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Garcia's awakening: It was the first time that Stephen Garcia had gone through a spring practice at South Carolina, and he at last looked the part of a starting quarterback. Garcia played with more poise, more maturity and took it upon himself to be a leader on offense. The trick now is taking that approach into the fall against SEC defenses.

Immediate help: The Gamecocks won't have to wait long to see what they have in cornerback Stephon Gilmore, safety DeVonte Holloman and running back Jarvis Giles. All three true freshmen enrolled early and made their presence felt this spring. There's a chance that all three could end up starting at some point next season.

New blood on offense: Steve Spurrier overhauled his offensive coaching staff, and a big emphasis this spring was placed on establishing the right kind of mentality up front in the offensive line and beefing up the running game. Spurrier liked what he saw along those lines with Eric Wolford, the Gamecocks' new running game coordinator and offensive line coach.