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Last week after a 17-14 win over Kentucky, Shane Beamer had a plea for South Carolina’s student section, known as the co*ckpit.
“If I could nickpit a little bit, co*ckpit, we love you,” Beamer started. “But if you’re going to come, please stay for the whole game. To the co*ckpit, I love you guys, and that end zone was amazing, but we don’t need empty seats in a four-quarter dogfight in our student section.”
Seven days later as a once-boisterous student section slowly trudged down the steps behind the north end zone of Williams-Brice Stadium through the closing phases of a listless season-ending loss, it was hard to blame them.
South Carolina lost 16-7 to Clemson, a game that functionally ended its season at 5-7. The Gameco*cks could technically still earn an invitation for a bowl bid if teams above them in the pecking order decline their bids, but by any realistic measure this is done.
Opening up the autopsy reveals a final nail in the coffin nearly identical to the rest of the woes. South Carolina gained two net yards of offense across the entire second and third quarters, a stretch of seven consecutive punts as Clemson’s (8-4) defensive line took a collection of free runs at Spencer Rattler that soured his senior night.
“When you look at statistics nationally, we were one of the worst teams in the country at protecting the quarterback,” Beamer said. “It’s not all on the offensive line. They’re [Clemson] really good up front, we weren’t good enough tonight.”
After two sacks and six tackles for loss Saturday, the disturbing final statistics read: 41 sacks, 92 tackles for loss in 12 games.
A patchwork offensive line amidst a never-ending tidal wave of injuries was the downfall of the year, and the success of Spencer Rattler and Xavier Legette in spite of it will be the enduring positive legacy of a bitterly disappointing season.
“I’m sad we couldn’t get a better record this year,” Rattler said. “But we could’ve easily not won five games just by throwing the towel in, but we fought. I just love these dudes, man.”
“Sad” was the unmistakable scent floating in the air almost immediately after Rattler’s swing pass to Legette was ruled a lateral that Khalil Barnes returned for a 42-yard touchdown on the second play from scrimmage. Two turnovers in the first two minutes set the tone, and even one shockwave of a touchdown could not disrupt the flow of the evening. A procession of attempts slamming into an orange brick wall, each more deflating than the last.
It was a missed opportunity for another stout defensive performance; the Gameco*cks held Clemson to just three field goal drives offensively and forced six punts. In an almost cruel twist of fate, the unit which could not buy a stop for the first two months of the year while the offense put up school-record setting numbers had no support over the final two weeks of the year.
Last week, the lights turned on. This time they were just left in the dark.
“I just wish we could’ve got everything to click together,” linebacker Debo Williams said. “At the beginning of the season the offense had our back, end of the season we had their back. I just wish we could’ve gotten it to click together.”
Through three years of the Beamer era, that is the 30,000-foot takeaway. Year one was the year of inconsistency, alternating wins and losses for 10 straight games to close.
Year two had the highest highs with wins over Tennessee and Clemson, but also the lowest lows with flat showings against Missouri and Florida. And as for the fresh wound of year three, five weeks of alternating wins and losses in September, a winless October and then a nearly flawless November until Saturday.
In some ways it was the only way this could have ended, emotional swings early with a slow fade to darkness late.
“All you had to do was be in that locker room with the young men in our program,” Beamer said. “That is a hurting bunch of players. The comments that the seniors made to the returning players about this program and what this program is about, just extremely proud of them.”
He already expressed optimism for 2024, stating post-game he sees “a hell of a team” coming back next year. There will be a hole at quarterback with Rattler’s likely imminent departure, and persistent ponderings about where skill position yards will come with Legette ticketed for the NFL Draft.
Beamer has shown how he operates his program in the best of circ*mstances, what it looks like to go on the recruiting trail, hit the transfer portal and parade through the booster circuits off the back of successful, overachieving seasons.
Now comes the sticky part, trying to maintain the positive momentum after a year where nobody was satisfied with the final results.
“I’ll tell you that it’s as strong as it’s ever been in my opinion,” Beamer said when asked about the state of the program.
Strong as it may be, that stress test will come in 2024 and beyond. For right now, one enduring theme remains.
On Jul. 20 at SEC Media Days in Nashville, Beamer stated a mission for the season.
“The biggest question for us coming into 2023 is just to find better ways to do things,” Beamer said. “Don't just assume that the way that I did things last season or the way we did things in recruiting, nutrition, the weight room, are just going to remain status quo. Like, be better than we've ever been.”
128 days later in the bowels of an empty Williams-Brice Stadium, when asked about his off-season checklist:
“Get better,” he said.
A full circle season reached its most fitting conclusion.
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