There are some obvious similarities to the new South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer and football coach Clemson Dabo Swinney. From a strictly football point of view, the two became coaches without ever being coordinators or players. From a personality point of view, both are very positive and optimistic guys.
There are other similarities and differences, but these characteristics are the most striking.
In an interview with Phil Kornblut on SportsTalk on Thursday, Beamer was asked whether comparisons with Swinney were fair.
“I would say so,” said Beamer, when asked if he was similar to Swinney. “I am a confident person, very positive and full of energy, and that is how I live my life as a coach, husband and father. Life is very short and I want to see what’s good in everything. It would take a lot to bring me down. I try to see the positive in everything, to be constantly on high energy. I’m the type of guy with the glass half full and I try to be the same every day. For me, that’s a compliment. “
Asking the question, Kornblut quickly noted that he hoped the investigation would not be offensive, given the state of the rivalry. It was not for Beamer, who added that he had a previous relationship with Swinney since his days as an assistant coach in Palmetto State.
While the two apparently have a high level of respect for each other, Beamer is eager to start the competition and get Gamecocks back to the program that can compete and beat the Tigers.
“It’s a rivalry, and a rivalry that I can’t wait to get into and compete for on recruiting on the football field,” said Beamer.
“But you are also talking about a coach that I have a lot of respect for who I consider a close and personal friend. I talked to him before I got this job and who I’ve been talking to since I got this job. I appreciate your willingness to contact me before and after, and we will try to defeat each other’s brains on the pitch when we play in November and we will try to beat each other’s brains in recruiting, for sure. But at the end of the day, he did a remarkable job up there and I think about him a lot. “
Swinney and the Tigers achieved six consecutive wins over the Gamecocks. When Beamer was on the team, South Carolina was 2-2 against Clemson, losing the first two games, but winning the next two, which started the five-game winning streak for the Gamecocks.
“When I was in Columbia, I was in the early stages of when the five-year winning streak against those guys started,” said Beamer. “We need to go back to winning football games against these guys in November, for sure.”