Pressure is on Beamer. No excuses this year.

[18IsTheMan]

To his credit, in this wild west portal era, he has managed to retain major pieces Sellers, Stewart and Harbor. Any one of them could have transferred for more money. They obviously didn't stay here out of the goodness of their heart, but they did stay nonetheless.

No matter what some of our fans may think, Sellers is still highly regarded in football circles for his physical skills and failing to capitalize on him at QB will be seen as a black mark by those outside the program.

Stewart is a sure thing first round pick, considered one of the top DE in football.

Harbor has been a project, but he's still viewed as a potentially lethal weapon b/c of his speed.

Then you have the coaching hires. We had on paper, major upgrades across the board with Briles, Clements, Barnes and Drayton. Briles, Drayton and Barnes are all highly regarded for their respective coaching. Clements is the least proven but has a very strong OL track record.

Last year we dumped most of the fault for the season on the OL and Teasley, and rightfully so, because they and he were awful.

Beamer went out and made great moves, in my opinion. The only problem with great moves, is that results are expected. If he had hired an OC from Podunk State, nobody would expect much. But Briles is considered a very good OC.

Beamer has, on paper, put a lot of the right pieces in place. The catch is, when you have seemingly all/most of the right pieces in place, results are expected and not producing is seen as failure.

I think the results this season will reveal his true chops as a HC in this era when most HCs are CEO types. For the first time in his tenure, Beamer has solid, experienced coaches at DC and OC, and many proven, veteran coaches at important positions. The team is far from devoid of talent.

I know the schedule is tough, but nobody in the SEC gets a free pass. We have the talent. We have the coaches. It's time to produce.

 

[Uscg1984]

Yes, it's put-up or shut-up time.

The big question, I think, is how one defines "putting up." (And how does Donati define it)

 

[I4CtheFuture]

We'll be 3-0 heading to Bama.

Bama could very well be 1-3 when we face them. - Bama plays ECU, Kentucky, and Fl. St before us.

Kentucky is SEC (duh) and anything can happen in the SEC. Fl. St will probably be better than they showed in week 1, imho. Probably. They could beat Bama early and send Bama nation into meltdown early this year. Same with Kentucky. It is Bama, but it's without Saban, so...

Also, 18, gotta disagree with you a little bit about Stewart. - He won't play much this year and his stock will drop in the draft accordingly. No NFL team is going to take anyone with a "broken back" in the first round, imho - (Beamers' words) Don't get me wrong, Stewart, healthy is absolutely everything you said, but he's not healthy. He hasn't even hit the sleds yet in practice according to Beamer.

 

[18IsTheMan]

Yes, it's put-up or shut-up time.

The big question, I think, is how one defines "putting up." (And how does Donati define it)

In Year 6, with our talent and the highly experienced coaching staff, 7 wins is the floor for measuring success. And I would even 7 doesn't necessarily qualify as success...just not failure. 8 or more wins and I think you can call it a successful season.

 

[will110]

In Year 6, with our talent and the highly experienced coaching staff, 7 wins is the floor for measuring success. And I would even 7 doesn't necessarily qualify as success...just not failure. 8 or more wins and I think you can call it a successful season.

Reasonable and correct, in my opinion.

I would imagine a 6-6 season gets Beamer fired unless that 6-6 comes as the inverse of 2007.

 

[92Pony]

11/10 - One Billion percent!

After Muschamp, I was done. Then I was back. After last year I was done. And now I'm back. After some 50yrs, I guess I'm used to it, but I find myself feeling hopeful yet again... I mean like maybe we DO have a chance to have some real success this season. (Oh, when will I learn....)

 

[Uscg1984]

In Year 6, with our talent and the highly experienced coaching staff, 7 wins is the floor for measuring success. And I would even 7 doesn't necessarily qualify as success...just not failure. 8 or more wins and I think you can call it a successful season.

I agree, 7-5 feels like a tipping point. Exactly 7 wins would not be a "failure," but I don't think it'd feel like an absolute success either. Perhaps 7-5 with a strong finish would feel more like success (it'd be hard to argue a 7-5 finish that closed out with wins over UGA and Clemson). 8-4 would definitely feel like success with this schedule, barring 4 straight losses to end the season.

