Shane Beamer updates statuses of suspended South Carolina football players
Two suspended South Carolina football players’ futures remain in limbo.
Head coach Shane Beamer told reporters on Wednesday that the decision is in the hands of the university on if or when Monteque Rhames and Cameron Upshaw — who have been away from the team since an alleged incident involving an AR-15 rifle in February — could potentially return to the team.
“There’s a lot that has to happen for us to get to that point,” Beamer said during the first stop of his Welcome Home Tour at Charlotte Country Club. “It’s really above my head from a university standpoint. The university would have to decide that they were willing to let them come back to school. We’ll see what happens.
“They’ve got a suspension that’s a certain length and whatnot. When that time’s up, we’ll see where they are. They may have decided to go somewhere else. They may want to still be Gamecocks. That’s kind of where we are on that. It’ll be an answer above my head when it gets to that point.”
Rhames and redshirt freshman Anthony Rose were both arrested in the wake of the alleged February incident. Rhames, Rose and Upshaw were all suspended, according to a Feb. 3 USC statement.
Rose has since entered the transfer portal.
According to a warrant for Rose’s arrest issued on Feb. 6, university housing staff “observed and photographed an AR-15 rifle” in Rose’s room at 650 Lincoln, a USC student housing property. When university police arrived at the apartment, Rose — according to the warrant — threw the rifle and its magazine out his window.
A second warrant for Rhames’ arrest served on Feb 3. indicated he, along with another unnamed defendant, then retrieved the rifle from a courtyard area outside the apartment. Rhames then “concealed the rifle in his pants, walked through the residence hall and ultimately left the property in a minor codefendant’s vehicle.”
Rose was charged with carrying or displaying a firearm in a public building or adjacent areas and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The second charge included a $20,000 personal recognizance bond. Rose was discharged from jail on Feb. 6, per Richland County court records.
Rhames was charged with obstructing justice and carrying weapons on school property. He was released from jail Feb. 3 via a $10,000 personal recognizance bond, per Richland County court records.
All three were removed from the roster and were not with the team for spring practice.
Rhames, a four-star recruit in the 2023 class, signed with the Gamecocks in December. His first court appearance is scheduled for March 31, according to Richland County online court records.
The Sumter product was rated the No. 385 player and No. 35 edge rusher in the Class of 2023, per the 247Sports Composite. He was also slotted as the No. 5 recruit in South Carolina.
Upshaw was not named in any of the police documents. He was 17 years old at the time the alleged incident took place.
Rhames and Upshaw were among the new signees who enrolled at South Carolina in January.
This story was originally published May 3, 2023 at 7:11 PM.
