South Carolina's new football coach Steve Spurrier talks about how he is going to improve the football program during a news conference Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2004, in Columbia, S.C. AP / File

Top 10 S.C. sports stories of 2004

Here are the Top 10 South Carolina sports stories of 2004 as voted on by AP members statewide:

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Clemson running back Yusef Kelly, right, kicks an unidentified South Carolina player in the head, part of a fourth-quarter brawl in the East end zone, Nov. 20, 2004, in Clemson, S.C.. In the time it took a few on-field shoves to escalate into an embarrassing, ugly brawl, Clemson and South Carolina both said goodbye to bowl games and postseason bucks. AP / File South Carolina football coach Lou Holtz fields questions about his coaching career as he annouces his retirement Nov 22, 2004, in Columbia, S.C. Holtz retiring and Steve Spurrier being hired as his replacement are among the top ten sports stories in the state for 2004. AP / File NASCAR Nextel Cup cars race under the lights during the final running of the Mountain Dew Southern 500, Nov. 14, 2004, in Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C. As quickly as NASCAR officials could say, "We're taking our sport to a larger market," a 54-year-old tradition died at Darlington Raceway. AP / File

No. 1 - South Carolina football coach Lou Holtz retires in November after 33 seasons in the game. Steve Spurrier, who won a national title at Florida, takes over the Gamecock program.

No. 2 - South Carolina and Clemson each finish the season 6-5. Although both teams qualify for bowl games, they forfeit postseason slots as penalty for an on-field brawl that broke out during their rivalry game. Six players from each team are suspended for one game next season.

No. 3 - NASCAR announces that Darlington Raceway will keep only one of its two races in 2005. That event will be held at night on Mother's Day weekend, traditionally an off week for NASCAR.

No. 4 - South Carolina earns its third straight trip to the College World Series. The Gamecocks get knocked out in five games, falling twice to eventual champs Cal State Fullerton.

No. 5 - Clemson coach Tommy Bowden fires three assistants, including offensive coordinator Mike O'Cain and defensive coordinator John Lovett.

No. 6 - In September, South Carolina's 39-year-old Tim "Pops" Frisby gets clearance from the NCAA and makes his college football debut at the end of the Gamecocks' 17-7 victory over Troy. The story of Pops, a U.S. Army veteran with six children, makes national headlines and Frisby goes on talk shows with David Letterman and Jay Leno among others.

No. 7 - In August, Olympic athletes with ties to South Carolina win several medals at the Athens Games. Some of those are South Carolina's Otis Harris with gold and silver medals in the 400 meters and Clemson's Shawn Crawford in the 200 meters.

No. 8 - South Carolina men's basketball returns to the national rankings for the first time in six years. The team makes the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998, losing to Memphis in the opening round.

No. 9 - Jimmie Johnson wins the final Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in November.

No. 10 - The NCAA says a two-year ban on awarding championships to South Carolina because of the Confederate flag will continue indefinitely.

--From the Sunday, December 26, 2004 online edition of the Augusta Chronicle