Shane Beamer didn’t waste any time making his expectations clear for Shawn Elliott after firing offensive line coach Lonnie Teasley. The Gamecocks’ offensive line has been a penalty machine all season. And it finally reached the breaking point when the unit accounted for five of South Carolina’s 13 accepted penalties against the Tigers. Through six games, South Carolina has racked up 55 penalties for 412 yards, averaging 9.2 flags per game, with a particularly ugly 14-penalty disaster against Missouri in September. 

Beamer made the move on Sunday, handing the interim offensive line coaching duties to Shawn Elliott while also keeping his roles as run game coordinator and tight ends coach.​ When asked if a new voice could help the Gamecocks cut down on penalties, Beamer didn’t mince words. “That is the hope, certainly,” he told reporters. He went on to discuss Elliott’s new approach to fixing the problem. He revealed that Elliott has been lined up as a linebacker over the center during practice in an effort to simulate the chaos and noise the offensive line will face on gameday. 

He said, “Today at practice, Shawn was literally lined up across from the center pretty much every play of practice screaming, yelling, clapping, barking, blowing whistles, making move calls himself, just trying to make things as difficult as he possibly can.” It’s a hands-on, in-your-face coaching style that couldn’t be more different from what the unit had been getting. Elliott, a Camden, South Carolina native who previously coached South Carolina’s offensive line under Steve Spurrier from 2010-15 and served as interim head coach for six games in 2015, knows exactly what the job requires. And apparently, that includes playing linebacker to toughen up his guys.​ 

Quarterback LaNorris Sellers set the record straight when asked about the difference between Teasley and Shawn Elliott at practice. He delivered what might be the most polite shade you’ll ever hear. “Coach Elliott is just a little bit more hands-on,” Sellers said at the podium. Only a little inference is required to know that he’s saying that the previous guy wasn’t hands-on enough, and everyone in that locker room knows it. 

Elliott’s reputation as a hard-nosed, detail-oriented coach is well-documented. He helped lead Appalachian State to three straight FCS national championships from 2005-07 and then spent seven years as Georgia State’s head coach before returning to Columbia in 2024. His first year back already showed results in the running game, with South Carolina averaging 184.4 yards per game on the ground. The most since 2013 and nearly 100 yards more than they averaged in 2023.​

Now Shawn Elliott has the keys to the entire offensive line operation. And his first set of orders should be simple. The Gamecocks have to stop beating themselves. The Gamecocks host No. 14 Oklahoma on Saturday, and the Sooners’ defense will absolutely feast if South Carolina keeps handing out free yards. Elliott’s aggressive, hands-on coaching style (literally playing linebacker to create pressure situations in practice) represents a complete 180 from whatever the previous approach was. And the Gamecocks diehards will be praying that it works.

When loyalty meets accountability

Shane Beamer knew the time was needed for a change. By Sunday afternoon, Lonnie Teasley was out of a job. That’s how fast things move in SEC football when your offensive line is getting your quarterback killed. The decision came less than 24 hours after South Carolina’s 20-10 loss to LSU, a game where the offensive line committed five pre-snap penalties. LaNorris Sellers got sacked five times that night, bringing his season total to a jaw-dropping 19 sacks through just six games, which is 2nd most in the SEC.

When Beamer met with the media on Monday, you could see the weight of the decision on his face. “When you’re in this position, you have to make hard decisions that negatively affect people you care about,” he said. “It wasn’t just last night. It had been building for a bit.”

The human side of coaching decisions rarely gets talked about, but Beamer wasn’t hiding from it. “Lonnie is a fantastic coach, fantastic person. He has an unbelievable family, and these decisions aren’t easy,” Beamer said, his voice carrying genuine emotion. “I hurt for him and his family.” You could tell this wasn’t some cold, calculated business move. Beamer clearly liked Teasley as a person. But at 3-3 overall and 1-3 in the SEC, with Oklahoma coming to town and a murderous four-game stretch ahead (Oklahoma, Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas A&M), the Gamecocks couldn’t afford to keep shooting themselves in the foot.