SEC Media Days: South Carolina coach Shane Beamer says 'nothing like it' about OU football
NASHVILLE — Shane Beamer had to stop himself for a moment.
He got a little carried away describing the pageantry he experienced at Oklahoma during his three seasons there as an assistant coach.
“It’s a great environment in that stadium. I loved coaching in it. Great fans there, and all the traditions in Oklahoma football, there’s nothing like it,” Beamer said Thursday at Southeastern Conference Media Days.
The South Carolina coach quickly paused, no doubt thinking about how that comment might be interpreted by the Gamecocks fanbase.
“Well, there’s a lot of things like it. But not … Um, there’s nothing like it in Oklahoma, I guess,” he added. “Now everyone from Oklahoma State will be mad at me.”
Finally, Beamer gave up.
“That came off the wrong way,” he said playfully to a few laughs from reporters.
More: SEC Media Days: Tennessee coach Josh Heupel hasn't lost his love for Oklahoma
Beamer’s OU link even extends to current and former players. Former Sooners quarterback Spencer Rattler and tight end Austin Stogner joined him after he took the South Carolina job late in the 2020 season. Stogner has since rejoined OU but Rattler is the Gamecocks’ key offensive piece ahead of this season.
Beamer is 15-11 in two seasons as the head coach. The Gamecocks went 2-8 the season before his arrival in 2021.
They finished third in the SEC East last year, went 8-5 overall, and with consecutive wins over No. 5 Tennessee and No. 7 Clemson to end the regular season won back-to-back games against top-10 teams for the first time in school history.
OU was the final launchpad for Beamer’s journey to head coach. He coached H-backs and tight ends — a key part of Lincoln Riley’s offense — in addition to overseeing special teams from 2018-20.
With Beamer, OU was trying to improve its special teams play. The Sooners ranked 14th nationally in punt return average in 2018, up from 97th in 2017, and went from 98th to 31st in kickoff return average during that span. The Sooners also hadn’t blocked a punt that was returned for a touchdown since 2002 but registered two in Beamer’s first season.
Offensive and defensive coordinators tend to be the most attractive first-time head coach candidates. But Beamer thinks special teams coordinators deserve consideration too.
“Being a special teams coordinator prepared me better to be a head football coach than if I had been on the offensive side of the ball or the defensive side of the ball,” Beamer said. “And I say that because when you're the special teams coordinator, you're the only coach other than the (head) coach that stands in front of the whole team and talks to the team, because coaching special teams takes the entire roster.
More: SEC Media Days: Mississippi State's Zac Selmon believes he'll 'always be connected' to OU
“You have to be able to motivate guys to play special teams. You have to be able to be detailed and organized because you might get 20 minutes in practice.”
Beamer’s players attest to his motivational skills.
“I feel like he's a natural,” Rattler said. “He's a natural leader, great person, great coach. Everything he says and does motivates us as a group. He has this program headed in the right direction.”
As for his “nothing like” OU slip, Beamer had a few more thoughts.
“It’s one of the great traditions in college football, that’s all I’m trying to say,” he said. “It’s not everywhere, going into a stadium where you pass seven Heisman Trophy statues. It’s just unique.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: South Carolina coach Shane Beamer reflects on journey to head coach
