What Shane Beamer said during his Tuesday press conference previewing Alabama

South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer met with the media on Tuesday to preview his team’s matchup with Alabama this weekend. Here’s what he had to say.

— Big opportunity this week. Eager to get out on the field and compete. Going to one of the most historic stadiums in college football at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Got to go there a ton as a young coach around the SEC.

— Really cool opportunity for the players to go there and play against Alabama. Just a great place with a lot of tradition.

— Has a lot of respect for Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer and the job he’s done with his coaching stops. He’s a first-class person and coach. Has a great coaching staff there.

— Big challenge for USC in all three phases but knows the players are ready to go out and compete.

— There is a lot of stuff Vanderbilt put on tape against Alabama that USC also does. Going to be who they are and do what they do. Vandy did an awesome job of moving the football and staying on the field. Would like to copy that.

— Bangally Kamara came into his office yesterday and said he would be redshirting. Beamer said that’s not quite how it works. Went back and forth a little bit. He was a guy that played season-high in snaps on Saturday at LB. Was going to play more moving forward. But he didn’t quite feel the same way. Made the decision for him and that it was best to move on. Mo Kaba and Fred Johnson will slide into his role.

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— Met with some of the defensive leaders to make sure it was the right move to move on from Kamara and they were fully on board with it. Focused on 2024 around here, not 2025.

— The pre-snap and post-snap penalties bother him the most. Notes the three-most penalized teams in the SEC last year combined to win 31 games. Penalties are going to happen. It’s the pre-snap penalties that make you want to throw up. Did a lot of *claps* to make sure the defense doesn’t jump offsides in practice.

— Watched the tape multiple times before meeting with the offensive staff on Sunday. Spoke to them about the issues he saw and everything else. Talked on Sunday about what they’re doing, who they’re doing it with and how they’re coaching it to be done because they weren’t good enough at finishing drives on offense.

— Doesn’t have a hard fast rule in a line to cross with benching a player after a penalty. The Dylan Stewart penalty was unacceptable. Stewart feels awful about that play. Stewart’s mom felt awful about the play and was very emotional about Stewart. Was he held accountable and punishment after in this building? Yes. He knows he needs to be better. He’s a young kid that got caught up in the emotions. Not excusing it. Feels good about how they’ve handled that situation.

— Loves Demetrius Knight. He is an unbelievable person, player, knowing the right things to say at the right time to not just the players but the coaches.

— Certainly not changing everything about the program. Not going to bury his head in the sand. Have to be better than what they’ve been.

— Kicks himself in the butt for not calling a timeout before the fake punt. Doesn’t regret calling the fake punt. Goal was to sprint up to the line as quick as possible and snap the ball as quick as possible. Thought the DL wouldn’t be lined up as quick as they were. Didn’t emphasize enough how quick they needed to be. It took too long. Needs to call a timeout there. It’s like a car wreck in slow motion. He sees it and needs to call a timeout there, he says. The longer it took, the less likely it is to work. That was one he wishes he was more decisive. Made a bunch of mistakes as a coach on Saturday and needs to be better.

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— Things are going fantastic with recruiting right now. It’s a testament to the fanbase with the environment the fans create at Williams-Brice Stadium. Recruits see that. They’ve got a great group of recruits. Had some of the best players at the game on Saturday. They see the young talent and the guys that they’re playing at different positions. It’s been really good.

— The ability to rush the passer has been great. Done a great job of stopping the run and pressuring the passer. They play an attacking style of defense here. It certainly jumps out on tape. Likes the way the secondary is playing too. They’ve won a lot of 50-50 balls.

— Robby Ashford is a talented guy. It gives other defenses more to prepare for. It makes a difference to have two guys who are big and physical and can run the football well. Doesn’t want Sellers to run the football 20 times each game. Ashford is another guy that they can get in there.

— It’s hard to wholesale change. They try and mix up the protections. They wanted to get the ball out of Sellers’ hands quick. Ole Miss was really good on the DL. Didn’t want him sitting back in the pocket all day. They try and mix it up. That’s something they’re still looking at. Six sacks is six sacks. It’s a shame because they’re running the ball fairly successfully.

— The WR room has certainly evolved. They’ve gotten better since the beginning of the season. They have to be more detailed. Likes the way they continue to get better. There’s no question Nyck Harbor has continued to get better. Feels like they have a solid group of guys that have flashed at different times.

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