Shane Beamer didn’t wait long to empty another page from the special teams playbook.
After South Carolina’s first touchdown against Kent State on Saturday, the sixth-year coach made the call to use a brand-new 2-point wrinkle the next time the offense found the end zone. The Gamecocks had barely settled into a 13-0 lead when they unveiled it: Kyler Farrow snapped the ball back and to the left to Maurice Brown, who lofted a pop pass over a cluster of linemen to tight end Brady Hunt.
South Carolina went up 15-0, then poured on 42 more points.
“Didn't practice it until Thursday. We didn't do it on Friday, I don't think. We had a check, based on how they were lined up whether we were going to run it or weren't going to run it, but honestly as the head coach, I wanted to run it,” Beamer said.
The play fit right into the Beamer Ball identity that’s followed him around South Carolina. This wasn’t the first time his teams have dipped into the bag of tricks on special teams, and it probably won’t be the last. The whole thing started back in 2021 against Eastern Illinois, when Nick Muse handled the snap and punched in a 2-point try after scoring the first touchdown of the Beamer era.
“We've done different things over the years, as you guys know, with Tonka Hemingway and Kai (Kroeger) and TJ Sanders. We did something against Oklahoma two years ago with Moe Brown. We did something (similar) against Coastal last year with Moe,” Beamer said.
He said the point of Saturday’s call was bigger than the single conversion. It forces opponents to spend time preparing for South Carolina’s extra-point and field goal-block looks.
“The origin of the one yesterday - I like doing that (because) it makes teams prepare for the stuff that you're doing on extra-points, so this week with Towson and next week with Mississippi State - really every team we play. They have to spend time on their field goal block team defending what we do, which means they spend less time trying to block kicks hopefully.”
Beamer said the Gamecocks’ staff gave Farrow the special teams player of the game honor for his role on the snap.
“That's not an easy snap to execute, he did a great job,” Beamer said.
Triston Lewis also earned the scout team special teams player of the week nod from South Carolina’s coaches.
South Carolina also added a new name to the special teams mix on Thursday, when Houston transfer Ethan Sanchez signed with the program. Beamer said the fifth-year kicker will “add depth and competition to a good room.”
“We saw with Ethan - here's a guy that's kicked at the Power 4 level. He's an older guy.
He's kicked a lot of game-winning field goals, he's kicked in Williams-Brice Stadium, he was on Old Dominion's roster a couple of years ago when we played them,” Beamer said. “Mike Krysl, who also works on our special teams, Mike came from Houston, so Mike had some familiarity with him, and then that kind of got the ball rolling.
“I met with our captains last week and asked them about this scenario, there's a possibility of being able to do this. What are y'all's thoughts?
And they were in full agreement, they wanted to, so then it was a matter of clearing it with our administration, the SEC and we did all of that and they OK'd it and that was really about it. Saw a talented kicker out there - I like the kickers that we have, but here's an older guy that can add to the competition and make our guys better, and that's what we'll do.
We'll compete.”
Beamer said Sanchez is not yet locked in to play against Towson in Week 2.
“We're working through everything, from a compliance standpoint, medical standpoint. … He's excited to be here and glad to have him on the team right now,” Beamer said.
In Other News...
South Carolina Fans Will Notice A Different Williams-Brice Atmosphere Saturday
Williams-Brice Stadium will look and feel a little different Saturday when South Carolina hosts Towson for its annual Salute the Troops game. The Gamecocks are leaning into a full day of pageantry, with military honors, auctions, merchandise sales and other fan-focused activities part of the game-day mix, while also working to smooth out some of the experience issues that showed up last time fans filled the building.
Around the game itself, the school has lined up extra events meant to stretch the atmosphere well beyond kickoff, including stadium tours and pep rallies. For South Carolina, it is a chance to make the setting feel more polished and more festive at once, with the tributes to service members at the center and the fan experience under a closer spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Beamer Just Sent A Clear Message About South Carolina Leadership
Shane Beamer shook up a familiar tradition by naming six team captains just about 48 hours before South Carolina opens the 2025 season, giving the clubhouse, as much as the locker room, an early read on who the players trust most. The group, chosen by vote, includes quarterback LaNorris Sellers, tight end Brady Hunt, linebackers Fred Johnson and Shawn Murphy, and defensive backs Gerald Kilgore and Peyton Williams, a cross-section of the roster that suggests Beamer wanted leadership spread across the offense and defense.
The timing was no accident. Beamer said the move was designed to address leadership concerns from last season, and the decision also gives the Gamecocks a chance to let those voices set the tone before the first snap matters. The captaincy votes will be revisited after the season, but for now South Carolina has made its priorities plain: establish accountability early, lean on player buy-in and see whether this group can steady the team from the start. [Read more 🡒]
Gamecocks Still Have One O-Line Decision Looming As Peak Nears Return
Jacarrius Peaks arrival was supposed to give South Carolina another experienced option up front, but the N.C. State transfer has spent the opening stretch working back from a knee injury suffered soon after he joined the program. He did not play in the season opener, leaving the Gamecocks to lean on freshman Darius Gray and transfer Dayne Arnett at tackle while the staff managed the line without one of its anticipated additions.
Shane Beamer said Peaks return is expected soon, and once he is healthy, the coaches will sort out where he fits. That creates one more live decision for an offensive line that has already had to adjust on the fly, with the Gamecocks now waiting to see whether Peak slides into a starting job or gives them needed depth as they head deeper into the season. [Read more 🡒]