Latest news with #Gamecocks
USA Today
a day ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
What is a Chanticleer? Coastal Carolina's mascot explained
With the College World Series having kicked off its round of regional tournaments on Friday, the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers are one of the hosts. But what is a Chanticleer? The name comes from a rooster character in a Middle Age fable that was eventually widely popularized in "The Canterbury Tales," Geoffrey Chaucer's 14th century short story anthology that had a marked impact on English literature in the centuries since. Coastal Carolina, which originally dubbed its sports teams the Trojans, adopted the new moniker in the early 1960s, when it transitioned from being a regional community college to an extension of the University of South Carolina. To make its teams' nickname more in-line with South Carolina's "Gamecocks" – also a rooster – what was then known as USC Coastal Carolina College changed its mascot to the Chanticleer. COLLEGE WORLD SERIES: Regional host sites for NCAA baseball tournament bracket After Coastal Carolina ended its connection with the University of South Carolina and became an independent university, it held onto the Chanticleer nickname. Here's everything you need to know about what a Chanticleer is: What is a Chanticleer? Chanticleer was the name of a rooster featured as the main character of "The Nun's Priest's Tale," a portion of Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales." In "The Nun's Priest's Tale," Chanticleer has a dream that he is going to be caught and killed by a fox. After waking in a panic, the rooster is eventually consoled by one of his wives. But Chanticleer's dream was one of clairvoyance; he encounters a fox waiting for him in a cabbage patch, and the wily animal convinces the prideful Chanticleer to show off his crow with his eyes closed and neck outstretched. As Chanticleer closes his eyes, the fox snatches him by the neck and runs off. But Chanticleer, a witty animal in his own right, plays up to the fox's pride and convinces it to tell the pursuers to give up. As soon as the fox opens its mouth to boast of its speed to the animals giving chase, Chanticleer escapes its jaws and hides. 2025 COLLEGE WORLD SERIES: Tournament bracket winners and losers start with SEC College World Series Conway regional schedule Dates: Friday, May 30 - Monday, June 2 Friday, May 30 - Monday, June 2 Teams: Coastal Carolina, Florida, East Carolina and Fairfield Friday, May 30 Game 1: East Carolina vs. Florida | Noon ET Game 2: Fairfield vs. Coastal Carolina | 6 p.m. ET Saturday, May 31 Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser | Noon ET Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner | 6 p.m. ET Sunday, June 1 Game 5: Game 4 loser vs. Game 3 winner | Noon ET Game 6: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner | 6 p.m. ET Monday, June 2 Game 7 (if necessary for double elimination): Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser | TBA
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
USC's first two home games at night
COLUMBIA, S.C. (May 29, 2025) – South Carolina's first two home games of the 2025 football season will be played under the lights at Williams-Brice Stadium, the Southeastern Conference announced today. The Gamecocks' home opener on Saturday, Sept. 6, against in-state FCS rival South Carolina State, will kick at 7 pm ET. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and SECN+. South Carolina owns a 3-0 record in the all-time series with the Bulldogs, including a 50-10 win in 2022, the last time the two teams met on the gridiron. Carolina's conference opener against Vanderbilt, set for Saturday, Sept. 13, will kick at either 7 pm or 7:45 pm ET. The game will be televised either on ESPN or SEC Network. The Gamecocks have dominated the all-time series with the Commodores, winning 30 of the previous 34 meetings, including the last 16 in a row. South Carolina posted a 28-7 win in Nashville last season. Previously, the Gamecocks season opener against Virginia Tech, scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 31 in Atlanta, was announced as a 3 pm ET kick. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Fighting back tears, Ashley Chastain Woodard 'fell back in love' with South Carolina softball
COLUMBIA — Ashley Chastain Woodard spent three seasons as a player for South Carolina softball with no idea that she'd change the program for the better as a coach a decade later. Chastain Woodard was hired in June to replace Bev Smith after 14 seasons, a move made by athletic director Ray Tanner three months before his retirement. Advertisement As a pitcher for South Carolina from 2009-11, the Gamecocks never made the NCAA tournament. The Gamecocks were picked to finish last in the SEC this season but proved the voters wrong. South Carolina earned the No. 8 national seed and hosted a super regional for the first time in school history. The season ended for the Gamecocks (44-17) on May 25 with a 5-0 loss to UCLA (54-11) in Game 3 of the Columbia Super Regional. UCLA advanced to its 33rd Women's College World Series. "I just love this place so much" Chastain Woodard said while fighting back tears. "In the process of building the team, the wins and the loses, I fell back in love with this place. I'm just really excited for the future and I think the respect that we earned on a national level in softball is a big deal." Advertisement South Carolina won the super regional opener 9-2 on May 23 and the Gamecocks were one win away from their first WCWS appearance since 1997. Despite a 4-1 lead in the seventh against the Bruins, South Carolina fell 5-4 on a two-run walk-off home run to force a deciding game. Chastain Woodard said she believed the players flushed away the emotional aspect of the Game 2 loss, but just didn't have the offensive production in Game 3. As a coach, it's a balancing act between reflecting on all she did this year (which included setting a program record for the most wins for a first-year coach) but also recognizing how close South Carolina was to the WCWS. Advertisement "It's hard," Chastain Woodard said. "I think the game is so much bigger, our purpose this year was so much bigger. Everything we did, the success that we had, it will stick with me for a long time that we came short, I will hold onto that for a while but I really want to evaluate the year and see at the end of the day, what are the things that kept us out of Oklahoma ... you have to move on in some