Shane Beamer sounds off on why Gamecocks QB Spencer Rattler isn’t at SEC Media Days
South Carolina took the stage at SEC Media Days on Tuesday, but without perhaps its most recognizable player.
Quarterback Spencer Rattler was not among the group of Gamecocks players selected to attend the annual event in Atlanta this week.
USC head coach Shane Beamer explained the decision during a meeting with local reporters.
“In my mind, it was three guys that epitomize what this program is about,” Beamer said. “Three guys that are great leaders of our program. Jovaughn (Gwyn) is a returning captain. Zacch (Pickens) has played a lot of football. (Dakereon Joyner) has done what he’s done. And Spencer will have enough opportunities to be in the limelight, for sure.
“I reached out to Spencer, just to make sure he understood why I wasn’t bringing him and he was great. He’s like, ‘You don’t have to call me. Take those guys. they’re deserving. There will enough opportunities as the year goes.’ ”
Rattler came to South Carolina in December after a three-year spell at Oklahoma that ebbed and flowed dramatically. The former five-star recruit was lauded as a potential Heisman Trophy candidate heading into last season before he was benched in favor of blue-chip freshman Caleb Williams.
The Arizona native finished his time in Norman completing 361 of his 515 attempts (70.1%) for 4,595 yards passing and 40 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions.
“He wasn’t going to follow me if I was at a program that he didn’t believe in, that he didn’t think he could be successful, that he didn’t feel like he could maximize his ability as a quarterback and as a football player on a football team,” Beamer said Tuesday of whether his prior relationship with Rattler as an assistant at Oklahoma played a part in landing him in Columbia. “If he didn’t feel like he could do that, he wouldn’t have followed me to that to a school. He feels like he can do that at South Carolina and the fact that we had a connection — me and him and Austin Stogner — was obviously an added bonus and Spencer has been great since he got here.”
South Carolina has enjoyed stability at quarterback this offseason after starting four different players under center a season ago. Rattler is expected to slide into the No. 1 spot this offseason, while incumbent starter Luke Doty should move to the backup role.
The Gamecocks also return redshirt freshman Colten Gauthier in addition to adding four-star recruit Tanner Bailey, three-star recruit Braden Davis and walk-on Jalen Daniels, who works out with the same private quarterback coach in Arizona as Rattler.
“There’s more depth and there’s more experience,” Beamer said. “The dynamic in that room has changed for the better.”
This story was originally published July 19, 2022 at 1:39 PM.
