On the field, Will Muschamp can be terrifying. Off it, he’s a ‘big softie,’ players say

Among college football fans, Will Muschamp’s fiery demeanor is legendary. There’s the video of him punching a whiteboard after an impassioned halftime speech. There’s the image of him angrily grimacing at a player at Florida, eyes nearly popping out his head. And on and on and on.

At South Carolina, however, Muschamp’s reputation is that of a players’ coach — slyly funny, endlessly understanding and very good-natured.

“A lot of people know him as this kind of mean person, but to me personally, I don’t really see him like that,” redshirt junior running back A.J. Turner said. “I know he’s a big softie on the inside.”

Turner knows that, he said, because he sees it every day at practice and off the field.

“Every practice, he’s like, ‘AJ, run to where you’re going, run to where you’re going, man,’ or like, ‘Hey AJ, whatcha doing, whatcha doing?’ Just always joking around with each other,” Turner said. “... He’s a really funny dude if you get to know him. He told me I look like Alfred E. Neuman, and then I told him he looked like Fred Flintstone.”

A player invoking a cartoon character to describe his coach may seem odd for a sport where program leaders are often described as frightening or downright terrifying, but that’s just part of Muschamp’s “aura,” senior tight end Jacob August said.

“He’s one of the coolest guys I’ve ever met. Everyone thinks he’s this hard-nosed guy that is all about violence, but when he’s off the field, you can tell he cares about you,” August said.

“You don’t get the feeling you can’t talk to him,” sophomore defensive lineman Aaron Sterling explained. “He’s one of us. We can go talk to him. He’s a funny guy. He can be funny sometimes. You gotta catch him.”

Beyond humor, players said, Muschamp endears himself to players by keeping up with their personal lives and making a point of engaging them outside of football.

“He’s a great guy off the field,” senior cornerback Keisean Nixon said. “Asks about my family a lot, especially me being from California. I’m far away, he’s always asking about my mom and my son, stuff like that.”

The prime example many players returned to to illustrate Muschamp’s commitment to them outside of football was the annual visit to his lake house, where they relax, eat and enjoy themselves.

“He takes all the leaders of the team, brings them to his house, has a day in the summer where we can all hang out, go in the pool, go out on his boat, tube and whatnot,” senior offensive lineman Blake Camper said. “He’s a big family man, which I appreciate a lot. He loves this team, and I know he loves each and every one of us.”

And it’s not just one visit per year — redshirt senior tight end K.C. Crosby said Muschamp encourages players to come by whenever. That attitude is indicative of Muschamp’s all-encompassing approach with his student-athletes.

“Outside of here, he’s like our dad. He’s going to take you under his wing, whatever you need, he’s a phone call away. Anytime you text him, anytime you call him, he’s gonna pick up,” Crosby said. “He’s just a real players’ coach.”

This story was originally published August 7, 2018 at 7:30 PM.