Shane Beamer evaluates South Carolina's offense in first half vs. Virginia Tech: 'Kind of sloppy'

The Gamecocks burst out of the starting gates against Virginia Tech, punching in a touchdown on their first drive of the game. However, South Carolina‘s offense sputtered after the opening drive, only scoring on a single field goal for the remainder of the half. During the halftime break, South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer evaluated his team’s offensive performance.

“Up and down,” Beamer said. “Obviously, had a great first drive to start the game. Had a great last drive right there. In between that, kind of sloppy. Just feel like guys are trying to do too much. Offensively, everyone just needs to settle down and do their job.”

South Carolina finished the first half with 185 yards of total offense. The Gamecocks’ first drive was near perfection. In just seven plays, they reached the end zone, with quarterback LaNorris Sellers rushing 15 yards and trucking a defender for a touchdown.

Only a couple series later, Sellers was sacked in the end zone for a safety. South Carolina appeared to find a rhythm again on its final drive of the half. However, the team’s successful string of plays ended in disaster when wide receiver Nyck Harbor‘s touchdown catch was controversially overturned.

The Gamecocks weren’t the only ones who disagreed the questionable ruling. ESPN’s Louis Riddick, who was on the call, didn’t hesitate to criticize the referees’ decision.

“If it looks like a catch it should be a catch,” Riddick said. “I understand that that’s not the letter of the law as far as the rule is concerned. But the man had the ball in control, has two feet down. At the end it gets knocked loose. Credit Virginia Tech and their secondary for fighting the whole way and making it difficult on him.”

South Carolina settled for a field goal on the drive and headed into the locker room with a 10-8 lead. Tune into ESPN to catch the second half of the game.

Frank Beamer supports son, wears South Carolina pullover

Shane Beamer is under extra pressure to win on Sunday. His father, Shane Beamer, was Virginia Tech‘s head coach from 1987-2015 and is the Hokies’ winningest coach of all time.

Naturally, everybody was wondering who Frank Beamer would be cheering for in South Carolina and Virginia Tech’s Week 1 showdown. Beamer ultimately went with his own blood, wearing a South Carolina pullover to the game.

In fairness, Beamer had a Virginia Tech pin attached to his pullover as well. Virginia Tech fans certainly didn’t seem to take offense. Beamer took the field ahead of the game to read an invocation and was greeted by a standing ovation.