First look: South Carolina opens 2021 season in a game that’s not on traditional TV
Talking season is about to come to a close for South Carolina football as the Gamecocks head into week one preparations for head coach Shane Beamer’s first game as a head coach.
After last year’s 2-8 season, South Carolina is looking for a jump start to the Beamer era with its matchup against FCS opponent Eastern Illinois this Saturday. It will also be the first game with full capacity allowed in Williams-Brice Stadium since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Eastern Illinois vs. South Carolina stream info
This marks the first South Carolina football game of the “streaming era” — it won’t be available on a traditional television channel. While several Gamecock games have been broadcast on the sometimes hard-to-find SEC Network Alternate channel, this will be a day where you’ll have to fire up the Roku, Amazon Fire Stick or streaming device of choice.
According to records available via South Carolina’s media guide, the last game not televised was a 2013 pay-per-view contest against Coastal Carolina.
- Who: Eastern Illinois Panthers (0-1) vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (0-0)
- Where: Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia
- When: 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 4
- Stream: SEC Network Plus and ESPN+
South Carolina’s quarterback saga set for an ending
It has become the million-dollar question in Columbia: Who lines up under center this Saturday? Since starter Luke Doty fell injured with a sprained left foot suffered in fall camp, the Gamecocks haven’t taken anything off the table — including the late addition of Zeb Noland, a graduate assistant coach who moved to quarterback about two weeks ago.
Noland, who backed up San Francisco 49ers first-round draft pick Trey Lance at North Dakota State and first team All-Big 12 selection Brock Purdy at Iowa State, is competing for the starting job alongside FCS transfer Jason Brown (St. Francis, Pennsylvania), true freshman Colten Gauthier and redshirt sophomore Connor Jordan.
Though he hasn’t had as many days out on the practice field, Noland has garnered praise from coaches and is the only quarterback who brings FBS experience to South Carolina’s current competition. But Beamer has also shared positive remarks about the others in contention, touting last Tuesday that Brown was coming off his best week of practice. He has also praised Gauthier and Jordan’s development.
Last Tuesday, Beamer told reporters he’s hoping to have a game one quarterback named, at least internally, by the beginning of this week.
Beamer’s first game as head coach
Beamer has plenty of assistant coaching experience across plenty of Power Five programs, including Virginia Tech, Oklahoma, Georgia and South Carolina during the Steve Spurrier era. Saturday will be the first time in his career Beamer has taken on the head coaching role.
The son of Hall of Fame Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer, Shane Beamer said he’s made a point in his own coaching career to build a reputation independent of only being known as “Frank’s son.”
“I’ve learned a lot from him,” Beamer said at SEC Media Days in July. “I still rely on him a lot now for advice and things like that as well. I know he’s excited about me being in this position.”
Beamer will also be breaking in a new staff against Eastern Illinois. Both offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield and defensive coordinator Clayton White will coach their first games as Power Five coordinators.
Eastern Illinois comes in with a game under its belt
Eastern Illinois has already lost a game this season, dropping a close contest to fellow FCS program Indiana State 26-21 on Saturday. This was mainly due to the Panthers’ three turnovers — including a red-zone fumble and fourth-quarter interception returned 75 yards for an Indiana State touchdown.
Beamer indicated that South Carolina had to approve of Eastern Illinois playing a first game, but he looked at the Panthers’ “Week Zero” game as an opportunity for the Gamecocks to come into the opener with more information on their opponent.
“We like the idea of being able to watch them on tape, actually having already played a game,” Beamer said last week. “Any new personnel they have from the spring or from last season, we’ll have a chance to see that, any tweaks they’ve made over the summer. Not that they’re going to show everything, but we’ll have a general idea about their personnel.”
Gamecocks and Panthers players to watch
▪ MarShawn Lloyd, RB, South Carolina: The former four-star prospect out of DeMatha Catholic High School (Maryland) will finally get his opportunity to suit up for the Gamecocks after missing his freshman year in 2020 with a torn ACL suffered before the first game. Lloyd could have even more of a chance to shine against Eastern Illinois. Kevin Harris, the SEC’s leading returning tailback, has been limited in preseason practices as he recovers from offseason back surgery and is not a lock to play in the opener.
▪ Jalen Brooks, WR, South Carolina: Along with Josh Vann and Dakereon Joyner, Brooks has caught plenty of attention from coaches and teammates throughout fall practice and has the potential to be one of the Gamecocks’ more reliable wideouts this season. Gaining eligibility midway through the 2020 season, Brooks closed out last year with 100 yards on 11 catches.
▪ Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare, Edge, South Carolina: Leading the way along a deep South Carolina defensive front, Enagbare has already collected a number of preseason accolades and is set to have another big year in Columbia. He led the Gamecocks in 2020 with six sacks and three forced fumbles.
▪ Harrison Bey-Buie, RB, Eastern Illinois: The Eastern Illinois freshman led the Panthers on the ground against Indiana State. He totaled 57 yards and a touchdown on 11 touches, averaging 5.2 yards per carry.
▪ Jason Johnson, LB, Eastern Illinois: Johnson was a selection to last year’s All-Ohio Valley Conference first team and played a key effort in the Panthers’ first game of 2021. He led the Panthers with eight tackles while Eastern Illinois held Indiana State to 245 total yards.
