dailygamecock.com UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
VOL. 114, NO. 58 • SINCE 1908
THURSDAY, APRIL 17, 2014
Wilson taking her talents to South Carolina
Courtesy of MCT Campus
Heathwood Hall’s A’ja Wilson, the No. 1 women’s basketball recruit in the country, announced live on ESPNU Wednesday that she would play at South Carolina.
Nation’s No. 1 recruit chooses Gamecocks over 3 other schools Thad Moore & Danny Garrison SPORTS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
A’ja Wilson was sitting with her family Tuesday night when she made her decision. The nation’s top women’s basketball recruit was working on her
senior paper about Title IX. Mom was in her recliner; dad was on the couch. The family had been ignoring the elephant in the room, said her mother, Eva Wilson: the next day, A’ja would be announcing her college plans live on ESPNU, the last of the country’s top 100 recruits to do so. In the days before, she grew quiet, thinking through her options and praying.
“I looked at her, she looked at me, she looked at him, and she said, ‘The lord has led me to South Carolina,’” Eva Wilson said. The next day, A’ja would say it again, calling South Carolina coach Dawn Staley to tell her she’d made up her mind. The hushed tones of their conversation turned into screams from Staley and her staff. A’ja said the noise made her ears
Andy Grammer chats before concert Pop-rock singer-songwriter coming to USC this Thursday Erika Ryan
MIX@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
After months of speculation, it’s fi nally here — Carolina Product ion’s spring concer t w ill be ton ight at t he Koger Center, a nd A ndy Gr a m mer w i l l be headlining with opener Ben Rector. Grammer and Rector’s performance is set to start at 7 p.m. and admission is free for USC students, faculty and staff. Tickets are available at the Russell House information desk and the Koger Center box office with a valid CarolinaCard. Grammer is a singer-songwriter who specializes in pop rock, and his crowdpleasing sounds have been enjoyed by college students for years. Before ma k i ng h is way to ca mpus, G r a m m e r c h a t t e d w it h T h e D a i l y Gamecock about his upcoming album, married life and much more:
See page 5 DG
Equestrian gears up for national championships after taking SEC title SEE PAGE 8
ring. And at 3:30 in the afternoon, she said it one last time, live on national TV in the gym where she’d led Heathwood Ha l l Episcopa l School to a st ate championship. Off air, she ran to the people she’d thanked a few minutes earlier — to her WILSON • 8
Former Gamecock editor wins Pulitzer USC alumnus Michael LaForgia won this year’s Pulitzer Prize for local reporting for his work at the Tampa Bay Times. LaForgia, who was t he editorin-chief of The Gamecock in 2005, and Will Hobson won the award for “their relentless investigation into squalid conditions” in housing for the homeless, the Pulitzer committee announced this week. The series was also edited by Chris Davis, a 1995 USC graduate who is the Tampa Bay Times’ investigations editor, LaForgia said on Twitter. The Tampa Bay Times says that LaForgia and Hobson’s reporting led to the “most significant” reform of social services in Hillsborough County, Fla., in years. It also led to the resignation of the chairman of the Tampa Port Authority. — Compiled by Thad Moore, Editor-in-Chief
Homecoming theme revealed Annual celebration to be ‘The Cockiest Show on Earth’ Hannah Richardson
NEWS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
The Homecoming Execut ive Board got a head start on homecoming f e s t i v it ie s t h i s y e a r a nd announced next year’s theme Wednesday. The t heme for t he next
homecoming is “The Cockiest Show on Earth,” w h ic h w i l l b e a v i nt a g e circus. Popcorn and cotton candy were handed out to passersby on Greene Street to promote the theme. This year’s homecoming will be held from Oct. 11 through Oct. 18. “It is kind of like a ‘Water for Elephants’ circus, not the modern-day circus,” firstyear visual communications student Melissa Bugeski said.
The homecoming board has just 12 members, w h i le t h e Ho m e c o m i n g C om m i s s ion h a s s e ver a l s t u d e nt s t h at he lp w it h var ious event s du r i ng Homecoming. “ We have a lot of new events this year,” Bugesk i said, “A ll of us are really excited about homecoming.” T he boa rd spent a few day s t h row i ng out idea s for t he t heme l i ke “ T he Great Gatsby” and various
throwback themes, before they eventually narrowed it down to their pick. “This year, we are going to integrate more decorations, so students really understand the theme and use it in all of t he events,” t hird-year publ ic rel at ion s s t udent Kayla Alexander said.
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