TAMPA, Fla. -- The fearless high school senior turns to the politically correct sophomore, who stares at the repentant prisoner, who in turn faces the questioning in-limbo freshman, who stares at the locker room comedian.

Which is the real Stephen Garcia?

Since that infamous day two years ago when he was officially introduced to South Carolina's passionate fans, Garcia's name and face have been icons etched in gold, a legend in their eyes before he ever set foot on campus. But which one is he?

The (should that be in capital letters?) quarterback the Gamecocks have been waiting for, the one to take them to elusive conference championships? The ponytailed, brash pre-frosh who beamed his commitment ceremony live from his high school over the Internet? The dark and mysterious off-the-field honor roll student, who loves watching Greek war epic movies, collects swords and was nicknamed, "Achilles?"

The shackled and subdued detainee, head down, mumbling through a lawyer to a judge? The wasted-potential ne'er do well, who was kicked out of school after one tumultuous calendar year and told not to come back until he got his act together?

Or now, the quiet enjoyer of his new status, hair almost buzz-cut, chinstrap beard re-growing, earnestly discussing his latest chance? The bright-eyed newbie eager to reclaim his starting role, after solid mid-season performances pushed him into a spot some say he should have had ever since the day he walked on campus?

In three days, Garcia will lead the Gamecocks against Iowa in the Outback Bowl, playing before scores of family and friends a stone's throw from where this full-circle journey began.

Stephen Garcia is USC's quarterback, coach Steve Spurrier has insisted ever since the curtain fell on a Garcia-less 31-14 loss at Clemson to close the regular season. He'll get his chance.

The latest one, that is.

And this time, Garcia says he's ready to fully embrace it. Don't let this one go, he seems to be saying, because too many missed opportunities have already slipped through.

"I had to mature pretty quick," Garcia said when he was first announced as the Gamecocks' starter. "I did some dumb things when I got up here. I wasn't aware of how big this was. It was pretty tough, pretty overwhelming at first.

"But I've definitely figured out how it all works out. I'm just trying to keep a low profile as much as possible."

Impossible. Impossible then, impossible now.

"He was a character," said one of Garcia's brothers, 27-year-old Brian Garcia. "One that you always wanted around at family parties. You just had to watch what he does."

Seven years senior to Stephen, one of four boys in a five-child family, Brian and his brother Gary used to stand in amazement as their little brother would come out for a few games of longtoss and begin to sting their hands with the football. Stephen was 10 then, yet throwing the ball hard enough to make an impact on his two brothers, each of whom played defensively at Harvard.

Brian and Gary encouraged it. Although they were defenders, raised to make quarterbacks' lives miserable, they saw the gift Stephen had in his right arm.

"My brother and I both played defense, you know, so we were like, 'Kill the quarterback,'" Brian said. "We used to give him a little bit of (stuff) because he was playing quarterback and we were so defensive-minded."

The football talent was genetic, passed down through the bloodline. But Stephen always seemed to have that other level, that "it" that points toward greatness.

That was the origin. Even at 10, with the ball in his hands, Stephen Garcia exhibited a fearlessness necessary for the game and his position.

"Confidence and cockiness are two utterly different things," Brian said. "He wasn't cocky, but he knew he had talent. I thought he was and is a confident person. He still knows who he is."

Mike Fenton knew Stephen Garcia. Knew him since he was a 10-year-old. Knew he'd shown a lot of potential, even at a young age.

Knew he could be a leader.

"As a 9th-grader, he was very, very good," said Fenton, the football coach at Jefferson (Fla.) High School, Garcia's alma mater. "He didn't start as a 9th-grader. We did have him on varsity. He got in a few games here and there."

Everything changed the next year.

Garcia was splitting time at the season's dawn but soon took over the role. As a sophomore, he stepped in and didn't step out until graduation.

"He took us to the state championship that year," Fenton said. "Probably when he really, really grew up and almost played a perfect football game was the state semifinals against Miami Monsignor Pace. The very first drive, we started on our own 20. We went no-huddle, almost a perfect series that he conducted. After that first drive, I felt real good about that game.

"The whole team kind of jumped on his back at that point."

Directing a team that sent several players to college football, Garcia was the center of the offensive attack. Through his three years of high school, he threw for 8,081 yards and 83 touchdowns, rushing for 1,345 yards and another 17 scores.

But as good as he was on the field, he seemed to be better off it. An honor roll student who sacrificed his downtime to help with charities and community projects, Garcia seemed to be the kind of child that's clearly a heaven-sent blessing. Yes, he looked like a rebel – the hair wasn't cut for two years and became his distinctive characteristic.

