
The Tanner Region
1-George Rogers (FB) defeated 2-Jadeveon Clowney (FB)
The Staley Region
1-A’ja Wilson (WBB) defeated 2-Michael Roth (BB)
The Spurrier Region
1-Marcus Lattimore (FB) defeated 3-Sindarius Thornwell (MBB)
The Frank Region
2-Connor Shaw (FB) defeated 4-Alshon Jeffery (FB)
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Final Four
1-George Rogers (FB) defeated 1-A’ja Wilson (WBB)
2-Connor Shaw (FB) defeated 1-Marcus Lattimore (FB)
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Championship
Connor Shaw defeated George Rogers
This story was originally published March 30, 2018 at 2:42 PM with the headline "The most popular Gamecock of all time is ...."