Shane Beamer didn’t sugarcoat it: South Carolina football is disappointed to be sitting at 2-2 in a season that began with high expectations.
“We have a lot of work to do and know it’s not good enough,” Beamer admitted at his weekly Tuesday press conference. “No one’s happy about being 2-2. There’s no question about that.”
Citing John 16:33 from the Bible as a reminder of the “trials and tribulations” his team is facing, Beamer emphasized that the Gamecocks remain positive and are committed to fixing the issues that led to consecutive SEC losses against Vanderbilt and Missouri.
“We’re going to build on how close we were,” he said. “We played like garbage in so many ways, but we were leading going into the fourth quarter. Just imagine, if we can get all this other stuff fixed, which everything is fixable, how good this football team can be.”
Offense and tackling at the top of the list
Beamer pointed to two glaring problems: the offensive struggles that left USC with negative nine rushing yards against Missouri, and defensive lapses in tackling that allowed the Tigers to pile up 285 rushing yards. He stressed that addressing these issues begins with accountability.
“Part of being a leader, which I am as the leader of this program, is having really, really, really hard and uncomfortable conversations with players and coaches, whether it be in a team setting or individual meetings,” Beamer said.
Fans have voiced frustrations with offensive coordinator Mike Shula, whose unit ranks last in the SEC with just 300.5 yards per game. Beamer acknowledged that criticism comes with the territory.
“I’m sure there’s plays Mike would like to have back,” Beamer said. “Every play call that’s made, I hear it. If I have an issue with something, I will certainly address it. But ultimately, when you don’t win the game, it’s not good enough.”
Beamer added that personnel changes are always on the table if necessary.
“What I told the coaches and what I’ve told the players is there’s not a single position on our team where if a guy’s not getting it done, we’re just gonna keep him in there and keep watching him not get it done,” he explained. “We’re evaluating people all the time. … It’s not just because we’re 2-2 right now, but we need to have our eyes wide open.”
Missed tackles haunting the defense
Defensively, missed tackles have become a recurring issue. South Carolina has already missed 44 tackles this season and ranks 89th nationally in tackling grades, according to Pro Football Focus. That weakness has been a major point of emphasis in practice.
“Today, we had a lot of circuits where we just focused on mainly tackling,” defensive back Vicari Swain said.
Beamer agreed the issue wasn’t about effort, but about finishing plays.
“I think there were too many examples the other night of guys just assuming that somebody was on the ground and didn’t finish the play like they needed to play,” he said. “It wasn’t a lack of want-to or lack of effort. … You can’t assume that somebody’s got it.”
Looking ahead to Kentucky
For Beamer, the Gamecocks’ focus this week is less about their upcoming opponent and more about internal improvements.
“The self-reflection and focus on the fixable problems isn’t a new thing,” Beamer said. “What we do in practice is always about us and that’s what matters, and every opponent is just the next person on our schedule.”
Despite a rocky start, Beamer maintains that South Carolina’s problems are solvable—and if fixed, the Gamecocks can still live up to their preseason promise.
