Shane Beamer had to contend with the media storm around Nick Saban, the ever-interesting Mike Leach, and perhaps to a lesser extent, Clark Lea today, and yet he still stole the show, at least on Twitter, with a pre-SEC Media Days video this morning that went viral. During the opening statement to his main stage press conference, Beamer joked "I was disappointed we didn't have Soulja Boy as a walk-up song when I came up here." From there, Beamer captured the attention of TV Cameras and Media members in a 27-minute fast-break of information and hype to give fans and foes alike some insight into the Gamecock's program as we careen towards fall camp in just a couple of weeks.

One of the first things Coach Beamer acknowledged in his opening statement was the interesting dynamic of being in the building as a young SEC Coach that hosts the College Football Hall of Fame, which has an exhibit dedicated to his father, Virginia Tech legend Frank Beamer. "This is a venue that my family and I love to visit...It's a great reminder of what makes college football so special...It's pretty cool to be down here on the main floor and know that there's a hall of fame exhibit of my father literally one floor up right there that I was just looking at as we came down. So certainly no pressure from that standpoint." the younger Beamer joked as he began his statement.

He went on to discuss the SEC in general, and how strong the brand and quality of the league is. He also praised Commissioner Greg Sankey for leading the league through uncertain times in modern college football.

This weekend, we looked a little at the 3 player representatives joining Beamer at SEC media days: Dakereon Joyner, Zacch Pickens, and Jovaughn Gwyn. We will have plenty more from their time on the podium, but Beamer took a little time to mention them as well. "(The three players) are great examples of our program and what we want this place to be about...Dakereon and Jovaughn are graduates of the University of South Carolina, Zacch will graduate in December, so they’re handling their business off the field as well. All 3 are young men who did not have to come back, they chose to come back...They had goals they hadn't accomplished yet...they were not satisfied with winning just 7 games last year." Beamer said about his trio of player reps.

He continued to laud their toughness and dependability and leadership throughout much of the opening portion of his time. He also mentioned that he tried to recruit all 3 at various stops before South Carolina, but he was glad that he was unsuccessful once he landed here.

One big takeaway about him talking up Joyner and Pickens was an emphasis on keeping in-state talent home, something the Gamecocks will need to do with the rest of the 2023 class, with names like Monteque Rhames, Xzavier McLeod, and Markee Anderson still on the board, and many important prospects in 2024, like Kam Pringle, who we interviewed last week, Josiah Thompson (who we have an article coming up this week on), Mazeo Bennett and more.

Overall, Beamer seems pleased with the types of players they have on the team, and how they've handled themselves on and off the field. "Right now as a football program, we have the third highest graduation success rate out of all the SEC. We've got 22 players on our team who will play this season as graduates of the University of South Carolina. And assuming we play a bowl game, we will have nine more."

One thing Coach Beamer focused on in his opening statement, and in several of his answers to questions from the media, was how well things have gone, but also the steps left to go. "The hunger to improve has been evident since January (2022). When we came back after the bowl win we made great strides this last season going from 2 wins to 7 wins, and the challenge for us is making sure our guys understand that going from 7 to the next level is going to take even more work. Everything I've seen from our guys shows me they understand that."

He used several occasions throughout the press conference to sell the Gamecocks program as one on the precipice of that success. "People want to be a part of what we're doing" Beamer said about the state of the program. He also referenced the ESPNU 5-Part series that will be following the Gamecocks this season. "They came to us because of what we're doing as a program." He also mentioned that the season ticket renewals are the highest they've been in 10 years, when Steve Spurrier was still roaming the sidelines of Williams-Brice Stadium. "Last year I stood up here and there wasn't a single person talking about South Carolina football...That's different this year. People are talking about us nationally. That's what we want. We have high expectations at South Carolina."

That same excitement extends to NIL opportunities according to Beamer, " "I think South Carolina is set up as well as anyone in the country, to be honest with you from a name, image and likeness standpoint. We're in a capital city, we're the only show in town. We don't compete with pro sports in our town. And South Carolina, the fanbase, it's evident how powerful it is."

Inevitably, despite his absence at SEC Media Days, many questions centered around transfer QB Spencer Rattler. We've talked about him several times throughout this off-season, and it's easy to see why that's the focus for some in the national media. Beamer said that his experience with the former 5-star signal caller runs counter to many national perceptions of him. "The narrative I know was he got benched in the Texas game, but he got sat down the year before too. But he came back in the Texas game and played his butt off...He's been through the fire before, I saw firsthand how he handled it." Beamer said, referencing his shared time with Rattler at Oklahoma.

Gamecock Scoop Beat Reporter Alan Cole also got some insight from Vanderbilt QB Mike Wright on his relationship with his Manning Passing Camp companion. “Spencer is a great dude,” Wright said. “I don’t know why he gets a bad rep; he is a great dude."

We'll continue to have more on Coach Beamer, Joyner, Pickens, and Gwyn throughout this week on Gamecock Scoop. Make sure you have a premium subscription so you don't miss any inside info, and with fall camp just around the corner, now is a great time to jump on board.