South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer currently has a 23-21 record as the leader of the Gamecocks since he started back in 2021. Beamer started out his career at USC with a 7-6 record with a win in the Duke's Mayo Bowl, and he took a step forward in year two with an 8-5 record.
However, in year three, things took a turn, and the Gamecocks finished the season 5-7 and did not even make a bowl game. Now, in year four, Beamer has started the season 3-3 with a 0-3 record against ranked opponents, and they have three ranked matchups left with the possibility of more as the season goes on.
With the way the season has started and the team has played, fans are starting to get restless, leading to rumblings of wanting Beamer gone. So, with the way things are going, how much would South Carolina have to pay if they chose to let Beamer go early?
Shane Beamer's buyout is not as hefty as other coaches in college football
Back in January 2023, Beamer was given a two-year extension on his contract to lock the young coach in till 2027. Beamer was making $2.75 million before the extension and received a raise of nearly $4 million increasing his salary to $6.5 million starting in 2023 with an increase each year after that.
If Beamer is fired before the end of 2025, the university would have to pay 65% of his annual salary based on the salary he earned before the extension, so the $2.75 million. So if Beamer were fired before the end of this season, or sometime next season, South Carolina would owe him roughly $5 million at this time.
That number could go up if they choose to let Beamer go after 2025, meaning the university would owe him 65% of his guaranteed contract after the extension raise. If Beamer were to leave the university for another job, he would owe $5 million back to the school and his buyout would decrease by $1 million each year after that.
So there is a lot to think of if South Carolina wants to let Beamer go before his contract is up.