Shane Beamer throws shade at James Coley leaving for Georgia. Here’s what he said
Less than a week after wide receivers coach James Coley unexpected left South Carolina after just 43 days on duty, USC head coach Shane Beamer indicated Friday that he was not happy about the transaction.
“The previous receivers coach made a decision that he felt was best for his family,” Beamer said. “We collected the $450,000 and then some that we were owed for violating or leaving his contract.”
Beamer was referring to the buyout Coley owed South Carolina when he left for Georgia less than a year into his deal. On Thursday, the Gamecocks hired Division II Limestone head coach Mike Furrey to take over for Coley.
Coley was hired by USC in early January after spending years at Georgia — where he coached on the same staff as Beamer — and Texas A&M. The move included moving wide receiver coach Justin Stepp to tight ends coach. Stepp left for Illinois weeks later.
“I didn’t think we’d be here again introducing a wide receivers coach. It is what it is,” Beamer said.
Speaking at the podium on Friday morning, Beamer talked up Furrey as the best of the three wide receivers coaches the Gamecocks have had over the past two months.
In doing so, Beamer also threw a bit of shade at the receivers Stepp recruited and lamented even more that the Gamecocks receivers, under Stepp, didn’t grow the way he wanted.
“I wanted to get someone in here and develop our guys a little bit better than what we have,” Beamer said.
“It allowed us to go out and hire an even better wide receivers coach in my mind. That’s not a knock on anybody. That’s what I feel about this guy right here.”
South Carolina has added four new coaches to the staff this offseason, with running backs coach Montario Hardesty being fired and assistant coaches Pete Lembo and Jody Wright leaving to be college head coaches.”
“I want people that want to be here. If guys get opportunities to advance their careers like Pete and Jody did, great,” Beamer said.
What about Coley’s situation?
“If a guy gets an opportunity that he thinks is better for his family, in this instance, I don’t have to like it, don’t have to agree with it, it’s disappointing,” Beamer added. “But it’s immediately: Who can I go hire now that wants to helps us bring a championship to South Carolina?
“If a guy doesn’t want to be here and do that with us, then get the heck out of here and let me go bring somebody in here that wants to fight his butt off and compete his butt off and go bring a championship to Columbia, South Carolina.”
This story was originally published March 1, 2024 at 11:18 AM.
