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Scott has followed Gamecock sports for more than 30 years and provides commentary from a fan perspective. His columns appear on GamecockCentral.com each Monday during football season and other times throughout the year.

Admit it: You enjoyed this weekend, didn’t you?

No Gamecock football, no problem.

I carved a jack-o-lantern on Saturday, took an autumn drive with my wife into the North Georgia hills, and settled into my trusty den chair for some worry-free, non-USC football (NOTE: Good luck making even a smidgen of sense regarding Carolina’s 2020 season after Auburn rolled up LSU to the tune of 48-11. Huh? Whatever.)

When you’re a Gamecock fan, Bye Weeks work like a hot bubble bath. They clean the pores, help you sweat out all the toxins, soothe the muscles, help you sleep again. Best of all, they always arrive right at the moment when you need them the most.

We’re here. It’s officially the halfway point of this weird, pandemic-shortened 2020 football campaign, and at 2-3, South Carolina is who we thought they were, to borrow from the late Dennis Green. Neither hideous nor amazing, the Gamecocks are doing what many prognosticators believed they’d be doing this season – occasionally overachieving, occasionally underachieving, occasionally doing both at the same time. Just about anything’s possible with this group.

A 6-4 finish is in sight. So is a 2-8 finish. Where it ultimately lands is anyone’s best guess, and I’ve given up trying to figure things out.

Instead, I’m taking stock at midyear, checking back in on what’s working, what’s not and wondering where we might go from here. In fact, I feel like commemorating the moment by handing out some awards. Can you hand out awards when your team is 2-3 after five games? I don’t see why not. Anything goes in 2020, right?

Roll out the red carpet and join me as we announce the Midseason Oscars – affectionately known as the Middies – to lucky winners for your South Carolina Gamecocks and their friends around the SEC.

Best Actor – To Vanderbilt’s version of the “It’s another Carolina…FIRST DOWN!!!!” Guy. I’ve always enjoyed the “It’s another Carolina…FIRST DOWN!!!” Guy, whether I’m hearing him in person or through the speakers on my television set. And he’s had yet another stellar campaign in 2020, particularly getting amped up for the “It’ssssssssssssssssssssss THIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRD DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN!!!!” call. But I couldn’t give him the Best Actor Middie for one simple reason: I don’t think he’s acting. I think he actually cares about what’s happening on the field in front of him. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt’s version of the IACFD Guy was screaming “It’sssssssssssss Thirrrrrrrrrd Doooooooooooooown!!!” in front of an empty stadium, in the rain, during a game the Commodores were losing by nearly five touchdowns to a mediocre South Carolina team back in Week 3. Even Robert DeNiro was jealous of that call. Other nominees: SC coach Will Muschamp pretending to be Russell Crowe in “Gladiator” during his “We won the game in Tuesday!” postgame victory speech in the locker room after the Auburn game; Texas A&M’s administration pretending their games are socially distanced even though roughly 250,000 people attended the A&M-Florida game; a seething Auburn coach Gus Malzahn pretending to congratulate his former assistant Muschamp after the Gamecocks upset the Tigers; the referees at the beginning of the South Carolina-LSU game pretending the spectators were there to watch them work as they threw an absurd nine flags in the first 12 minutes of the contest.

Best Supporting Actor – To running back Deshaun Fenwick, who’s evolved into a reliable change-of-pace back behind starter and All-SEC candidate Kevin Harris. Fenwick has compiled 208 yards on 36 carries for a crisp 5.8 yards-per-carry average thus far, and though there are plenty of areas where the Gamecocks can improve in the second half, the running game looks surprisingly locked in. Other nominees: First-year offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, whose unit may not be setting the world on fire, but looks strikingly more organized and efficient than it did in recent seasons; SEC Network color analyst D.J. Shockley, for suggesting during a broadcast that Zoom might be responsible for all the bad defense being played in the league this year; every SEC stadium’s “Guy Who Pipes in Fake Crowd Noise Because No One is Here” sound technician; every cardboard cutout pretending to be an actual fan in every SEC stadium.

Best Picture – To the freeze-frame of Shi Smith’s ludicrous one-handed, falling-down catch against Auburn, which I paused on my television and looked at for 12 minutes to make sure it was real. Other nominees: Every sideline shot of a grimacing Lane Kiffin on the Ole Miss sidelines as he watches the Rebel defense get torched; every sideline shot of Vandy coach Derek Mason standing motionless like a department store mannequin while his team loses by 12 touchdowns; the freeze-frame of Gus Malzahn shaking hands with Will Muschamp after the Auburn game and pretending to congratulate him, which I paused on my television and looked at for 12 minutes to make sure it was real.

Best Song – “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd, which I listened to on my headphones during an upbeat jaunt around my neighborhood after the Gamecocks upset Auburn. On the flip side…

Worst Song – “Hurt”, the Johnny Cash version, which I listened to on my headphones during a soul-searching walk around my neighborhood after the LSU game. Other nominees: “Tonight I Wanna Cry” by Keith Urban; “Everybody Hurts” by R.E.M.; “Hard Habit to Break” by Chicago. Speaking of worsts….

Worst Picture – To the freeze-frame of Tennessee players pouncing on a fumbled punt to preserve their slender lead in the waning moments of the SC-UT game, which I paused on my television and looked at for 12 minutes to make sure it was real, then when I confirmed it was, punched a hole through the sheetrock in my den. Other nominees: Every shot of a cackling Dan Mullen on the sidelines of Florida’s win against South Carolina; the footage of LSU’s kickoff touchdown return against South Carolina; the footage of LSU’s Pick Six against South Carolina; every freeze-frame of any moment at any time during the South Carolina-LSU game; every angry text message I received or sent through my iPhone during the LSU game.

Worst Statistics – To the pass-catching totals for anyone on the South Carolina offense other than Shi Smith. Um, let’s move on, shall we? Other nominees: Quarterback Collin Hill being sacked 16 times in five games along the way to compiling -38 yards in rushing for the 2020 season; Time of Possession and Total Penalty Yards no longer being meaningful statistics as the Gamecocks have actually outperformed their opponents in both categories thus far and are 2-3; the 256 times the ESPN announcers mentioned that South Carolina hadn’t beaten Auburn since joining the SEC nearly three decades ago; the seemingly infinite number of times South Carolina will attempt a field goal late in a game while losing by a touchdown or more.

Worst SEC Trend – Florida no longer being a team I feel South Carolina could beat on a semi-regular basis. Other nominees: Tennessee being just slightly better than South Carolina at the moment; neither Kentucky nor Missouri being quite as bad as I’d like them to be; LSU playing poorly against every SEC opponent except South Carolina; no one in the SEC being particularly good at defense.

Steve Spurrier Lifetime Achievement Award for Most Frustrating Opponent – Florida’s Kyles – quarterback Kyle Trask and tight end Kyle Pitt – who tormented the Gamecock defense in Week 2. Other nominees: Deeply mediocre Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano guiding his team to two consecutive wins over South Carolina; Auburn quarterback Bo Nix escaping 173 different tackles during the fourth quarter while nearly leading a comeback against USC; Dan Mullen doing Dan Mullen things; the ESPN College GameDay crew gleefully picking against South Carolina each week.

And on that note, we’ll wrap the inaugural production of the 2020 Middie Awards. Who knows, maybe next year we can get Todd Ellis to host this thing and hold a broadcast at Seawell’s at the Fairgrounds. Might as well dream big.

And as long as we’re dreaming big…is 7-3 too much to ask? And the Middie for “Best Dream” goes to…

Tell me who won your Midseason Oscars or anything else on your mind by writing me at scottdavis@gamecockcentral.com.