Steve Spurrier to Retire: Twitter Reacts to Coach's Reported Decision | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

When one of the most legendary head coaches of his era chooses to step down, it's bound to create quite a buzz on social media. Sports Illustrated's Thayer Evans reported Monday night that South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier will retire, and he will do so with immediate effect, per the SEC Network.

Spurrier is 70 years old, and the Gamecocks are just 2-4 this season and unlikely to finish with a winning record. Still, his resignation comes as a bit of a surprise if only for the fact that he isn't waiting for the end of the year.

Gamecocks quarterback Connor Mitch appeared shocked by the abrupt nature of the news, tweeting, "Man it's been a crazy day."

Yahoo Sports' Dan Wetzel joked the "Head Ball Coach" likely already has plans for his first day of retirement:

Dan Wetzel @DanWetzel

Spurrier just walking away is classic Spurrier. Probably has an 8 a.m. tee time. No time for memories.

Spurrier is unquestionably one of the greatest college coaches of the 1990s and 2000s. Should he truly be done, he'll walk away with a career record of 228-89-2 and one national championship to his name. ESPN Stats & Info put his incredible consistency into perspective:

ESPN Stats & Info @ESPNStatsInfo

Of the 26 seasons Spurrier was a head coach, 2 of them finished below .500. This year and 1st year in 1987 at Duke.

NFL Network's Albert Breer added this about Spurrier's overall legacy:

Albert Breer @AlbertBreer

Florida wasn't Florida until Spurrier became HC. And the idea of South Carolina being a Top 10 team once would've gotten you laughed at.

Jadeveon Clowney spoke to that legacy as he thanked Spurrier for his contributions to the game:

Smart Football's Chris B. Brown provided some highlights from Spurrier's glory days at Florida, which helped shape the future of college football:

Chris B. Brown @smartfootball

Spurrier helped usher in modern era of offensive minded coaches. Every visor is an homage to SOS and his Fun n' Gun

Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze was one of many impacted by those dominant Gators teams:

Hugh Freeze @CoachHughFreeze

Coach Spurrier has impacted & influenced more of us in this business than he will ever know. He will be missed and will always be the "HBC"

Of course, for as much as Spurrier did on the sidelines, his eccentric personality will be remembered just as fondly. He has always been one of the most entertaining characters in college football, and he knew exactly how to get under the skin of his fellow head coaches.

USA Today's Paul Myerberg and ESPN's Jorge Sedano shared two of Spurrier's more memorable barbs at his SEC foes:

Paul Myerberg @PaulMyerberg

Spurrier when a fire at Auburn destroyed 20 books: "The real tragedy was that 15 hadn't been colored yet."

IG:JorgeSedanoESPN @SedanoESPN

In honor of the Ole Ball Coach’s retirement…My favorite Spurrier line is, “Ya can’t spell Citrus (Bowl) w/out UT (Tennessee Vols)…”

Let this picture of Spurrier visiting an Arby's in 2013 be the lasting image you have of him—at least while he was still a head coach:

Arby's @Arbys

Hey @SC_HBC, let us know the date for the retirement party. We can bring sandwiches.

College football in general became a lesser spectacle following Spurrier's departure.