| Tebow closes an SEC chapter with Spurrier

Tebow-closes-an-SEC-chapter-with-Spurrier COLUMBIA, S.C. -Tim Tebow couldnt have come up with a more satisfying way to wind up a chapter of his Southeastern Conference career, in front of fellow a Florida Heisman Trophy winner and a coach he respects.

On Saturday, Tebow and the No. 1 Gators face South Carolina and coach Steve Spurrier, a Florida alum, star player and national championship coach. Its the last regular-season SEC contest for Floridas current star passer and an opportunity for the Gators first perfect season in league play since Spurriers team did it in 1996.

Its cool, said Tebow, whose Heisman came in 2007, 41 years after Spurriers. Its the last SEC game and its vs. coach Spurrier, whos done so much for the SEC, changed the SEC in a lot of different ways.

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Tebows changed the SEC the past few years, too, from his welcome-to-the-SEC jump pass to beat LSU in 2006 to surpassing Georgia great Herschel Walker as the leagues all-time leader in rushing touchdowns.

In between, came national championships at the end of the 2006 and 2008 seasons, with the Gators on another quest to reach the top this fall.

Tebows shown it all against the Gamecocks through the years.

He most likely wrapped up the Heisman in 2007 against them, accounting for 424 yards and seven touchdowns in a 51-31 victory.

Tebow didnt have to work as hard last fall, with three TDs in Floridas 56-6 win over the 24th-ranked Gamecocks.

Along the way, Tebows enjoyed getting to know Spurrier.

Theres some sort of special relationship there, Tebow said.

For his part, Spurrier says Tebow is one of the college games best ever. Sometimes his passes may not look as pretty as some of those other guys, but he has a knack for getting it there, Spurrier said. And I think without a doubt the best third-down quarterback that maybe has played.

Gamecock defensive tackle Nathan Pepper says the players were hurt and embarrassed by last years clobbering and hope to give a better account of themselves this time around.

We didnt really have a chance to really get into it before they were already pretty much going off with the game, he said. Yeah, we definitely remember what happened last year.

Itll likely take the Gamecocks best effort all season to stay in this one.

While Florida hasnt put up the unworldly offensive numbers it did last fall, its still second in the SEC at more than 35 points a game. The Gator defense leads the country in points allowed at just over 10, a figure South Carolinas struggled to get past its last four games.

The Gamecocks were 5-1 and ranked No. 22 before facing second-ranked Alabama on Oct. 17. Since then, theyve scored 6, 14, 13 and 16 points, going 1-3 over that stretch and sending fans over the edge about another late-season swoon.

Spurrier said this week hed return as the teams principal playcaller after ceding much of that duty to son Steve Jr., the past two seasons.

Spurrier hopes to correct his teams ability to move between the 20s before bogging down near the end zone.

He thought the offense played as well as it had in a while at Arkansas last week, but mistakes cost it scoring opportunities in the 33-16 loss.

Usually to upset a team you really have to maximize your scoring chances. We didnt do it at Alabama, we didnt do it last week and if we can do that you have a chance against those teams, Spurrier said.

Florida coach Urban Meyer just wants his team thinking about South Carolina, not about its attempt at more history with the unbeaten SEC season.

We dont do that stuff around here, Meyer said. Its just trying to play a little better defense and score in the red zone. We dont have time to reflect. Thats going to be a good deal someday. But thats the beautiful thing about this: Our kids dont know that.

This game also features a tribute, backed by Under Armour and The Wounded Warrior Project, honoring U.S. veterans and those injured protecting America. South Carolina players will wear camouflage jerseys with core values like Duty, Honor, and Courage on the back instead of names.

Some game jerseys will be auctioned off with part of the proceeds donated to The Wounded Warrior Project.

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AP Sports Writer Mark Long from Gainesville, Fla., contributed to this report.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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