A Gamecock Odyssey
University of South Carolina Sports in the Independent Era

Alan Piercy (Author)

9781643364483

Hardback, published 14 November 2023

352 pages, 30 b&w halftones
22.9 x 15.2 x 2 cm, 0.272 kg

"A unique and nostalgic look back at an important part of Gamecock history."—Gamecocksonline.com

Meet the coaches, athletes, and other larger-than-life characters that laid the foundation for today's Gamecock Nation

In A Gamecock Odyssey: University of South Carolina Sports in the Independent Era, author Alan Piercy chronicles the significant events and describes the larger-than-life characters of the years following the university's departure from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The University of South Carolina experienced some of the highest highs and lowest lows in its athletics history. With colorful storytelling and Gamecock pride, Piercy gives curious college sports fans and diehard Gamecocks a behind-the-scenes tour of these raucous decades. Tales of interpersonal clashes between football head coach Paul Dietzel and men's basketball head coach Frank McGuire, the Icarian rise and fall of women's basketball coach Pam Parsons, George Rogers and his magical Heisman Trophy-winning season, the birth of USC's beloved mascot, Cocky, and other USC sports stories converge, stirring feelings of amusement, nostalgia, and pride. A Gamecock Odyssey captures the spirit of the time and shows the reader how those years influenced today's Gamecock athletics culture.