GAME NOTES: Two long time foes headed in opposite directions collide in Columbia this weekend, as the 15th-ranked Clemson Tigers clash with the South Carolina Gamecocks in the 107th meeting of the annual Palmetto State "Braggin' Rights" rivalry at Williams-Brice Stadium.

The Tigers enter the weekend red-hot, as they have won six straight games following just a 2-3 start to the season. Last weekend, Clemson won the ACC's Atlantic Division title thanks to North Carolina's victory over Boston College earlier in the day, but that didn't stop it from coming out and defeating Virginia, 34-21, later on.

"These guys played great, and played through adversity to clinch the ACC Atlantic Division, now let's go to Tampa," said head coach Dabo Swinney.

After years of narrow misses, Clemson is finally going to its first ACC title game, where it will face a highly-ranked Georgia Tech club on December 5th.

As for the Gamecocks, they head into this game on a downward spiral, having fallen in three straight and four of their past five outings. The team recently had a bye following a 24-14 loss to top-ranked Florida on November 14th.

"I'm proud of a lot of guys," said head coach Steve Spurrier following the loss against his former team. "A lot of guys played their hearts out. Unfortunately we didn't play great and had a bunch of turnovers."

South Carolina is now just 6-5 overall on the campaign and could even finish with a losing campaign if it was to suffer a defeat here and in its bowl game.

The Gamecocks and Tigers have a long history against one another and this will be the 107th all-time meeting between the schools and the 101st year in a row they have clashed on the gridiron. Clemson leads the all-time series, 65-37-4, and that includes a 31-14 victory in last season's meeting.

Kyle Parker threw for 234 yards and a pair of touchdowns and the Tigers outlasted Virginia, 34-21, over the weekend. The redshirt freshman completed an efficient 19-of-26 pass attempts, and he continues to get better each week.

"He keeps getting better and better," stated Swinney. "He is growing as a player, and has continued to make smarter plays."

For the season, Parker has now thrown for 2,082 yards, with 18 scores and nine picks. Jacoby Ford has served as his main target, pulling in 45 balls for 654 yards and five touchdowns. The talented wideout played a big factor in the win over Virginia, as he snared six balls for 106 yards and a score.

While Parker and Ford are to terrific players, C.J. Spiller is the most dangerous threat for this offense. The versatile back has rushed for 894 yards and seven touchdowns, while also making 29 catches for 421 yards and four mores score. He is even a tremendous special teams player, having returned three kickoffs and one punt for scores this season. Last weekend, Spiller scored a four-yard touchdown and in the process he established a new ACC single-season all-purpose yardage record with 2,066.

After giving up 233 total yards and 21 points in the first half to Virginia last weekend, Clemson's defense stepped up and held the Cavs to just 40 yards and no points over the final two periods.

"Our staff made great adjustments at halftime, and we challenged then in the second half," said Swinney. "This team never gave up, and they came out in the second half to win this game."

The Tigers finished with seven sacks and a pair of takeaways in the win, as the defense continues to shine. The unit, which is permitting a mere 296.9 total ypg, has made big plays throughout the year and has come up with 20 interceptions, to go with 33 sacks.

DeAndre McDaniel and Rashard Hall are two players opposing quarterbacks need to keep a look out for, as they have eight and five interceptions, respectively, to their credit this season.

Despite Spurrier's presence, the Gamecocks haven't been all that successful on the offensive side of the ball, especially of late. Over the teams last five games, South Carolina is averaging just 12.6 ppg and hasn't scored more than 16 points since tallying 28 against Kentucky on October 10th.

In their last game, the Gamecocks managed just 247 total yards and turned the ball over three times in a 24-14 loss to undefeated Florida. Quarterback Stephen Garcia threw two picks and lost a fumble in the game, as he was pressured heavily and sacked six times by the Gator defense.

"They were blitzing throughout the whole game," said Garcia. "Coach [Steve] Spurrier and Coach [G.A.] Mangus looked at me and said I have to start throwing the ball away. I'm still learning."

The redshirt sophomore finished the game with 186 yards and a touchdown and despite some inconsistent play, he does have a bright future ahead of him. For the season, Garcia has now thrown for 2,607 yards, with 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Freshman receiver Alshon Jeffery also has a promising career ahead and he has developed into Garcia's go-to-target with 39 receptions for 670 yards and six touchdowns.

The missing piece to this offense, however, comes in the backfield, as the Gamecocks are without a go-to back. The team hasn't had much success running the ball in general, averaging just 116.1 ypg thus far.

The Gamecocks' defense has been solid this season and has been especially good versus the pass, allowing only 163.6 ypg and nine touchdowns through the air. The unit has some weaknesses, though, as South Carolina is giving up 145.1 ypg on the ground and has only recorded five interceptions.

Against Florida, the Gamecocks' defense wasn't all that bad, surrendering 339 total yards. The unit had four sacks, but just couldn't come up with a big play, failing to notch a single takeaway.

"A lot of guys played their hearts out tonight, especially our defensive guys in the second half," said Spurrier.

Eric Norwood had just four tackles in the loss, but the linebacker has been terrific for most of the season, leading the team in TFLs (10) and sacks (seven), to go with 66 stops.

Both teams are sound on defense and that should lead to a hard hitting and tight affair this weekend. The Tigers however, have a few more game-changing players, including Spiller, and that should help them defeat the Gamecocks.