BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier knows how to work a room.

After showing up several minutes late, seemingly to pique anticipation for his arrival, the rock star of SEC coaches entered the ballroom of the Wynfrey Hotel on Thursday during SEC Media Days. Once inside, his droll replies to reporters ’ queries were the source of many media members’ guffaws.

When asked to offer his opinion on the permanent 12-game schedule, Spurrier thought it was much ado about nothing.

“ I watch basketball, girls basketball, they’ll play four straight nights at the SEC Tournament, ” Spurrier said. “ I don’t hear them [expletive ] and complaining that they’re playing too much. ”

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Known to poor-mouth his team, Spurrier said since taking the South Carolina job last year his opinion about the viability of a playoff system in college football is irrelevant.

“ Well, I don’t have to worry about that playoff anymore, ” Spurrier said, alluding to the Gamecocks’ current status as a non-contender for the national championship. “ I remember [former SEC ] Commissioner [Roy ] Kramer here back in about 1990. I said, ‘ Why do you want a playoff for the SEC championship but you don’t want one for the national ?’

“ He just looked at me funny. He couldn’t answer it either. He didn’t have the answer for that one. ”

When ESPN’s Holly Rowe asked Spurrier how he handles quarterbacks in the offseason, Spurrier’s response elicited a collective chuckle from the crowd.

“ That’s against the rules, ” Spurrier said. “ You can’t sit with your quarterbacks during the off-season. They have certain hours and so forth. ”

Spurrier also made light of South Carolina’s dearth of championships in its more than 100 years of playing football.

“ Obviously all of you know South Carolina’s tradition, ” Spurrier said. “ Our trophy case has got an Outback Bowl championship in it, and that’s the biggest one. ”

Tennessee Volunteers coach Phillip Fulmer said he doesn’t want to relive his team’s 2005 season, which saw Tennessee (5-6, 3-5 ) not go bowling for the first time since 1988. “ My wife is a great coach’s wife, ” Fulmer said. “ I told some of the local guys this. She said, ‘ Phillip, you’re spoiled. ’ We were talking about it after the season. I guess in some ways, you know, I was. She said, ‘ Sometimes to really enjoy the peaks, you’ve got to have a valley. ’

“ I’ve had enough. I understand. I have a greater appreciation for things. Don’t take anything for granted whatsoever, but I don’t want another season like that one ever again.

“ I think it’s one thing if somebody is just a lot better than you. That wasn’t necessarily the case. It was our own things that caused our issues in a lot of cases. ”

Fulmer said off-the-field issues and players focused on individual accolades were partially responsible for Tennessee’s disappointing season.

“ We don’t have that attitude right now, ” Fulmer said. “ Our attitude right now is, as I said, fired up and focused and prepared to be a good team, not a good group of individuals, but a good team. ”

Fulmer will be reunited with his former UT quarterbacks coach David Cutcliffe. Cutcliffe was the head coach at Ole Miss before being fired after the 2004 season. “ David has the great track record of having coached a number of really great quarterbacks, ” Fulmer said. “ That helps, that he comes in with that kind of pedigree. Our 17 years together previous to him coming back to Tennessee is a real plus in that we understand each other very well. ”

Ole Miss On national signing day, Ole Miss head coach Ed Orgeron named former Tennessee quarterback Brent Schaeffer as the Rebels’ starting signal caller. Schaeffer missed spring practice, as he was still enrolled in junior college trying to gain enough credits to matriculate at Ole Miss. Orgeron said Schaeffer will join the team as soon he completes his junior college course work.

“ If everything goes as planned, Brent should report with the team on Aug. 3, ” Orgeron said. “ Brent is going to be our starting quarterback. We’re excited about Brent. He brings an excitement to our football team, something that we need in our offense.

“ He’ll be able to make plays on his own, he’ll be able to run the football when he’s being pressured. That’s what I like about him. He’s going to fit in well in the offense. ”