These pictures are from (North) Carolina’s season opener at Davidson on November 14. The game was hosted at the Charlotte Bobcats Arena in uptown Charlotte, the Wildcats home away from home when big-name opponents come to town (this year Davidson’s games against UNC and Duke were their only games played there).

From the photos you can tell though that Davidson’s home court advantage was not only neutralized but reversed. The red on the near end is the student section. It was easily outweighed by the blue on the far side. The photo also does not show the upper deck very clearly. It was almost entirely light blue.

Davidson’s web site counted it as a “neutral site game”, but (North) Carolina’s web site showed it as an “away event.”  And the Tar Heels did wear their road blues, while the Wildcats had on their home whites.

The atmosphere definitely did not seem like a road match for UNC, as it had a slight noise advantage for the game.  The Davidson student section gave a more constant roar, but when (North) Carolina fans started their “Tar-Heel” chant the arena almost shook as fans shouted back and forth at each other.

These photos were taken during (South) Carolina’s warmups, just after the players entrance, and at tip-off respectively.  All were taken from the student section, five rows from the court (counting the press table), at exactly mid-court.  I can smell the jealousy oozing out of Chapel Hill.

The Criteria

Student Seating

UNC – 6 – With this year’s new arrangement (North) Carolina students are crammed into the corner by the UNC bench. While having all the students together is preferable to the student dispersion of years past, the lack of lower level seating is disappointing.

USC – 9 – (South) Carolina’s student section includes the whole north end zone as well as the courtside seats (first ten or so rows) on the east side of the Colonial Center. Allowing students to sit, or more accurately stand, on the front row at mid-court is the quickest way to an undergrad’s heart. The only situation that could be better is courtside student seating stretching the length of the court on both sides.

Student Ticket Availability

UNC – 6 – Students basketball tickets at (North) Carolina? Ha. The Carolina Athletics Association is allotted 6,000 student tickets for every game, but demand is so high that even if students enter raffles in pairs to maximize their chances of winning, they are still more likely to be watching from their couch than the student section. The opportunity for students to come a few hours early and get in a stand-by line that starts letting students in at the first 16-minutes timeout is a big improvement though.

USC – 9 – (South) Carolina’s current student ticket policy is spot on. Students can simply drop by the Russell House and pick up tickets the week before each game without a problem unless said game is against Florida or Kentucky (in which case students must make sure to grab their tickets in the first day or two of the distribution). Student demand is slightly too low to give USC a ten, though. A major conference school should at least be able to give away all your student tickets on a regular basis.

Arena Quality

UNC – 9 – As college basketball arenas go, it is hard to beat the Dean E. Smith Student Activities Center (more commonly known as “the Dean Dome”). It has the charm, the capacity (21,750), and the banners to make it one of the best venues in the NCAA, regardless of sport. The only knock on the Dean Dome is the fact that (North) Carolina’s best player (a certain number 23) never scored a point for the Heels on its storied hardwood.

USC – 7 – It’s hard to match up against the Dean Smith Center, but the Colonial Center does a good job of holding its own. With 18,000 seats, it is the tenth largest arena in college basketball. To top it off, its extra wide concourse is inviting, it has an amazing sound system, and its outer appearance is quite easy on the eyes.

Fan Excitement/Loudness

UNC – 8 – In 1991, Sam Cassell famously referred to (North) Carolina’s fans as “a wine-and-cheese crowd.” To be fair to the Tar Heel faithful, their loudness and excitement at basketball games has increased in the last 16 years. The Dean Dome is actually one of the louder arenas in the NCAA. This is probably more product of its capacity than its decibels per fan ratio though. It also hurts the Heels that they will forever be compared to their rivals down the road in Durham. It’s a painful reality for UNC fans, but the Cameron Crazies are just, well, crazier.

USC – 7 – Considering the fact that they have had very little to cheer about recently, or historically, I have been mildly impressed by Gamecock fans’ enthusiasm. As far as sound goes, it’s no Williams-Brice, but (South) Carolina fans occasionally show a propensity to get up and cheer. The sound intensity still doesn’t measure up to the nation’s top-flight home atmospheres, but with a little basketball success in Columbia there could be some potential.

Basketball Quality

UNC – 10 – (North) Carolina has five national championships in men’s basketball, the Associated Press’s top ranked team in the nation, and one of the top candidates for player of the year. Enough said.

USC – 6 – The Gamecocks have won 2 post-season tournaments in the last three seasons. It’s a shame both are NIT championships though. (South) Carolina has half as many NCAA tournament appearances (8) as (North) Carolina has Final Four appearances (16), and the Tar Heels have won three national championships since the Gamecocks got their last NCAA Tourney win, back in 1973. And this year doesn’t appear as though it will be much better, as USC has lost three of its first six games. The only bright side for Gamecocks fans is that they do get to see Florida, Tennessee and Kentucky in Columbia each year. Upset opportunities can make for some fun games.

