“It’s a paid actor”: College hoops fans poke fun at Dawn Staley for one “fashion accessory”

The 2024-25 NCAA season has kicked off, and the South Carolina Gamecocks have begun under head coach Dawn Staley, who led them to a win against the Michigan Wolverines. Aside from the game, however, fans couldn’t help but focus on Staley’s signature sideline, “accessory.”

In a post, the sports Instagram page HighlightHER shared a series of photos showing Staley holding a rolled-up piece of paper.

They captioned it, “At this point, the rolled up paper is an accessory to the fits.”

The lighthearted post sparked plenty of comments from fans. Let's have a look at them.

Some fans made a comment expressing their wish to be the roll of paper:

"Whew! I love her… real bad! Let me be that paper!"

On the other hand, another said,

"Looking like she holding diplomas."

Some other fans assigned a role to the roll of paper:

"The rolled paper is her assistant."

Another fan took Halloween costume inspiration,

"YES!! I included the rolled piece of paper with my costume this year! It’s a must!!"

Some other fans simply praised her outfit, saying,

"The hottest courtside accessory."

"Fits be 🔥 tho."

Another said:

"It’s a paid actor! 😂😂😂"

Fans commented on Dawn Staley for fashion accessories (Picture Credit: Instagram)

South Carolina Gamecocks making waves on and off the court under Dawn Staley

On the court, the Gamecocks’ 68-62 victory over Michigan in the Hall of Fame Series proved more challenging than expected, giving insight into what could be a turbulent season. After their undefeated national championship run last season, South Carolina faces new obstacles and stiff competition.

Despite Michigan’s offseason upheaval, losing six players to transfers and two of their top scorers to graduation, the team managed to press the Gamecocks hard and nearly pulled off an upset. In the post-game press conference, Staley reflected on Michigan’s aggressive play.

“They just put us back on our heels,” she said.

She added, “Thought they got all the 50-50 balls. I thought they just played harder, like they just attacked us. They imposed their will on us and they were in attack mode for most of the night. I mean, we made adjustments.”

Staley credited Michigan’s head coach Kim Barnes Arico and her team for bringing high energy and an effective offense despite their recent roster turnover.

While Staley didn’t hint at any immediate lineup changes, she did express a need for South Carolina’s starting lineup to step up. This would be a tough adjustment for players like Ashlyn Watkins and Tessa Johnson, who were used to coming off the bench last season.

Dawn Staley acknowledged that growing into these new roles and expectations would be key to the team’s success this year. The Gamecocks’ next test comes this Sunday against No. 10 N.C. State.