ATLANTA (WIS) — South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer made no secret of his high expectations for the Gamecocks during SEC Media Days on Monday.
Beamer made it clear: he’s chasing championships.
“I didn’t come to South Carolina to go 7-5 every year,” Beamer said. “I came to South Carolina to win championships.”
Entering his fifth season at the helm, Beamer is riding momentum from a 9-4 campaign in 2024 — a season that saw South Carolina narrowly miss the expanded College Football Playoff. The Gamecocks closed the regular season on a six-game winning streak, including four wins over ranked opponents.
Despite the success, the team is focused on growth and building from the lessons of last season.
“Every team is different,” said senior defensive tackle Nick Barrett. “We’ve got a chip on our shoulder. People think because we lost some big names, our defense won’t be dominant. That fuels us.”
That competitive edge extends to the offense as well — led by rising star quarterback LaNorris Sellers.
“In the SEC, games usually come down to one or two plays,” Sellers said. “It’s one-touchdown games, three-point games. Every snap counts.”
Sellers emerged as a breakout player in 2024 and quickly became the center of offseason speculation, with reports of significant NIL offers from other programs trying to lure him away from Columbia. But Beamer said he was never worried.
“I don’t even know if we had that conversation,” Beamer said. “Maybe I was naive, but I knew he loved it here. He just had a season where he won nine games as a starting quarterback, played like one of the best in the country, and now he’s back with a strong team. He loves being here.”
Sellers has already been mentioned in early Heisman Trophy discussions, and his return is a major boost for South Carolina as they push to take the next step in 2025.
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