Steve Spurrier knows what a championship football team looks like.

It's heady times in Columbia, as the Gamecocks have their highest ranking in the AP Poll in 28 years. Gerry Melendez/The State/MCT/Getty Images

He coached six of them at Florida and brought the Gators their first official SEC championship in 1991.

Now he's trying to do the same at South Carolina, which has ascended to unprecedented heights the past two seasons under the Head Ball Coach.

The Gamecocks, who take on No. 9 LSU on Saturday in Tiger Stadium, own the nation's longest winning streak at 10 games, which dates back to last season.

South Carolina's No. 3 national ranking is its highest in more than 25 years, and if the Gamecocks can beat the Tigers, it will be the first time in history that they have beaten top-10 teams in back-to-back games after battering then-No. 5 Georgia 35-7 last week.

But as Spurrier has reminded everybody this week, the Gamecocks have run only half the race.

"We've got some high goals," Spurrier said.

This time, they're real goals and not some pipe dream cooked up by a South Carolina fan base that has historically been as delirious with its grandiose expectations as it's been loyal with its support of its team.

The Gamecocks are for real, and to this point, they look like the closest thing to a legitimate contender to Alabama in this league. Granted, that can all change in a matter of a week.