 

[kidrobinski]

No matter what some of our fans may think, Sellers is still highly regarded in football circles for his physical skills and failing to capitalize on him at QB will be seen as a black mark by those outside the program.

Sellers. ‘Capitalize’.

My view was that we/Shula TRIED to capitalize on Sellers last year by installing a pro-style plan, expecting or hoping ‘quarterback’ skills would blossom. They didn’t, and I’m fearful of the reason(s) why. It’s current convention to put everything from gas prices to national defense on our oline and their coach last year, and not without reason, but…

There were at least three games last year that above average qb play could have moved to the W column. Above average qb play does not have to be coached up or developed; it is in fact ‘capitalized’ on from what already exists. Connor Shaw, Steve Tanneyhill, even Garcia; these were not guys ‘developed’. They were guys that knew how to play the position in a way that lends itself to success and didn’t have to rely on out-athleting people to be successful, something easily neutralized as we saw last year. I’m extremely nervous about this going in, as well as the effect this can have on coaches and how long we’ll continue expecting a light to come on if it’s not.

 

[18IsTheMan]

Sellers. ‘Capitalize’.

My view was that we/Shula TRIED to capitalize on Sellers last year by installing a pro-style plan, expecting or hoping ‘quarterback’ skills would blossom. They didn’t, and I’m fearful of the reason(s) why. It’s current convention to put everything from gas prices to national defense on our oline and their coach last year, and not without reason, but…

There were at least three games last year that above average qb play could have moved to the W column. Above average qb play does not have to be coached up or developed; it is in fact ‘capitalized’ on from what already exists. Connor Shaw, Steve Tanneyhill, even Garcia; these were not guys ‘developed’. They were guys that knew how to play the position in a way that lends itself to success and didn’t have to rely on out-athleting people to be successful, something easily neutralized as we saw last year. I’m extremely nervous about this going in, as well as the effect this can have on coaches and how long we’ll continue expecting a light to come on if it’s not.

All I can say and have said is that our OL sucked and Teasley was a lousy coach. A good OL coach doesn't have 3 consecutive bad OL.

 

[Harvard Gamecock]

The excuses are built in before the season begins.
The schedule, OL was a put together effort, New OC (adjustment period), Injuries, they always occur we just don't know who.

And of course, the old stand by, the omnipresent : "The refs screwed us", The refs hate us"

 

[Lurker123]

Sellers. ‘Capitalize’.

My view was that we/Shula TRIED to capitalize on Sellers last year by installing a pro-style plan, expecting or hoping ‘quarterback’ skills would blossom. They didn’t, and I’m fearful of the reason(s) why. It’s current convention to put everything from gas prices to national defense on our oline and their coach last year, and not without reason, but…

There were at least three games last year that above average qb play could have moved to the W column. Above average qb play does not have to be coached up or developed; it is in fact ‘capitalized’ on from what already exists. Connor Shaw, Steve Tanneyhill, even Garcia; these were not guys ‘developed’. They were guys that knew how to play the position in a way that lends itself to success and didn’t have to rely on out-athleting people to be successful, something easily neutralized as we saw last year. I’m extremely nervous about this going in, as well as the effect this can have on coaches and how long we’ll continue expecting a light to come on if it’s not.

To be fair, bombing Iran does rest pretty squarely on the OL.

 

[Lurker123]

Reasonable and correct, in my opinion.

I would imagine a 6-6 season gets Beamer fired unless that 6-6 comes as the inverse of 2007.

I dont think 6-6 gets Beamer fired. I think 5 wins does. But thats just my opinion.

 

[Piscis]

I dont think 6-6 gets Beamer fired. I think 5 wins does. But thats just my opinion.

6-6 with a quality win and he is safe. He might be safe with 5 wins if he has 2 quality wins.

Let's be honest. The standard is pretty low for SC football.

 

[Lurker123]

6-6 with a quality win and he is safe. He might be safe with 5 wins if he has 2 quality wins.

Let's be honest. The standard is pretty low for SC football.

Don't disagree. But I could see the two patsies with UK, Miss St and Arkansas as 5 wins and none of those would be a quality win.

Maybe if he trades a bigger win with one of those, especially if later in the year?

