South Carolina Gamecocks football coach Shane Beamer may have his eyes on a potential exit from Columbia with his team stacking up losses and his father Frank’s longtime home, the Virginia Tech Hokies, looking to replace the fired Brent Pry.
South Carolina lost 26-7 to the Oklahoma Sooners in a Week 8 contest that wasn’t competitive in the second half. At 3-4, the Gamecocks may only be favored in one more game this season.
The Group of 5 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers are the only team South Carolina can be expected to win against. A matchup against the Clemson Tigers at home to end the season could be a toss-up, with Dabo Swinney’s program struggling and his own job security being questioned. But the Alabama Crimson Tide, Ole Miss Rebels, and Texas A&M Aggies will certainly be favored against the Gamecocks.
That potential continued losing could be the perfect storm, along with a recent report from CBS Sports, to indicate that a serious look at Blacksburg could be in Beamer’s future soon.
“Has the Shane Beamer era run its course at South Carolina? It was a fair question before the Gamecocks' dismal 26-7 home loss to Oklahoma. It is South Carolina's fourth setback in five SEC games -- a colossal bummer for a program that came up a team or two short of a College Football Playoff bid in 2024,” CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford wrote.
“Disappointment remained Saturday afternoon, another anemic showing offensively that's becoming an all-too-familiar script for the Gamecocks under their current regime.
“Multiple sources told CBS Sports this week that Beamer to Virginia Tech is more than speculation -- it has legitimacy -- and would strengthen if South Carolina's downturn continued this season. Multiple members of Virginia Tech's search committee ‘are pushing for Beamer,’ one source said.”
With LaNorris Sellers leading the charge, Mike Shula’s offense was supposed to power a contender. Not only is Sellers another in a long list of disappointing signal-callers this season, but the offense is a middling unit at best in the SEC.
Disappointment of this magnitude oftentimes leads to regime changes. Moving on from Beamer, preferably amicably, may be Jeremiah Donati’s first major act as South Carolina’s AD.