South Carolina football: Shane Beamer names seven staff members
By Jacob Elsey
South Carolina football’s coaching staff is coming together.
Early last week, there were grumblings of the coaching staff coming together in Columbia. Rumors surrounding the hiring of Erik Kimrey, Will Friend, and Pete Lembo began to surface, and with the championship weekend of college fooball wrapping up, it seemed that the dominos were going to fall soon.
That first domino tipped this weekend, as we now have a bit more clarity on what the staff is going to look like in 2021.
There are holdovers from the previous staff, as well as the additions of the three aforementioned new hires. Let’s take a look at the assistants that are now in place, and see how each fits into the program moving forward.
New Additions
Kimrey doesn’t have to travel far to get to his new home, as he’s been the head coach of Hammond High in Columbia. In 17 seasons at the helm, he’s led the Skyhawks to 12 state titles, and has coached a handful of players on the current roster.
He will replace Bobby Bentley as the South Carolina tight ends coach, and should be an asset to have on the offensive side of the ball. The former Gamecock quarterback was the first official hire of the Beamer era.
Lembo comes to Columbia after spending the last few years in Tennessee, where he coached special teams for the Memphis Tigers. The job done in 2019 earned him a nomination for the special teams coach of the year, and he finished among the top three finalists.
Prior to his time with the Tigers, Lembo coached special teams for Maryland and Rice. He’s also got more than 175 games worth of experience as a head coach, and he should bring a great deal of football knowledge to the Carolina sidelines.
Friend has a long history with offensive coordinator Mike Bobo (more on that later), and has spent the last couple of season coaching the offensive line position at the University of Tennessee. Prior to his stint with the Vols, Friend coached with Bobo at both Georgia and Colorado State.
Friend will replace former offensive line coach Eric Wolford, who has moved on to take the same role with the Kentucky Wildcats.
The Holdovers
Bobo will stay on for a second season as the Gamecocks’ offensive play caller, after a 2020 campaign that saw running back Kevin Harris lead the SEC in rushing. Bobo is a seasoned offensive coordinator, having made stops at Georgia, Colorado State, and, now, South Carolina.
Bobo is also a lead recruiter for 2022 quarterback Gunner Stockton, who remained committed to the Gamecocks despite the midyear coaching change.
Peterson has coached outside linebackers and BUCKS for the Gamecocks since 2016. His position group has seen DJ Wonnum and TJ Brunson get drafted and move onto the NFL. He’s also been a mentor to players on the current roster like JJ Enagbare, who ranked second in the SEC in sacks this past year, as well as Jordan Burch, Sherrod Greene, and Mo Kaba.
As a player, Peterson won a national title with Florida before moving onto a lengthy NFL career.
Kitchings was in his first season with the Gamecocks, and he had a tailback in the running back room lead the SEC in rushing. Kevin Harris experienced a career season under Kitchings’ tutelage, running for 1,138 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Prior to his time in Columbia, he coached at NC State, where tailbacks Reggie Gallaspy, Nyheim Hines, and and Matt Dayes each rushed for 1,000 yards between 2016-2018.
Rocker is a seasoned vet in the coaching world, having spent time coaching in the SEC at Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Auburn, and Ole Miss. Last year was his first with the Gamecocks, and his defensive line tallied 12.5 sacks over 10 games.
It’s also been noted that Connor Shaw will remain on staff in an off-field role, possibly going back to his title of Director of Player Development.