ways, but you also have to learn from the full year, I have so much gratitude and pride for the success that we did have." Infielder Arianna Rodi set the single-season program record for home runs (17) and walks (49) and as the Gamecocks broke the single-season record for RBIs (342), runs (363), walks (256), doubles (98) and tied the record for sacrifice flies (26). Chastain Woodard will lose ample talent, including star pitcher Sam Gress, five of her starting nine in the batting order, the left side of her infield along with two outfielders so recruiting and filling gaps with transfers will be top of the agenda this offseason. Junior catcher Lexi Winters said the season set the expectations for the program, transformed the way that people look at South Carolina and all the Gamecocks can do is build off of it. Advertisement "The ability to do what she did in a conference that is respected," said UCLA coach Inouye-Perez, now in her 19th season. "The way they play ball, they did a great job preparing, executing so top down, it starts with a head coach ... your first year is always a challenge so to be able to get to this point so quickly says nothing but great things about what this program can do." FRIDAY: South Carolina softball vs UCLA score: Gamecocks take Game 1, need one win to make WCWS Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@ and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Ashley Chastain Woodard reflects on South Carolina softball's success
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Kickoff time, TV details for South Carolina football's first two home games announced
Kickoff times for South Carolina football's first two home games for the 2025 season have been announced. The Gamecocks open the season against Virginia Tech at 3 p.m. ET on Aug. 31 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta (ESPN). The SEC revealed on May 29 that the home opener against South Carolina State on Sept. 6 will kickoff at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+, SEC Network+). Advertisement South Carolina hosts Vanderbilt in its conference opener on Sept. 13, which will kickoff at either 7 p.m. or 7:45 p.m. ET (ESPN or SEC Network). After two home night games, the Gamecocks travel to Missouri for their first road test of the 2025 season. A kickoff time for the Mayor's Cup has not yet been revealed. Coach Shane Beamer will start his fifth season with the Gamecocks and his second with LaNorris Sellers as his starting quarterback. Sellers finished 196-of-299 passing for 2,534 yards with 18 touchdowns and rushed for 674 with seven touchdowns in 2024. South Carolina is looking to mirror its success of 2024, when it went 9-4 and ended the season with a loss to Illinois in the Citrus Bowl. Advertisement SOFTBALL: Fighting back tears, Ashley Chastain Woodard 'fell back in love' with South Carolina softball Beamer is 29-22, including 15-17 in SEC games, through four seasons. The Gamecocks will close the regular season with the Palmetto Bowl against Clemson on Nov. 29. The remaining schedule details will be released at a later date. Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@ and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina football kickoff times announced: Home opener details
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
South Carolina's Dawn Staley Reveals Surprising Team Who Pursued Hiring Her
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The South Carolina Gamecocks' women's basketball program has been among the nation's best since head coach Dawn Staley took over the program. Staley originally became South Carolina's head coach back in the 2008-09 season. Before that, she had been the head coach for the Temple Owls from the 2000-01 season to the 2007-08 campaign. Landing Staley has completely changed the Gamecocks. She has led the program to three national championships and has shown no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Head coach Dawn Staley of the South Carolina Gamecocks reacts in the second half during the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal game against the NC State Wolfpack at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on April... Head coach Dawn Staley of the South Carolina Gamecocks reacts in the second half during the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal game against the NC State Wolfpack at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on April 05, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. More Photo byWhile South Carolina's hiring of Staley changed everything for them, the budding legendary head coach was pursued by another school first. Read more: WNBA Fans React to Paige Bueckers' Massive Unrivaled Contract Recently, Staley opened up and shared that the Alabama Crimson Tide tried to hire her when she was still coaching Temple back in 2005. "Alabama came after me first in 2005," Staley wrote. "I visited the campus. I liked the athletic director. But I couldn't see myself living in Alabama." That was a stroke of good luck for the Gamecocks. She went on to open up about wanting to coach South Carolina and why the job gave her so much intrigue. "I was drawn to the fact that USC was part of the SEC and its storied legacy in women's basketball," Staley wrote. "Pat Summitt was in this league, Andy Landers, Melanie Balcomb, all these legendary coaches. I was looking to refine my skills, rise to compete with the best. The cherry on top was that my parents were originally from South Carolina." Things could easily have been much different. Had Staley decided to take the Alabama job, there is a good chance that she would have never come to the Gamecocks. The entire landscape of women's college basketball could be different. Read more: Mystics HC Sends Warning About Fever Without Caitlin Clark Since taking the South Carolina job, Staley has compiled an eye-opening 475-110 record, which is good enough for an 81.2 win percentage. Last season, the Gamecocks finished the year with a 35-4 record. They made a run in the NCAA Tournament and made it all the way to the national championship game. Unfortunately, they ran into Paige Bueckers, Geno Auriemma, and the UConn Huskies and lost by a final score of 82-59. Despite the disappointing championship game loss, South Carolina is expected to be right back in contention during the upcoming 2025-26 women's college basketball season. With Staley leading the way, the Gamecocks are always going to be a contender. For more women's college basketball news, head on over to Newsweek Sports.
