In sports, there’s something about the way certain numbers can elicit feelings.
A 1,004-yard rusher feels much different than a 985-yard rusher. The difference between a .301 and .298 hitter feels larger than 3/10ths of one percent. This might come through most vividly in football records, especially college football.
Going 7-5 feels much different than 8-4, and 9-3 or 10-2, in turn, feels different as well.
With a win against Florida on Saturday, South Carolina is in the driver’s seat to reach at least eight wins (give or take a game against FCS No. 8 Wofford).