Shane Beamer tasked with keeping South Carolina on the rise in 2023

Is South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer’s destiny to be like his father?

Or is he to be more like his predecessor?

The upcoming season may reveal which way Beamer’s program is headed.

Beamer’s father, Frank, transformed a struggling Virginia Tech program into a national power.

His predecessor at South Carolina, Will Muschamp, had moderate success early in this tenure in Columbia but ultimately left the program in mediocrity.

The Gamecocks were 15-11 in their first two seasons under Muschamp, who could not maintain the early momentum and was fired during his fifth season.

Shane Beamer is also 15-11 after the Gamecocks finished 7-6 and 8-5 in his first two seasons at the South Carolina helm.

But can he keep the Gamecocks moving in an upward trend?

That likely will require an even better season from quarterback Spencer Rattler, who threw for 3,026 yards and 18 touchdowns a year ago.

Jamie Maury, TexAgs

Despite Rattler completing just 12 of his 25 passes for 168 yards vs. Texas A&M last year, the Gamecocks still beat the Aggies in Columbia, 30-24.

Rattler will benefit from the return of receiver Antwane Wells Jr., who had 928 receiving yards and caught six touchdown passes in 2022.

The passing game may also get a boost from transfers Eddie Lewis, a receiver from Memphis, and Trey Knox, a tight end from Arkansas.

But the offensive line, which allowed 31 sacks last season, is suspect.

The running game has questions, too.

MarShawn Lloyd, who led South Carolina in rushing, transferred to Southern California. That leaves junior Juju McDowell as the Gamecocks’ top returning rusher. He gained 219 yards last season.

There may be even more questions on the defensive side where only four starters from 2022 remain on the roster.

Three of those — safeties DQ Smith and Nick Emmanwori and cornerback Marcellas Dial — are in the secondary, which helped South Carolina nab 15 interceptions and rank 34th nationally in pass defense.

There are major questions in the front seven, though.

South Carolina’s run defense was among the weakest in America. Also, the Gamecocks managed only 20 sacks in 13 games.

Defensive lineman Tonka Hemingway led the Gamecocks with four sacks and posted 33 tackles. He’s expected to get help from transfer Jatius Geer, who had 33 stops at Syracuse last season.

South Carolina allowed at least 30 points in six games last season, and the defense doesn’t project to be any better.

That’s enough reason to wonder whether Beamer can keep the Gamecocks on the rise.

South Carolina Gamecocks

2022 record: 8-5, 4-4

Returning Starters

• Offense (5): QB Spencer Rattler, WR Antwane Wells Jr., WR Xavier Legette, OT Jaylen Nichols, C Vershon Lee
• Defense (4): FS DQ Smith, SS Nick Emmanwori, DT Tonka Hemingway, CB Marcellas Dial

Primary Area of Strength: South Carolina was ranked fifth in the SEC in pass defense a year ago. The Gamecocks also led the SEC with 15 interceptions. Three starters return in the secondary, including Marcellas Dial, who led the team with three interceptions. Returning safety DQ Smith had two. Only Georgia and Tennessee passed for 300 yards against South Carolina in 2022. Some of that can be attributed to opponents’ preferring to run, but the Gamecocks’ pass defense is solid.

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Defensive lineman Tonka Hemingway will be among the Gamecock contingent at next week’s SEC Media Days.

Primary Area of Concern: The Gamecocks were among the weakest teams in the nation against the run. They surrendered an average of 198 rushing yards to rank 117th in the nation and 13th in the SEC. Seven opponents rushed for at least 200 yards. Maybe South Carolina will be dramatically improved, but significant losses in the front seven makes that appear unlikely.

Significant additions

• RB Mario Anderson: Division II All-American at Newberry rushed for 1,560 yards last season.
• DL Jatius Geer: Defensive line transfer from Syracuse posted 33 tackles, 3.5 sacks.
• TE Trey Knox: Graduate transfer from Arkansas had 26 catches for 296 yards and five touchdowns for Razorbacks in 2022.
• WR Eddie Lewis: Memphis grad transfer looking to build on 2022 campaign in which he had 41 catches for 603 yards and seven touchdowns.

Significant losses

• CB Cam Smith: A second-round NFL Draft choice of the Miami Dolphins.
• DT Zacch Pickens: Third-round NFL Draft pick of the Chicago Bears had 42 tackles, four tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
• DB Darius Rush: Fifth-round NFL Draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts had seven passes broken up and two interceptions.
• Edge Jordan Burch: Transferred to Oregon after posting 60 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.

Top Players

• QB Spencer Rattler: In his first season at South Carolina, he passed for 3,012 yards and 18 touchdowns.
• WR Antwane Lee Jr.: Last season, he posted the SEC’s second-highest receptions total with 68 for 928 yards and six touchdowns.
• CB Marcellas Dial: Fifth-year senior broke up 12 passes and intercepted three in 2022.

2023 South Carolina schedule

• Sept. 2 vs. North Carolina (Charlotte)
• Sept. 9 vs. Furman
• Sept. 16 at Georgia
• Sept. 23 vs. Mississippi State
• Sept. 30 at Tennessee
• Oct. 14 vs. Florida
• Oct. 21 at Missouri
• Oct. 28 at Texas A&M
• Nov. 4 vs. Jacksonville State
• Nov. 11 vs. Vanderbilt
• Nov. 18 vs. Kentucky
• Nov. 25 vs. Clemson