South Carolina Football: The State of the Gamecocks

On Tuesday night, President Joe Biden stood at the front of the chamber of the United States House of Representatives and delivered to Congress and the nation the State of the Union Address. Imagine, if you will, that big-time college football coaches had to deliver a similar address before their University’s President, Board of Trustees, and fanbase: what might South Carolina Football Head Coach Shane Beamer say if he were giving the State of the Gamecocks Address?

Growth from the Past

It is no secret that South Carolina football’s history is not on-par with many other SEC programs. In fact, except for a handful of seasons under Joe Morrison, Lou Holtz, and Steve Spurrier, most living Gamecock fans have not witnessed sustained success for their beloved garnet and black. This is why the historical perception of South Carolina football has been not very positive.

Shane Beamer, though, can point to that perception changing. Former Coaches Holtz and Spurrier raised internal expectations for success with winning seasons and bowl game victories. Even the Will Muschamp-era saw improvements within the program, though most of them were off-the-field with needed facilities upgrades and recruiting staff changes being made. In just two years on the job, Shane Beamer has taken strides to move the program forward both on-the-field and off of it, and the country is taking notice.

Coming off of a Muschampian two-win season in 2020, the Gamecocks won an improbable seven games in 2021. They followed that up with an eight-win regular season in 2022, including two top-10 victories against rivals Tennessee and Clemson. Those victories, coupled with natural on-field progression, have helped make the South Carolina football team relevant again. Coach Beamer is responsible for leading the Gamecocks back to that relevancy.

This success was despite some staff disharmony with the direction of the team’s offense, a problem that was addressed by hiring new Offensive Coordinator Dowell Loggains to replace the embattled Marcus Satterfield this offseason. Top coaches such as Special Teams Coordinator Pete Lembo, Secondary Coach Torrian Gray, and even Beamer, himself, all got extensions to keep them in Columbia. A change that had to be made, Greg Adkins stepped off the field due to health issues, but his top off-field assistant Lonnie Teasley took his place as the Gamecocks’ offensive line coach, and Adkins remained with the program in a different role. Maintaining continuity on the football staff during success is an essential aspect of recruiting the future for a non-blue blood program like South Carolina.

Seen clearly in college football recruiting is the truth behind the old adage “future success begins with present effort.” The South Carolina football program can see future growth coming through its recent efforts as the team’s recruiting and transfer portal rankings have improved during each of Beamer’s offseasons (56th overall according to 247Sports in the 2021 class, 24th in 2022, and 17th in 2023) and seem poised to make another jump with the 2024 class. Following in the footstep of their leader, the Gamecock coaching staff is full of relentless workers whose present efforts are building future success.

Behind-the-scenes improvements have continued under Beamer’s watch. Some influential former players have returned to the South Carolina football program to work as coaches, recruiting staff members, and University liaisons. Having familiar names like Patrick DiMarco, Devonte Holloman, Shaq Wilson, and Jay Urich (and previously Connor Shaw, Erik Kimrey, and Byron Jerideau) around the Long Family Football Operations Center can only help Beamer continue making progress. “Above All Else” has resonated with players both on the present roster and future ones as the program is built on love, home, and brotherhood.

Growth for the Future

The aforementioned recruiting work is already paying dividends in Columbia. Transfer portal additions Spencer Rattler and Juice Wells played vital roles in South Carolina’s hot finish to 2022 and are returning for the 2023 season. The current team will see contributions from young players recruited by Beamer’s staff like freshman All-American Nick Emmanwori, freshman All-SEC safety DQ Smith, and a highly-touted incoming 2023 class that boasts the class’ #1-ranked athlete Nyckoles Harbor. Harbor, along with fellow freshmen “Big Tree” Babalade, Desmond Umeozulu, and Zahbari Sandy are part of a developing pipeline from the “DMV” area that is always loaded with uber-talented prospects. Georgia and Florida remained friendly to the Gamecocks in recruiting, and South Carolina football is seemingly getting every in-state prospect they want.

National exposure of the program continues to grow under Beamer’s direction. Big-name recruiting wins like Rattler and Harbor garner attention from national media outlets and open the door for other talented players to consider playing for the Gamecocks. Shane Beamer and his staff utilize social media better than almost any football staff in the country, and Justin King’s creative media department is the best in the country and provides the program with more and more exposure each year. The ESPNU “Welcome Home” Series was something Shane Beamer emphasized as the docuseries put the Gamecocks on national television for five weeks leading up to last season.

While a University of South Carolina athletic department project as a whole, surely Coach Beamer also was a large part of the conversations surrounding the newly announced Stadium Project. The project aims to add significant revenue-generating properties around both Williams-Brice Stadium and Colonial Life Arena to fund future athletic budgets and facilities improvements while providing a better fan and community experience in and around the two venues. Williams-Brice will also experience several needed renovations and premium upgrades.

So far, in two seasons at the helm, Shane Beamer has brought on-field progress, recruiting momentum, off-the-field revenue generation, and a vision for how to continue climbing the mountain that is the college football hierarchy. The State of the Gamecocks is strong, and it is getting stronger.