Joe L. HUGHES II LEDGER STAFF WRITER As if there are not enough signs of this world’s imminent demise, the gods gave us another jolt alerting us of who truly is in control.

The University of South Carolina — national champions.

Hasn’t sunk in yet, has it? I know I likely won’t be able to come to grips with this fact ’til the first week of August and the beginning of football training camp.

After all, for as long as many of us can remember, the Gamecocks have been known as the “lovable loser,” cherished by some of the nation’s greatest fans who, despite their failings year after year in sports, remain beside their team in the belief next season is the program’s time to shine.

Fielding athletic teams since the late 19th century, the school had on only one occasion the opportunity to celebrate a championship prior to Tuesday night.

In 2002, South Carolina’s women’s outdoor track and field team returned to Columbia with the hardware, claiming the school’s first NCAA championship in its history. However, aside from a total of five titles this decade earned by its women’s equestrian team, currently a varsity sport in intercollegiate athletics, that winning feeling has seemed to elude fans of the Gamecocks and the university’s athletic programs.

That elusion has particularly been true for the men’s teams, which have spent the better part of their history fighting for respectability while time after time trying to shed memories of past heartache.

Through the years, the legend of a “Chicken Curse” that many claims was placed on the university by former S.C. Gov. Ben Tillman, had gained steam with every year of futility by the Gamecocks. Strongly lobbying for the creation of an agricultural institution for the Palmetto State, Tillman, according to legend, slammed a pitchfork into University of South Carolina soil when offered resistance by state legislators of the time, declaring the school cursed.

Whether you believe legends or not, a number of odd results and circumstances through the years had forced many within the state to take the story of the “Chicken Curse” as fact.

How else can you explain the 1984 debacle that was the top-ranked Gamecocks’ loss to Navy? The football team, which had been nicknamed “Black Magic,” walked into Annapolis as a huge favorite and in line for a shot at the national title. Instead, it left with a 38-21 loss at the hands of the U.S. Naval Academy squad, killing any dreams of a happy ending for Carolina backers.

For the school’s baseball program, the wounds of failed opportunities lingered a little closer to the present. Topranked and heavily favored to make a trip to Omaha, Neb., and the NCAA College World Series, the 2000 team had the entire deck stacked in its favor as it prepared for three games in Columbia against Louisiana Lafayette.

A weekend which seemed full of promise would turn into a nightmare as South Carolina was upset by the Ragin’ Cajuns 3-2 with their seasons and aspirations of a championship on the line.

Oddly enough, the Gamecocks would make trips to Omaha and famed Rosenblatt Stadium several times during the course of the past decade, including consecutive appearances between 2002-’04. However, each appearance seemed to reap the same old result — disappointment.

The 21st century has been quite kind to curses (well, except for the Chicago Cubs).

In the past 10 years, we have seen the Boston Red Sox put the “Curse of the Babe (Ruth)“ to bed by winning two World Series titles in three years, in addition to the Chicago White Sox ending an 88-year championship drought in 2005. Last month, the National Hockey League’s Chicago Blackhawks ended 49 years of futility in earning the franchise’s first Stanley Cup since 1961.

With such odd occurrences taking place, it became increasingly apparent that South Carolina was due.

It’s amazing how one day, or for that matter a couple of hours, can change the conscience of a group of people. As Whit Merrifield’s RBI single drifted past the UCLA infield and into the Rosenblatt Stadium grass, you could almost hear a collective sigh of relief from the elder Gamecock fans and an exuberant scream from those of the younger generation.

Finally, South Carolina ... it’s your turn.

Whether the “Chicken Curse” is dead or not is up to pundits to break down and examine over the course of time. One thing it has done is brought out the inner optimist of those backing South Carolina athletics, believing now since the “veil” has been lifted that all teams wearing garnet and black can enjoy similar success as the recent title-winning baseball club.

“We’re going to win nine games (in football), easy,” a friend of mine that happens to be a fellow Columbia native and Winthrop University graduate and obviously a Gamecock fan, said. “Honestly, we should win 10 games in my opinion. This is our year.”

I’ve heard that before. It has been the sentiment of the school’s athletic programs for decades now. Then again, it’s not every day you are floating on cloud nine as the result of celebrating a national title.

Congratulations University of South Carolina — 2010 NCAA Baseball National Champions. Bask in the glow of a job well done, it is well deserved.

Also remember though that football season is right around the corner ... the sport that really matters in the South.

See you in September.

Joe L. Hughes II (joe@gaffneyledger.com) writes feature and enterprise stories for The Gaffney Ledger.