As Shane Beamer continues his staff overhaul heading into a pivotal 2026 season, he’s been in the process of trying to find an offensive coordinator after dismissing Mike Shula last month less than a year into Shula’s three-year term.
This week, he added additional flexibility for the incoming offensive coordinator by creating another opening on the offensive side of the ball when letting running backs coach Marquel Blackwell go.
Multiple sources tell FootballScoop that Beamer’s search has narrowed its focus and the expectation is that a deal will be reached by the end of the weekend.
Beamer is seeking to reignite a Gamecocks offense that stalled this year in its first under Shula and also did not see star quarterback LaNorris Sellers take the next step in his development; the unit scored more than 24 points just twice in SEC play and closed the year 102nd nationally in scoring at less than 23 points per game.
Missing the postseason for the second time in three years and his team a loser in 19 games across the past three seasons, Beamer faces a key year in 2026 just as the SEC transitions to a nine-game slate that features a brutal run for South Carolina.
The Gamecocks next fall are slated for SEC games at home against Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Texas A&M and Tennessee as well as road contests at Alabama, Arkansas, Florida and Oklahoma.
Sources tell FootballScoop Shane Beamer would like to have this deal papered no later than the end of the weekend and preferably sooner.
TCU offensive coordinator Kendal Briles has emerged as the focus of Beamer’s South Carolina search, multiple sources told FootballScoop.
The former Broyles Award finalist Briles just wrapped his third season atop the offense in Sonny Dykes’s TCU Horned Frogs program.
TCU’s offense scored 35 points or more in six of its 12 games this year amidst TCU’s 8-4 campaign.
Additionally, sources tell FootballScoop that TCU running backs coach Jimmy Smith also is a candidate to be added to Beamer’s staff after the Gamecocks limped to an 4-8 season and won just a single Southeastern Conference game and Beamer made multiple offensive moves.
In addition to firing Shula last month, with more than $2 million remaining owed on Shula’s contract, Beamer also earlier this week fired Marquel Blackwell from the Gamecocks’s running backs position. It’s another change at the spot after Beamer also dismissed Montario Hardesty after the 2023 season.
Smith also coached with Briles at Arkansas before joining him at TCU, and it’s clear the two colleagues have a strong rapport.
Additionally, Smith coached at Georgia State prior to landing a Power Conference assistant job and was a longtime Atlanta-area high school coach for a dozen years.
During this search Beamer has spoken with a number of coaches about this opportunity; but at this time all signs point to a deal being reached with Briles.
