Shane Beamer Pushes Back on Coordinator Criticism as Gamecocks Struggle to Find Offensive Answers
South Carolina’s season has hit a rough patch, sitting at 3-6 overall and 1-6 in SEC play. The biggest issue? Offense. The Gamecocks currently rank 121st nationally in points per game (19.7) — a number that has put immense pressure on head coach Shane Beamer to find solutions fast.
Last week, Beamer made a major move by firing offensive coordinator Mike Shula, whose unit had struggled to find rhythm all year. In his place, wide receivers coach Mike Furrey has been promoted to interim offensive coordinator, stepping into a challenging role with just a few games left in the season.
The change marks the fourth offensive coordinator of Beamer’s tenure since he took over in 2021 — following Marcus Satterfield, Dowell Loggains, and Shula. Despite the turnover, Beamer defended his track record when addressing the media on Tuesday.
“I push back a little bit on the narrative that we haven’t necessarily gotten these, I haven’t gotten these coordinator hires right,” Beamer said, according to The State. “Have we been efficient enough on offense and consistent enough on offense? Absolutely not. But let’s also not act like we brought in three coordinators, and we’ve just fired all of them, and we just threw up our hands.”
Beamer pointed out that all three of his previous coordinators came with NFL experience, and while he values the professional background, he’s open to exploring a wider range of candidates moving forward.
“If we hire from outside, someone that’s been a college coordinator, I think that would be awesome,” Beamer said. “But if the best person is from the NFL and can fit what we want to do here offensively, then so be it.”
As the Gamecocks prepare for a tough road matchup against No. 3 Texas A&M on Saturday (noon ET, ESPN), all eyes will be on Furrey’s debut as the offensive play-caller — and whether he can spark life into a struggling South Carolina attack.
