Shane Beamer Leaving South Carolina for Virginia Tech

After a bit of good news, now there's a bit of bad news for the Gamecocks. Shane Beamer has accepted a job with Virginia Tech. There's been a lot of talk about whether or not Beamer has been looking for another job, and it was rumored that he was considering taking a job with Nick Saban and Alabama. It turns out that 'Bama isn't his destination, but he's leaving nonetheless. It's hard to disagree with Beamer's choice; Virginia Tech is a higher-profile program than Carolina, and more importantly, Shane Beamer's father Frank is the head coach.

I'm ambivalent about how this affects Carolina. Beamer has been under a lot of fire over the past couple of seasons for the underwhelming job his special teams units have done, and his departure gives us a prime opportunity to find a more effective special teams coach. That said, Beamer has played a major role in our recruiting success over the past few years. He's had a role in the recruitment of several of the players who have helped us take the next step and make it to Atlanta. In that regard, he will be missed. I'd say the ultimate effect this has on us depends on who we hire to replace Beamer. If we find a quality special teams coach who can recruit, we may be fine. After all, we have other great recruiters on the staff. However, if we bomb the hire, Beamer's departure will hurt us.