Spurrier presser quick hitters

[rl]

South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier spoke with the media following Saturday's UCF game. Here are the highlights of what he had to say.

- Spurrier was effusive in his praise of Lorenzo Nunez. "I think he played better than we all anticipated," he said. "Lorenzo Nunez threw the ball better than everybody thought. He completely some nice passes. He later added, "He's a gamer. I think we learned that."

- On Nunez's touchdown pass to Jacob August, Nunez went away from the primary target Pharoh Cooper to find the open receiver. "I told the guys up top he's smarter than we are," Spurrier sad. "We thought he was going to throw to Pharoh but August was wide open."

- Spurrier did not mind that Nunez carried the ball 18 times. "When you have a quarterback who can run, he runs about as much as the halfback. That's what they tell me anyway. I've never had a quarterback like (Nunez)."

- Nunez's first start led to a change in coaching responsibilities. G.A. Mangus called plays from the booth in the first half. Spurrier took over the "half or most" of the play-calling in the second half. Spurrier wanted Mangus calling plays because he is more familiar with running quarterbacks. Mangus replaced Steve Spurrier, Jr. in the press box. Spurrier said Shawn Elliott also called plays.

- Spurrier said the win meant a lot toward getting the season back on track. "We didn't realize what a big win this was going to be for us."

- He praised the UCF defense. "Their D-line is one of the best we'll face"