One head has already rolled among the South Carolina football staff. With the Alabama Crimson Tide up next, others may soon follow.
During the 2024 college football season, Shane Beamer was on shaky ground. South Carolina lost 27-25 in Tuscaloosa and dropped to 3-3. More was expected of Beamer in his third season. Then the Gamecocks won six straight, before losing a close game to Illinois in the Citrus Bowl.
With a healthy LaNorris Sellers at quarterback, South Carolina fans expected 2025 would be a breakout season leading to a Playoff appearance. A ranked South Carolina team started the season 2-0. Momentum was crushed by Vanderbilt with a 31-7 defeat of the Gamecocks in Nashville. South Carolina now sits at 3-4, having lost four of their last five games.
South Carolina scored only 17 points in its last two games. The scoring problems against stingy LSU and Oklahoma defenses did not surprise college football experts. Responses from South Carolina fans did not excuse the weak point production, and worse it appears a threshold has been crossed.
Lauren Beasley for Garnet and Cocky wrote, "Patience has officially run out in Columbia. ... Gamecock fans are calling loudly for offensive coordinator Mike Shula's job. The frustration has been building for weeks, but this one lit the match. Fans repeatedly booed, leaving the game in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium as the offense sputtered yet again"
Beasley added "... blaming Shula alone oversimplifies things. The offensive line is still inconsistent. The run game lacks a true identity. Depth at wide receiver remains an issue. Coordinators get paid to adjust, and the lack of adaptability is exactly what is fueling this storm. The reality is, South Carolina's offense looks like it's running on fumes, not because of effort, but because they are playing checkers in a chess league at this point."
Will Folks writing for FITSNEWS stated, "South Carolina has already fired offensive line coach, Lonnie Teasley, while offensive coordinator Mike Shula and run game coordinator Shawn Elliott inexplicably remain at their posts despite weekly demonstrations of their incompetence. The case for firing Shula and Elliott couldn’t be clearer."
Alabama Crimson Tide fans love and hate Mike Shula
Shula has never fully recovered for failing in an impossible situation at Alabama. Crimson Tide fans should revere him for the Alabama quarterback he was and for his willingness to put his career at risk when Alabama was desperate for a head coach. He will likely be coaching for his job on Saturday. If Alabama wins and Shane Beamer does not fire Shula, Beamer's tenure will be under serious duress.