 

[Piscis]

Don't disagree. But I could see the two patsies with UK, Miss St and Arkansas as 5 wins and none of those would be a quality win.

Maybe if he trades a bigger win with one of those, especially if later in the year?

Lose to Miss State and beat Bama to get 5 wins and he would probably be safe. Lose to UK and beat Clemson to get 5 wins and he might get a raise.

 

[DannyTree1]

I predict around 6-6 year which would be an improvement over last year.

 

[will110]

Lose to Miss State and beat Bama to get 5 wins and he would probably be safe. Lose to UK and beat Clemson to get 5 wins and he might get a raise.

While the standard has never been high (and reasonably so), 5 wins and Beamer is gone. Let's just look at the schedule with your two scenarios:

Kent State W
Towson W
Mississippi State L
Alabama W
Kentucky W
Florida L
Tennessee L
Oklahoma L
Texas A&M L
Arkansas W
Georgia L
Clemson L

Kent State W
Towson W
Mississippi State W
Alabama L
Kentucky L
Florida L
Tennessee L
Oklahoma L
Texas A&M L
Arkansas W
Georgia L
Clemson W


There's just no way Beamer is back under either of these scenarios. With the second one especially, there's a chance he doesn't even make it to the Arkansas game.

 

[Psycock]

The only excuse I can see is the schedule. Trying to be optimistic but realistic. If you think we will be 9-3 I believe you are not being realistic. I think 7-5 or 6-6 is more likely. Sure hope we can avoid another losing season.

 

[cocksx5]

I don't think he necessarily hired briles willingly, that was donati . I am 66, attended games when stadium was equal all way around held maybe 43k. in all those years muschamp followed by beamer back to back were real head scratchers, a guy that couldn't win at fl and a guy with no coordinator background. yr 6 we r about where I expected to be I can;t see see 8 wins at all, all new oline, questionable receivers and do we have a sec running back in program, sure didn't.last yr, but then again that oline. I think go into Clemson 5-6. win or lose and/or less than 8 wins gone, hope i'm wrong but sure doesn't seem like it

 

[Gr8spur]

I think the jury is still out on Sellers. Is he hard to bring down? Yes. Can he scramble and run for a long gainer? Sometimes. Can he toss the ball? Yes. Does he have good field awareness? I’m not convinced. Does he have good field vision? I’m not convinced. Does he have some head-scratcher throws? Yep.
I like him. But I’m just not convinced he’s a great QB. Serviceable? Maybe.

 

[JohnnySolo]

92Pony you have a mustang you want to sell me?

 

[Piscis]

I think the jury is still out on Sellers. Is he hard to bring down? Yes. Can he scramble and run for a long gainer? Sometimes. Can he toss the ball? Yes. Does he have good field awareness? I’m not convinced. Does he have good field vision? I’m not convinced. Does he have some head-scratcher throws? Yep.
I like him. But I’m just not convinced he’s a great QB. Serviceable? Maybe.

Sellers is a great athlete playing QB. He is an average QB at best.

Go back and look at his recruiting out of HS. Look at the teams recruiting him. SC was the only SEC school that showed any interest in him and one of only three P4 teams that recruited him, SC, Georgia tech and Syracuse. There is a reason for that.

 

[Gamecock Disciple]

He also has some fairly impressive recruits for next year ... I truly like him, he wants to be here, and he has won and very impressively just two years ago ... I do hope our beloved Gamecocks have a GREAT year, make the playoffs, and the program takes off to heights never seen ... yes, it is early and optimism teems ...

 

[18IsTheMan]

I predict around 6-6 year which would be an improvement over last year.

The notion that a 6-6 record in Year 6 would be seen as improvement is highly damning.

 

[92Pony]

92Pony you have a mustang you want to sell me?

No sir. I've had this '92 (GT) for 29yrs. I'm not planning on parting with it anytime soon.

 

[Go Gamecocks]

I miss the "old" days when there were 12 teams in the SEC and we relied upon good coaching, solid recruiting & JUCO transfers.

I wish Shane the best, but he's stepped into something that is almost impossible.

My advise is to just enjoy any good wins and don't fret about the rest.

 

[Lurker123]

The notion that a 6-6 record in Year 6 would be seen as improvement is highly damning.

Consider the source, and it makes sense.