Final Score

(North) Carolina: 39

(South) Carolina: 38

The Tar Heels win it at the buzzer.

Tell me what you think. What are your ratings?

(South) Carolina is a football school.  (North) Carolina is a basketball school.

Evidence for these statements is everywhere.  Whether measured in percentage of games sold out, amount of athletic success or news coverage dominance, the validity of these opinions seems air-tight.

But what could be more helpful in understanding just how bipolar the schools’ sports affections are than a graphic?

Thanks to Google Trends, such a graphic is attainable.  Google Trends displays a measure of search term and news reference volumes on a line graph.  It also has the ability to compare terms.

As it turns out, a Google Trends search of “tar heels, gamecocks” sheds a lot of light of the football school/basketball school issue.

The results of such a search can be found here.  Hold the “Ctrl” key as you click the link to open it in a new tab.

As the chart shows, the vast majority “gamecocks” searches are done in the second half of the year.  Throughout football season the term “gamecocks” absolutely dominates “tar heels.” 

Beginning in what looks to be November though, “tar heels” starts to pick up steam.  Around the first of the year, “tar heels” overtakes “gamecocks.”  “Tar heels” then crescendos near the end of the first quarter when (North) Carolina bows out of the NCAA basketball tournament, at which point “gamecocks” again takes over.

The only exception to the football/basketball polarity occurred near the midpoint of the last two years.  This can be easily explained by (North) Carolina’s appearance in baseball’s College World Series finals.

Both schools released statements praising the renewal of the series. Then-(North) Carolina head coach John Bunting said he had pushed for the schools to play each other since he had taken over as head coach. (South) Carolina’s head coach, Steve Spurrier also made his desire to play the Tar Heels known shortly after taking over the team.

The most intriguing comment about the games may have come from (South) Carolina’s athletic director, Eric Hyman. He called the matchup a “natural rivalry.” Hyman said, “We had overtures to play the game at a neutral site outside the state lines, but felt it was in the best interest of our fans and our local businesses to play a home-and-home series with one of the games right here in Columbia.” The overtures, it turns out, had come from Spurrier who suggested the game be played in Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium, home of the National Football League’s Carolina Panthers.

This possibility of (South) Carolina and (North) Carolina playing as rivals on a neutral site is interesting, but it has a lot of problems. It is interesting because the schools do have a history playing each other; they have done so 54 times in football, most of which were when they played in the same conference (the Southern Conference 1922-1952, then the Atlantic Coast Conference 1953-1971). They also have a bit of mutual dislike, not the least of which coming from who rightfully owns the term “Carolina.” Spurrier’s 3-0 record against (North) Carolina as the head coach of the Heels’ most hated rival, Duke, also do not sit well with the powder blue faithful. (North) Carolina fans have not forgotten Spurrier running the score up to 41-0 in their last meeting. The schools are also nice foils of each other: city campus v. town campus, new buildings v. old buildings, conservative reputation v. liberal reputation. But there are some logistical problems to starting, or restarting, a rivalry.

The most prominent issue is the fact that (South) Carolina’s team is far superior to (North) Carolina’s at this point in time. Why should Gamecock fans want to be in a rivalry with a team that will struggle to get a bowl bid? This could be cured by an upset this Saturday or the two teams evening in strength by their second meeting in 2010, but neither is a solution at this point in time.

Maybe the biggest hurdle to clear though will be the discrepancy in (North) Carolina and (South) Carolina fans’ passion for their teams. (South) Carolina’s Williams-Brice Stadium’s average attendance during the Gamecocks 0-11 1999 season was 78,273. (North) Carolina’s Kenan Stadium has a capacity of 60,000 according to its athletics website, yet the only game sold out there more than a few days ahead of time this season was, you guessed it, (South) Carolina. Rivalries work best when both schools’ teams are good and both teams’ fans are passionate. A potential USC-UNC rivalry has neither.

For now, (South) Carolina fans will be happen to stick with Clemson as its sole rival. But if (North) Carolina can get its fans excited about football, improve the team by 2010 or pull off what would be a stunning upset this Saturday, a rivalry could be born. Hyman did say that the door was open to playing more games between the schools after the 2010 meeting, saying “I think it could end up being a healthy rivalry.” He also added that he thinks games between the two would between the two “will be received well in the real Carolina family.” One must ask which “real Carolina family” he was referring to though?

The Real Carolina(s) Prediction: (North) Carolina 31, Virginia 17

The Real Carolina(s) Prediction: (South) Carolina 45, South Carolina State 0