“Keep building them so Geno can keep complaining”: Fans react to South Carolina WBB announcing statue of Dawn Staley on IG

South Carolina is set to unveil a statue of coach Dawn Staley after the Gamecocks’ social media account announced the release date. In an Instagram post on Monday, the school had fans hyped about the possibility of a statue being erected for Staley after her achievement with the Gamecocks.

South Carolina (37-3) made an impressive run to the NCAA Tournament final on April 6, losing 82-59 to Paige Bueckers’ UConn Huskies.

The program will unveil a statue in honor of Staley on Wednesday.

Fans reacted to the news with excitement, while some took shots at UConn coach Geno Auriemma over the possibility of another statue. Gamecocks fans had previously expressed displeasure on social media about Auriemma’s comments on April 7 about programs building statues for players with only one title.

Fans seemed to take Auriemma’s comments as a reference to A’ja Wilson, who won one NCAA championship and has a statue outside the South Carolina stadium.

“Keep building them so Geno can keep complaining! We have pride in our team don't knock it,” a fan commented.

“Geno not gonna like this,” another fan commented.

Other fans hyped up Dawn Staley.

“Let's gooo Dawn!” one wrote.

“Dawn the GOAT ❤️,” another commented.

“Staleyyy make sure my goat Gucci or Chanel down 🐐,” another fan said.

Fans react to South Carolina WBB announcing a mystery statue on IG - Image source: Instagram/gamecockwbb

Dawn Staley statue to be unveiled in Columbia at a new location

The University of South Carolina announced on Monday that the statue of South Carolina coach Dawn Staley will be unveiled on Wednesday afternoon, but not at the initial location. City officials had planned for Staley’s statue to be erected at the corner of Main and Gervais streets, directly across from the South Carolina State House.

The final site for the statue has now been moved to the intersection of Senate and Lincoln streets, right next to the Pastides Alumni Center.

“We still count that as downtown,” Payton Lang, a spokesperson for Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann, said.

Staley was said to have requested that the statue not be placed right outside the arena. She wanted that area reserved for honoring her players. Gamecocks legend A’ja Wilson’s statue was installed outside Colonial Life Arena in January 2021.

Lang said that the city’s public works employees found the new location and pitched it to the mayor, successfully meeting Staley’s wish for the State House to be part of the statue’s background.

The project was first announced in February 2023, and the 11-foot-tall, 1,000-pound statue arrived in Columbia in August 2024. The $140,000 statue is the result of a collaboration between the City of Columbia, the organization Statues for Equality and contributions from local business leaders.