South Carolina is not considered a Championship Mode game. The rivalry games (Tennessee, LSU, Georgia, FSU), SEC Championship Games, and BCS National Championship Games are the Championship Mode games. South Carolina qualifies as a Championship Mode game due to the circumstances of this season. It's only a Championship Mode game if something is at stake or if there is an emergency. In the video below, Jarvis Moss demonstrates a response to an Emergency in Championship Mode.
Saturday's game is an Emergency in Championship Mode. Events have conspired to create what is normally an insignificant game into a massive game. South Carolina has never won the SEC East, and after beating Alabama, they seemed destined to finally get to Atlanta. But they have crapped the bed against Kentucky and Arkansas to set up this game. Florida looked like a high school team and still looks like a high school team at some points. But their three losses can be erased by getting to Atlanta and winning the division in a season in which they don't deserve to win anything.
Urban Meyer understands that for this season, winning the division is a big deal. Urban wants fans to be "intense" on Saturday and participate in a Blue Out. With that in mind, let us revisit the Rules of Championship Mode, especially in how they will apply for Saturday's game.
1. Championship Mode requires you to wear lucky clothes. If your lucky shirt is not blue, don't feel forced to wear blue. Wear your lucky shirt. It is more important to bring luck than to look like 90,000 other people. In my case, I have a blue Championship Mode shirt that I wear for Tennessee games. (It's also the same shirt I wore for the Lightning's Game 7 win in the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals.) You probably have a blue shirt that is good luck. If not, don't worry about it. If your lucky hat isn't blue, you should still wear it. Be lucky, not trendy.
2. Urban correctly asks fans to be intense. This brings up a point of controversy when it comes to Championship Mode; you cannot be drunk. I maintain that you shouldn't be buzzed either. It doesn't matter which side you fall on this, the fact is that drunks are not intense fans. They are intense drunks. Try to pace your drinking (and the drinking of your friends), especially since this is a 7:15pm kickoff.
3. We all know one person who is attending the game, but not into the game. Kindly remind this asshole that we are playing for a division title. If they want to screw around on their phone or flirt with chicks, they can do that another time. This person may become very defensive when confronted about his lack of commitment, but remember that you are doing the right thing by calling him out. During Championship Mode games, you have to be all in or don't show up.
If you're not at the game, but watching at home with friends or at a bar, the same rules apply. The guy flirting with all the chicks at the party, including your wife, while you watch the game? Not in Championship Mode. Tell him to leave. The dude posting up at the bar, waving around his iPhone and being an ass to the bartender? Not in Championship Mode. Box him out like you're Al Horford and get that bucket of beers for your table. This isn't rocket science, people. It is a science, but more like an earth science.
Remember, when you're in Championship Mode, you really can impact the game. Use that power correctly and you can help Florida win on Saturday, even in an emergency.