SACRAMENTO — South Carolina has climbed enough ladders to make it look easy.
The program has a system for cutting down nets. Under the Gamecocks’ aptly named director of player development Freddy Ready—the man works to be prepared for everything—no one has to ask who climbs the ladder next or which piece of nylon should be snipped after this one. Freshmen go first. Everyone gets one linear segment of net, except for graduating seniors, who are given the privilege of cutting out a whole diamond. The whole thing is run with workmanlike efficiency. It’s still a celebration. But it’s a modest, perfunctory one, the equivalent of enjoying a slice of office birthday cake before getting right back to work.
