Gov. Mark Sanford wants to overhaul the state's higher education system. More power to him, but he'll have to sharpen his plan of attack to succeed.

South Carolina is a relatively poor state of 4 million people with a dwindling state budget, yet it tries to support 33 colleges and universities. For perspective, there are only 46 counties in the state. The greatest symbol of this foolishness is the fact that South Carolina has two state-supported medical schools.

It has a higher education system not designed by professionals but by politics. Whoever hollers the loudest gets a college down the street. The result is a sprawling system that the state cannot afford even in the best of times.

But in today's economic climate, the consequences are hitting close to home. Parents and students are seeing college expenses rise by up to 20 percent a year. And the colleges are still suffering.

Clemson University, which now gets only about a third of its budget from the legislature, has advantages and resources most of the 33 schools do not have. But it still struggles with this historically low state support. It gets less than half the money state formulas say it should be getting from the legislature.

And when you get down to a smaller enterprise such as the University of South Carolina Beaufort, county government is being asked to play a lead financial role.

By trying to be all things to all people, South Carolina's higher education system risks being too splintered to achieve excellence in any corner.

Sanford is right to say that "dramatic change" is needed.

Institutions have boards of trustees, then there is the S.C. Commission on Higher Education and then the General Assembly -- all calling the shots.

One result of this fragmented approach is the disconnect in policy brought on by the lottery. The lottery is giving students scholarship money to attend college, while the legislature is cutting college budgets. That slices the ability of colleges to cater to the students getting state handouts. It's like a dog chasing its tail.

Sanford has indicated he supports a stronger statewide governance system, such as the college regents system used in North Carolina. Details of his proposal for change are to be announced before the next legislative session in January.

But Sanford is going to have to do more than spout ideas if substantive change is to occur. He cannot expect to simultaneously overhaul higher education and remake the state's taxation system and reduce the number of constitutional officers. He is sure to meet resistance in all his suggestions to undo the way things have traditionally been done. Sanford will have to focus on higher education if he wants it to change.

Sanford's challenge was illustrated in a recent Budget and Control Board meeting. The governor tried to address higher-education sprawl by stopping Coastal Carolina University from opening a branch at Pawleys Island. At the same time, he tried to save money at USC by having prison inmates do utility repair work at the president's mansion. Like the higher education system, Sanford needs greater focus. He is going to have to pick his fights more judiciously to get anything done. He should focus on a few substantive changes rather than the nickel-and-dime changes.