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Mark Schlabach
Coming off one of the best seasons in school history, South Carolina has rewarded football coach Shane Beamer with a new contract that will run through the end of 2030.
Beamer, who guided the Gamecocks to a 9-4 record this past season, will be paid $8.15 million this year with $100,000 raises annually, according to a term sheet of the deal obtained by ESPN. He was scheduled to make about $6.6 million this year under a previous extension he signed in 2023.
The new deal includes a $5 million buyout if Beamer leaves South Carolina in the first year, which drops by $1 million each year of the contract.
The South Carolina board of trustees approved Beamer’s extension during a meeting Friday.
“I’m proud to represent the University of South Carolina and to lead our football program as the head coach,” Beamer said in a statement. “As I’ve said before, this is my dream job. My family and I love being here. We’ve accomplished a lot on and off the field over the past four years, but we’re not satisfied. There’s more to do and we’re just getting started.”
The new deal makes Beamer the SEC’s ninth-highest paid coach, along with Oklahoma’s Brent Venables, according to contract figures from USA Today’s coaches salary database. Georgia’s Kirby Smart is the highest-paid coach in the league, with an annual salary of about $13.3 million.
Beamer, 47, has a 29-22 record since taking over the Gamecocks in 2021, the best record by a South Carolina coach in his first four seasons. He led the Gamecocks to bowl games in three seasons, including a 21-17 loss to Illinois in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31.
This past season, South Carolina won its final six regular-season games, knocking off then-No. 10 Texas A&M 44-20, then- No. 23 Missouri 34-30 and then-No. 12 Clemson 17-14.
It was only the eighth time in school history that the Gamecocks won at least nine games in a season.
Beamer was named SEC Coach of the Year by The Associated Press.
“The culture and commitment to excellence that Coach Beamer has built in our football program shows that we are headed in the right direction and on a strong upward trajectory,” South Carolina athletic director Jeremiah Donati said in a statement. “Coach Beamer has made clear his desire to be at the University of South Carolina and this extension shows our collective support for him as the leader of our football program.”
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