 

[Piscis]

He also has some fairly impressive recruits for next year ... I truly like him, he wants to be here, and he has won and very impressively just two years ago ... I do hope our beloved Gamecocks have a GREAT year, make the playoffs, and the program takes off to heights never seen ... yes, it is early and optimism teems ...

"...he wants to be here...", the ultimate trait required to be a head coach at the University of South Carolina.

His "impressive recruits" are ranked 27th for 2027 so far.

His likeability is the only reason he still has a job.

I guess his winning "very impressively" two years ago completely eliminates the fact he lost miserably last season?

 

[DannyTree1]

We can be much improved this year and still end around .500.

I think any bowl game is an obvious improvement.

I have serious doubts that Dylan Stewart will play meaningful snaps anytime until half way through the season, at the earliest. Then the rust will be undeniable in the games he does play in.

I see this season as one where we start off reasonablly well but the attrition eats us up at the end.

I think Beamer is a quality coach and I don't see him being fired unless it's another 4 win season.

 

[kidrobinski]

I

The notion that a 6-6 record in Year 6 would be seen as improvement is highly damning.

Because all we need, particularly given the conference we’re in, NIL, and our shining heritage is next man up to get us past comfortably past that 6-6 average historical record unlike our previous 50 coaches amirite.

The notion that 6-6 in year 6 is improvement means that it would be better than what came before; nothing more. See post #26.

Apologies for the sarcasm, but just as unmet expectations get old, so does ignoring handwriting on the wall.

 

[will110]

Sellers is a great athlete playing QB. He is an average QB at best.

Go back and look at his recruiting out of HS. Look at the teams recruiting him. SC was the only SEC school that showed any interest in him and one of only three P4 teams that recruited him, SC, Georgia tech and Syracuse. There is a reason for that.

One important distinction with Sellers at QB is the drastic difference between 2024 and 2025, one with a serviceable offensive coordinator and one with a disastrous offensive coordinator.

Sellers was 3rd in the SEC in completion percentage under Loggains; he regressed significantly under Shula to 14th.
Sellers was 2nd in the SEC in passer rating under Loggains; he regressed under Shula to 10th.

2026 will tell the tale, but I'm hopeful he can return to be one of the better QBs in the SEC under Briles.

 

[will110]

We can be much improved this year and still end around .500.

I think any bowl game is an obvious improvement.

I have serious doubts that Dylan Stewart will play meaningful snaps anytime until half way through the season, at the earliest. Then the rust will be undeniable in the games he does play in.

I see this season as one where we start off reasonablly well but the attrition eats us up at the end.

I think Beamer is a quality coach and I don't see him being fired unless it's another 4 win season.

What makes you say he's a quality coach if there aren't quality results on the field?

I like Beamer, but he shouldn't remain football coach at South Carolina if he can't win more games.

 

[DannyTree1]

The notion that a 6-6 record in Year 6 would be seen as improvement is highly damning.

But it would be compared to last year's fiasco. That's really all that means.


The back half of our schedule is a gauntlet of back to back games that no one would choose to play. It adds up.

Plus, as we all know, we have a tendency to have a few games where we look lost no matter how well we seem to be playing over the course of the season.

 

[Piscis]

I miss the "old" days when there were 12 teams in the SEC and we relied upon good coaching, solid recruiting & JUCO transfers.

I wish Shane the best, but he's stepped into something that is almost impossible.

My advise is to just enjoy any good wins and don't fret about the rest.

South Carolina fans getting worked up over high expectations for the football team is an exercise in futility. 130+ years of football results should tell people to enjoy the games as social events and enjoy the big wins without getting down over the losses.

 

[DannyTree1]

What makes you say he's a quality coach if there aren't quality results on the field?

I like Beamer, but he shouldn't remain football coach at South Carolina if he can't win more games.

Everything is a bit relative to me. He has a winning record. That's more than a lot of USC coaches have had going for them.

He's led us to 3 bowl games, winning one. USA Today and AP SEC Coach of the Year in 2024. Has won 33 games in five seasons.

The negative is there too- two seasons with a losing record (Joe Morrison has 3 losing seasons in 6 years). Led us to three bowl games, losing all three. Won 39 games in six seasons.

