Adventures in babysitting? Zeb Noland adds unique duty as South Carolina assistant
Shane Beamer smirked when asked about Zeb Noland.
The question posed was in reference to Noland’s move — finally — to a role on the Gamecocks’ coaching staff after he was thrust back into playing in 2021 amid a slew of quarterback injuries. He’s since been added to the staff as a graduate assistant working with South Carolina’s signal-callers.
Tuesday, though, Beamer revealed another portion of Noland’s new job description.
“He’s gone from quarterback into actually babysitting for my wife and I, which is awesome as well,” Beamer quipped. “He’s like the most popular babysitter in my neighborhood.
“If we’re ever going anywhere, my kids, all they want is Zeb to come over. So he came over a couple weeks ago, babysat and had some neighborhood kids come over. He’s truly gone from player to graduate assistant now that he’s babysitting for the head coach.”
Noland came to South Carolina, initially, to work on the staff last fall after spending time as a quarterback at Iowa State and, more recently, North Dakota State. He was added to USC’s roster around the same time Luke Doty suffered a foot injury during fall camp, later earning the starting job over Colten Gauthier and Jason Brown.
The Georgia native started four games for the Gamecocks in 2021, guiding South Carolina to wins over Eastern Illinois and East Carolina. Noland also took USC on a game-winning drive in the final seconds against Vanderbilt to spring a late fourth-quarter comeback.
He finished the season completing 53 of 95 passes for 690 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception as South Carolina finished 7-6 with a win over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Dec. 30.
Noland was at South Carolina’s first practice of spring camp on Tuesday working with the Doty, Gauthier, Oklahoma transfer Spencer Rattler and freshman Braden Davis.
Beamer noted during his first press conference of the spring that Noland and Rattler both have experience playing in the Big 12 and that those similarities can help bring Rattler up to speed on what he’ll face in Southeastern Conference play this fall.
“Every reason that we hired him last summer to be a graduate assistant is there and then some,” Beamer said of Noland. “And he’ll be a fantastic resource for Spencer and all those quarterbacks because he just played — in our most recent game, he was playing in it. He was an older guy to begin with and then he he’s been in this offense.”