Looks can be deceiving, though.

"Not a bit," Fenton said, asked if he ever had to discipline Garcia. "Rebellious? Not applicable to him at all.

"I think the hair was just the way he did things. When he got on the field, he was so competitive and wanted to win so badly, maybe that was why some people called it rebellious. But I never had a problem out of him. Never once."

The profile was eagerly discussed among USC's rabid fan base. Garcia was a gunslinger, a face to build a program behind, a talented, confident player. The comparisons to another Gamecock great, Steve Taneyhill, began almost immediately.

When Garcia committed live from his high school library, removing his shirt and tie to reveal a black USC T-shirt, Gamecock Nation rejoiced. Surely this would be the one, the player they had been waiting on to achieve that long-awaited dream of constant championships.

"Oh, sure," said USC's Chris Culliver, like Garcia a recruit that year. "I remember hearing all about him. And then I got to meet him at the all-star game."

Culliver described Garcia then and now in the same words. Funny. Talented. Smart. A character.

"He keeps us cracking up in the locker room," Culliver said.

In January of 2007, Stephen Garcia's college career began.

The trouble. It's been repeated ad nauseum since Garcia arrived.

Then again, it was so frequent and so out-of-character that it really had to be.

"I had to mature pretty quick," Garcia said. "I did some dumb things when I got up here. I wasn't aware of how big this was. It was pretty tough, pretty overwhelming at first. But I've definitely figured out how it all works out. I'm just trying to keep a low profile as much as possible."

Getting back into school was the first step toward redemption. Getting onto the field was the second.

But once it finally happened, it became so much easier.

"I'm just happy for the opportunity," Garcia said after a 24-17 win over Kentucky, keyed by him replacing Chris Smelley in the fourth quarter and leading the comeback.

"Yeah, we've got to let Stephen play now," Spurrier said then. "He's earned it."

That Stephen Garcia was the expected one. It seemed to be preordained that he would remain under center for the duration, until he was knocked around against LSU a week later and Spurrier played musical quarterbacks for the rest of the regular season.

In a 31-14 loss to Clemson that ended the slate, Garcia stood on the sideline trying to keep warm as Smelley played the entire game. Once it was over, Spurrier announced that wherever the Gamecocks went for a bowl game, Garcia would start and get the chance to play the whole game.

It seemed like destiny, in a sense. Garcia would get another chance in his hometown, in front of family and friends, to lead the Gamecocks to a huge victory on New Year's Day. Then USC decided to practice at Jefferson, giving Garcia another homecoming.

It couldn't have been scripted any better.

"It really couldn't," said Fenton, who gave Garcia his old locker once USC showed up at Jefferson. "It seems like a dream come true for him."

USC's other players have spoken of Garcia's enthusiasm this week, from playing in Tampa to practicing at Jefferson to simply getting his shot at being the Gamecocks' permanent quarterback. They've also said how enjoyable Garcia has been throughout the time they've known him.

Larry Freeman: "He's always cutting up, keeping us entertained."

Kenny McKinley: "Garcia? Yeah, he's a funny dude."

Moe Brown: "Got to keep an eye on that guy."

Mike Davis: "He can really cheer you up if you're feeling bad."

This week, Garcia spoke at length of being back home and taking advantage of his latest chance. He was open and approachable about anything, including Spurrier's jibes at him ("Any of you guys ever hear Stephen Garcia say he wants to work as hard as Tim Tebow, tap me on the shoulder and let me know," was a classic uttered last week) and the almost-derailment of his entire career.

"I'm just happy to be back out there and playing for a bowl," Garcia said. "Very excited. Had to get a few tickets for some people. But it's going to be fun, very fun."

The other stories are history. The other faces are turned away. The other sides of his personality have been processed into the latest incarnation.

This is hopefully the one that sticks.

"He is one of the few that gets to do what he's doing," Brian Garcia said. "He's still the same Stephen I've known for many years. He knows what's expected. He's totally expected the role and relished in it, with pure and utter enjoyment and excitement."

"He's doing well," Spurrier said.

"He's having a lot of fun out there," said another teammate, linebacker Marvin Sapp.

They're all chiming in on the topic.

Some that would call him son or brother. Some that would call him pal. Some that would call him student. Many that would call him Chosen.

He is neither. He is Stephen Glenn Garcia. Starting quarterback, University of South Carolina.

No more. No less.

At last.