Now, it can't be just a comparison between coaches. I only included Joe because I think most people thought he was a quality head coach and I think Shane matches up pretty favorably with him.

He's certainly not proven to be a great coach. He's slightly above .500. I think that's a quality head coach. Just my view.

 

[Piscis]

One important distinction with Sellers at QB is the drastic difference between 2024 and 2025, one with a serviceable offensive coordinator and one with a disastrous offensive coordinator.

Sellers was 3rd in the SEC in completion percentage under Loggains; he regressed significantly under Shula to 14th.
Sellers was 2nd in the SEC in passer rating under Loggains; he regressed under Shula to 10th.

2026 will tell the tale, but I'm hopeful he can return to be one of the better QBs in the SEC under Briles.

I recall how excited fans were when Shula was hired as OC. He was going to bring all of his NFL experience and the offense was going to be dynamic.

Now, Briles is going to bring in a wide open passing attack and the offense is going to fly up and down the field and Shula was terrible.

I think the biggest difference in Seller 2024 vs. 2025 was that opposing DCs knew how to defend him in 2025. They will still know how to defend him in 2026. The wild card is going to be the running game. If a true SEC caliber RB emerges (I haven't heard about one yet), Sellers will look much better because the opposing D will have to respect the running game.

 

[Piscis]

But it would be compared to last year's fiasco. That's really all that means.


The back half of our schedule is a gauntlet of back to back games that no one would choose to play. It adds up.

Plus, as we all know, we have a tendency to have a few games where we look lost no matter how well we seem to be playing over the course of the season.

Recency bias at the end of the season is going to be brutal for Beamer. I foresee a good looking record through the first month of the season and then tough sledding from then on. Fans and media will forget about the 4-1 start once they experience the 2-5 finish to the season. The last two months of the season will leave a bad taste in their mouths.

 

[kidrobinski]

I recall how excited fans were when Shula was hired as OC. He was going to bring all of his NFL experience and the offense was going to be dynamic.

Now, Briles is going to bring in a wide open passing attack and the offense is going to fly up and down the field and Shula was terrible.

I think the biggest difference in Seller 2024 vs. 2025 was that opposing DCs knew how to defend him in 2025. They will still know how to defend him in 2026. The wild card is going to be the running game. If a true SEC caliber RB emerges (I haven't heard about one yet), Sellers will look much better because the opposing D will have to respect the running game.

Yessir, it really is that simple.

 

[DannyTree1]

Recency bias at the end of the season is going to be brutal for Beamer. I foresee a good looking record through the first month of the season and then tough sledding from then on. Fans and media will forget about the 4-1 start once they experience the 2-5 finish to the season. The last two months of the season will leave a bad taste in their mouths.

OU and UGA might very well be two top 5 teams when we play them. Easily could be. Both expect to beat us- both likely will be playing for playoff slots. OU will want to pay us back again after our last trip out there. I am not saying we can't win. I am saying it's very, very unlikely.

and the problem with playing teams like that, the buildup is so great, after a loss, we've traditionally had a tough time recovering to play the next game- even if it was, on paper, a much easier game. That's because those games take so much out of players and coaches.

It's life in the SEC. No doubt. But it's reality and for those fans that just like to say "well, you have to get over it because that's the way it is" - that's true- for fans. For players that have to play those teams, it's harder to get over it- and it's harder to bounce back. That's why so many teams that face very hard schedules at the end of a season tend to fade badly.

 

[will110]

I recall how excited fans were when Shula was hired as OC. He was going to bring all of his NFL experience and the offense was going to be dynamic.

Now, Briles is going to bring in a wide open passing attack and the offense is going to fly up and down the field and Shula was terrible.

I think the biggest difference in Seller 2024 vs. 2025 was that opposing DCs knew how to defend him in 2025. They will still know how to defend him in 2026. The wild card is going to be the running game. If a true SEC caliber RB emerges (I haven't heard about one yet), Sellers will look much better because the opposing D will have to respect the running game.

Not sure that many fans were excited about Shula. At some point you talk yourself into how he'll work out, but he was a disappointing hire at the time and only got worse as the season progressed.

Either way Sellers got better in 2024 from start to finish despite giving opposing teams more and more film to figure out how to stop him, so I don't think the main difference in 2025 was coordinators figuring him out.