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Shane Beamer on Bam Martin-Scott: 'Hopefully, the NCAA will do the right thing'

by:Kevin Miller•12/27/24•

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South Carolina linebacker Bam Martin-Scott (Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)
South Carolina linebacker Bam Martin-Scott (Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)

South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer spoke to the media on Friday ahead of the Gamecocks’ Citrus Bowl matchup against the Illinois Fighting Illini. (The Gamecocks and Illini will kick at 3:00 p.m. on December 31st on ABC and ESPN+.) One of the topics of conversation was senior linebacker Bam Martin-Scott.

For those unfamiliar, Martin-Scott has been the subject of much speculation this week. The USC ‘backer is out of college eligibility.

However, in the face of more legal action following a court-granted injunction on behalf of Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, the athletics governing body issued a 2025 waiver for former junior college athletes. The waiver grants seniors otherwise out of eligibility an extra year if they spent a year at junior college.

For Martin-Scott, the waiver isn’t quite so black and white because he spent two years in JuCo, one actively playing (2019) and one sitting out during the Covid-19 pandemic (2020). He just finished his sixth year of college, whereas Pavia just finished year five.

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Coach Beamer was asked if the Gamecocks had heard anything definitive on his linebacker’s situation for next year. “No, we would love for that to happen. I don’t want to speak for him…I think he would tell you the same thing.” Beamer added, “he would love to be able to do that, and we would love to be able to do that. We will see what happens. Hopefully, the NCAA will do the right thing.”

Shortly after Beamer spoke, Martin-Scott also had a chance to talk to the media. Naturally, he was asked about his status for 2025.

“We don’t know yet because my case is a little different than Pavia’s with me being older. [We’re] still going through the process, but I would love to come back. I love this program and like the trajectory it’s on. I would love to come back.” Martin-Scott added that both he and South Carolina have already filed the appeal for his extra year.

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Martin-Scott had a good season and likely could have been an undrafted free agent in the NFL this offseason. He finished the 2024 campaign third on the team with 65 tackles. He also added 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two passes defended, and a fumble recovery.

If he receives a seventh year from the NCAA, Martin-Scott would be a favorite to start on next year’s defense. He played a big role this fall, seeing extensive action in all 12 regular season games. He was a listed starter six times.

Both rising sophomore Fred “JayR” Johnson and transfer portal addition Shawn Murphy will feature in the 2025 linebacker rotation. Other returners, most notably Jaron Willis and Ronnie Porter, also could get involved. Several players in the class of 2025 recruiting class will fight for depth snaps, too, including Donovan Darden, AJ Holloway, Taeshawn Alston, Josh Smith, and Jaquel Holman.

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