Shane Beamer reveals what a win over Kentucky would mean for South Carolina

South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer is looking for his first signature win as head coach of the Gamecocks, and has the chance to do so on the road against No. 13 Kentucky this weekend.

The game has huge implications for Carolina, who is trying to secure its first SEC victory of the season. According to Beamer, however, he’s treating this game like every other.

“It is the next one. Certainly, if we were fortunate enough to be able to win this game, it will make the off week a lot more enjoyable for sure,” Beamer said Tuesday. “Certainly, whenever you win, just like the last two weeks, it creates momentum that you want to be able to continue. We don’t want to make it bigger than what it is. It is the next one and the next opportunity for us to continue to get better as a football team.”

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Sitting at 3-2 on the season, Beamer’s Gamecocks were in a similar position last season. With a 4-3 record heading into their BYE week, South Carolina were blown out by a ranked Texas A&M team, and the season wasn’t the same since.

“Not that I want to have the same result that we had last year before the off week, but last year before the off week, we went out there and played awful against Texas A&M,” Beamer said. “Then came back the very next week and beat Florida and won three-out-of-five, or whatever it was, down the stretch. Would like to have a different scenario this year where you win going into the off week.”

The Aggies dogged South Carolina 44-14 in that matchup, but Beamer is right, his team had a winning record in the second half of last season, including a Duke’s Mayo Bowl victory over North Carolina. They bounced back with a huge win against Florida, but little to show for it after the fact.

With a slightly lighter schedule (TAMU, Missouri, Vanderbilt) in the weeks following the BYE, the Gamecocks have a chance to turn their mediocre start to the season with a win on the road against the No. 13 Wildcats.

“We will put together a great plan and prepare to go play our very best on Saturday night and certainly if we are fortunate enough to win, it will be awesome,” he said. “If not, then we will come right back to work on the next day and continue to try and get better and get ready to compete against the next opponent.”