Five Points block party celebrates Gamecock great Steve Taneyhill

Columbia’s Five Points district turned into a sea of garnet and black Friday night as hundreds gathered for a block party honoring the late Steve Taneyhill, the former South Carolina quarterback whose flair on the field and larger-than-life personality helped define 1990s Gamecock football.

Hosted by the Chi Psi fraternity, the “Friday After Class” fundraiser stretched along Greene Street outside Taneyhill’s longtime bar, Group Therapy, filling the air with live music, local food-truck fare and the clink of commemorative cups. Every dollar raised will flow into the newly created Taneyhill Fund, an initiative dedicated to causes close to the quarterback’s family and to the University of South Carolina—chief among them the football program and the student-athletes who carry Gamecock culture forward.

“When he passed away earlier this year, we knew we wanted to do something to support the Taneyhill Fund,” said Daniel Cody, Chi Psi’s social chair. “We knew we wanted to team up with Group Therapy and do something fun for Five Points.”

Taneyhill, who died in December, was more than a record-setting passer; he was a pied piper of campus life who turned post-practice Fridays into mini-festivals. Tonight’s event kept that spirit alive, from the impromptu karaoke of “Sandstorm” to Greene-Street-high-fives reminiscent of his signature touchdown celebrations.

Chapter president Ryan Dunphy said the idea was simple: continue the tradition Taneyhill championed. “Steve pushed for Friday After Class, he pushed for our fraternity, and the most we could do is give back with this event,” Dunphy noted.

Ryan English, a former Chi Psi president, stood near the bar’s patio surveying the crowd. “It’s an honor for us with all the work that has been put in,” English said. “We were appreciative of his life and his decisions and continuing that part of Gamecock culture.”

Organizers say the party is only the kickoff; fundraising efforts will run through the semester with a goal of raising $250,000 for the Taneyhill Fund. As the final chords echoed past midnight, one thing was clear: in Five Points, Steve Taneyhill’s legacy is still very much alive—and still bringing Gamecocks together.