Vanderbilt finally breaks through

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- It hasn't been a pretty one so far.

South Carolina has watched as two Stephen Garcia passes have found Vanderbilt cornerback Casey Hayward and the Commodores have run just nine plays for 16 yards.

But that last interception, which Hayward saw coming before Garcia even released the ball, was returned 23 yards to South Carolina's 22-yard line. The Commodores didn't do much, but they kicked a field goal and lead 3-0 as the first quarter winds down.

The Commodores have done a good job of containing South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore. He has just four carries for 8 yards. The Gamecocks have actually come out passing, testing this secondary. So far, that hasn't been wise.

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The Raiders QB Job Finally Set – For Now

So it’s definite now, Jason Campbell will be the starting QB.  Just to confirm, you are out, right Bruce G?  Ok, so we’re certain now, Campbell is the QB.  Got it, good.

The continual carousel finally stopped today when Bruce Gradkowski’s 3rd-degree separated shoulder closed out another injury plagued season for the veteran QB.  And now it’s back to Campbell, the guy the organization traded a 4th round pick for, who was named the starter during pre-season and lasted only 1 1/2 game and was the QB during their 3 game winning streak.

Look, Tom Cable decided last year that if he was going down, he was going to give Gradkowski the reigns and go out in a blaze of glory.  When the team responded by playing inspired ball, even though the team didn’t win any more games, there was a feeling that this team could be better than it had shown in the since 2002.  And when the team was slow out the gate offensively this year, he went right back to Gradkowski for the spark.

The problem is that Gradkowski is just that, a spark.  He is not a starting QB.  A) He’s injury prone B) has specific throws that he just can’t make C) is a career below average statistically including wins and loses.

Cable knew all this, and despite the preference of the management (Mr. Davis), decided that Gradkowski was his man.

So now he’s back to Campbell, the man he benched, and more importantly for Cable, the man who will determine the next head coach of the Oakland Raiders.

Because if they go 3-2 and miss the playoffs by 1 game, Mr. Davis will wonder if they would not have won more with him and blame the coach.

Because if they 2-3 or 1-4 and end with another losing season, Mr. Davis will wonder if the QB changing was the reason and blame the coach.

Eeny Meeny…..

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