The Head Ball Coach has never been shy about verbally jabbing his opponents. In this case, Steve Spurrier took a swipe at a team he's not playing: Northwestern.

Spurrier's South Carolina Gamecocks will play Michigan in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1. For a while, it looked like Northwestern would be South Carolina's opponent, but the Wildcats fell to the Gator Bowl in the Big Ten pecking order. In talking about the game Sunday night, Spurrier had this to say about the matchup:

"If you beat or you get beat by Northwestern, you don't achieve as much as playing Michigan with their stature, tradition and reputation," Spurrier said. "It's something special."

Northwestern went 9-3 this season, compared to 8-4 for Michigan. But the Wolverines beat the Wildcats in overtime.

You can't really argue Spurrier's point, that Michigan has more tradition and historical stature than Northwestern. But he might be one of the only coaches who would have made that point so bluntly.

There will definitely be a contrast in styles between the coaches at the Outback Bowl, as Michigan's Brady Hoke rarely says anything that could be considered the least bit inflammatory.