Bobby Bentley reflects on ‘so many great memories’ at Williams-Brice as new job starts
A long-expected move was made official Thursday: Bobby Bentley has been hired by USF as an assistant football coach.
The former South Carolina Gamecocks assistant and longtime high school coach in the Palmetto State will be the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator under South Florida head coach Jeff Scott and the Bulls.
Bentley, 52, spent the past five seasons on Will Muschamp’s South Carolina staff and was the tight ends coach this past season. He wasn’t retained by new coach Shane Beamer. His USC contract paid him $400,000 annually and expired May 31.
Before South Carolina, Bentley was on Auburn’s coaching staff as an offensive analyst from 2014-15.
As part of Thursday’s announcement, Bentley posted a round of thank-you messages to Twitter. One of his entries was related to all his memories at Williams-Brice Stadium — spanning 40 years.
“There are so many great memories inside your concrete walls!” he said. “But for old times sake I will go down memory lane: The hot astroturf at my 1st football camp in ‘80, state title in game in ‘85, Jomar Wright’s pre-game circle meeting talk in ‘03, winning 4 state championships in a row ‘02-’05, the onside kick in ‘05, the rematch in 2010, UMass in 2016, Tennessee in 2016, and the Monsoon vs. Missouri in 2018, and Auburn in 2020.”
The four games he referenced during his Gamecock career were among the more notable of the Muschamp era:
▪ vs UMass, 2016: With USC 2-4 overall to begin Muchamp’s first season, Bobby’s son and true freshman Jake Bentley started his first game as a college quarterback, a 34-28 win over the Minutemen. South Carolina would go 4-2 under Jake Bentley to reach a 6-6 record and earn a Birmingham Bowl bid against USF.
▪ vs Tennessee, 2016: The Gamecocks upset the No. 18 Vols 24-21 in a raucous night-game environment in Columbia.
▪ vs Missouri, 2018: Senior quarterback Michael Scarnecchia makes his first college start, a wild 37-35 win over the Tigers in a game that was played almost entirely in heavy rain.
▪ vs Auburn, 2020: It took nearly 90 years, but South Carolina defeated Auburn for just the second time ever behind a big game from Jaycee Horn. It would be the second and final victory of the 2020 season that ended with Muschamp being fired.
Before getting into college, Bentley was a successful high school coach at Byrnes High School in the Upstate. Byrnes won four state championships from 2002-05. The Rebels were 57-2 during that title run and were 119-54 during his two stints as Byrnes head coach.
Bentley gave new boss Jeff Scott his first college coaching job.
Bentley was the head coach at Presbyterian College from 2007-08. In 2007, one of Bentley’s first hires was making Scott his receivers coach at PC. Scott was head coach at Blythewood High School and led them to a state championship in 2006 in their first season of varsity football.
In a nod Thursday to the state of South Carolina, Bentley posted to Twitter: “You are not only my birthplace but you raised me, and I thank you for all you have done for my family! The Palmetto State truly is home. From Byrnes, PC to USC, it has been an honor and privilege to coach in this great state for over 28 years.”
Scott coached with Bentley for a year before joining the Clemson staff, where stayed until 2019 before the got the USF job.
“I’m excited to welcome Bobby Bentley to our coaching staff and know his background, experience and success at both the collegiate and high school level will help make us better, “ Scott said Thursday in a statement. “I have known Bobby for a long time and he is a great fit for the culture we are building and the players we are developing at USF.”
What happened to Will Muschamp’s South Carolina coaching staff?
- Will Muschamp: Georgia (off-field analyst)
- Travaris Robinson: Miami (defensive backs)
- Mike Bobo: Auburn (offensive coordinator)
- Eric Wolford: Kentucky (offensive line)
- Des Kitchings: Atlanta Falcons (running backs)
- Bobby Bentley: USF (passing game coordinator, wide receivers coach)
- Tracy Rocker: Philadelphia Eagles (defensive line)
- Mike Peterson: stayed at South Carolina (outside linebackers, defensive ends)
- Rod Wilson: Coastal Carolina (inside linebackers)
- Joe Cox: Charlotte (tight ends)
- Kyle Krantz: Washington State (special teams)
This story was originally published July 1, 2021 at 1:59 PM.
