South Carolina football should bring in a new OL coach.
Shane Beamer has been in charge of South Carolina for just over two weeks and is finally in Columbia full time after ending a conference championship with Oklahoma Sooners last Saturday. Beamer can now focus on recruiting efforts and the program’s vision for the future, but an important part of that future has created some unease among Gamecock Nation.
South Carolina fans are clamoring for updates on the new coaching staff, which Beamer has promised to be ‘debut’. As is the case in today’s news environment, ads are requested immediately. Fans don’t care that potential hires are still finishing their conference championships or cup preparations, they want to know now. Well, it looks like they got their wish on Tuesday.
A Football Scoop report is saying that Shane Beamer is close to hiring Tennessee offensive line coach Will Friend. The announcement came shortly after the volunteers declared that they will no longer play a bowl game.
The hiring is familiar to some of Carolina’s current employees, as Friend worked side by side with offensive and interim technical coordinator Mike Bobo, both in Georgia and Colorado.
The offensive assistant has been in Knoxville for three seasons and he makes the move amid some uncertainty in the Tennessee coaching staff. Many speculated that coach Jeremy Pruitt could be fired this year or next.
Friend was twice an All-SEC performer in Alabama, and made coaching stops at UAB, Gardner-Webb and West Alabama, in addition to the three schools mentioned earlier.
Details of the deal have not yet been released, but Football Scoop expects future signings to be clear in the coming days.