University of South Carolina senior
quarterback Stephen Garcia has been dismissed from the football team, it
was announced today.
"Being a student-athlete at the
University of South Carolina is a privilege, not a right," said
Athletics Director Eric Hyman, "and we remind all of our
student-athletes that there are consequences for their actions. For
Stephen to return to and remain with the football squad this fall, we
agreed on several established guidelines. Unfortunately, he has not been
able to abide by those guidelines and has therefore forfeited his
position on the roster. We wish him the best of luck as he moves forward
in life."
"We are all saddened that this has
occurred," said head coach Steve Spurrier. "We all feel like
we've given Stephen numerous opportunities to be a student-athlete here
at South Carolina. Obviously, he has chosen not to follow the guidelines
of his reinstatement contract. We wish him the best."
Garcia finishes his career with 7,597
passing yards, completing 589-of-1021 passes (57.7 percent), with 47
touchdowns and 41 interceptions. He became the third quarterback in
school history to throw for more than 7,500 yards in a career, and also
ranks third on the all-time charts in pass attempts, pass completions
and passing touchdowns. He posted a 20-14 record as a starting
quarterback. This season, he was 61-of-118 (51.7 percent) for 844 yards
with four touchdowns and nine interceptions in five games.
