How Sellers, Shula share common confidence in South Carolina’s plan for bowl game
Pouring rain on the football field? Quarterback LaNorris Sellers wouldn’t mind.
Of course, as teammate Luke Doty said, it was already pouring Sunday. Practice for the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl had wrapped up for the day at Celebration High School, albeit without rain, but Doty made his point clear.
Conditions don’t matter. Sellers will be himself.
“If the freaking sky fell down right now, he’d probably be like, ‘Yeah, all right, whatever. What are we doing tomorrow for practice?’ ” Doty said. “That’s just how he is.”
When Dowell Loggains accepted a job at Appalachian State, change was imminent. Head coach Shane Beamer promoted quarterbacks coach Mike Shula to be the new offensive coordinator.
The same Mike Shula who’s been developing Sellers on the field throughout his first year as a starting quarterback.
It was a no-brainer for Beamer. Even with other coaches spamming his phone, Beamer said he never really considered another option as an offensive coordinator.
“When you have a highly qualified guy in your building that can do the job and hopefully make us even better, it was a pretty easy decision,” Beamer said during Shula’s introductory press conference on Dec. 18.
So in reality, there hasn’t been much change at all.
Shula has worked with some of the NFL’s best quarterbacks. He’s been on the field during a Super Bowl. There isn’t much that will fluster the 59-year-old. He’s been in this role before, but this time it’s with a new quarterback.
Shula still works one-on-one with Sellers during practice. Sellers runs through the same progressions and will make whatever adjustments he needs to in the Citrus Bowl against Illinois on New Year’s Eve.
Better yet, Shula said he plans to make his South Carolina coordinator debut from the sidelines.
“LaNorris can’t get rid of me,” Shula said Saturday.
It’ll be the first time since high school that Sellers has his offensive coordinator on the sideline with him. Only a two-year difference, if that.
If there is any change to how Shula operates as an coordinator instead of just an offensive assistant, it’ll be subtle. Shula will have been in his new role for two weeks by kickoff and has the ability to use the playbook Loggains left in Columbia.
“He’s been there,” Sellers said. “Been on scene before, so it’s not really like a big change for (him), but he’s just growing into it, just getting comfortable with everybody.”
Having an offensive coordinator with Shula’s level of experience definitely helps, but it’s even easier for Sellers knowing he’ll have a familiar voice inside his helmet.
“Offensively, it’s just trying to get a good feel of what we’ve done well,” Shula said. “Keep building on that, and then if there’s other things we can add from certain backgrounds, then we’ll do that.”
Sellers will still have tight end Josh Simon and all the wide receivers he’s played with in 2024. The only one missing is Rocket Sanders, who opted out of the bowl game. Sellers will likely hand the ball off to Oscar Adaway or Juju McDowell, who were listed as the starting running back options on the Gamecocks’ two-deep.
Even if there are some growing pains for Shula against Illinois, expect Sellers to adjust. After all, this is the same Sellers who threw a 50-yard touchdown pass in his first appearance last season — improvising after a play Loggains had called, something the QB admitting postgame.
And even if the sky is falling, the South Carolina quarterback won’t be fazed — and the same likely goes for Shula.
“Anybody that comes in here, it’s my job as a quarterback coach and as the offensive coordinator to find out what our quarterbacks do best and get the most out of them,” Shula said. “Make sure they’re prepared, just like any quarterback coach, make sure they’re the most prepared quarterbacks.”
Cheez-It Citrus Bowl TV info
- Who: South Carolina (9-3) vs. Illinois (9-3)
- When: 3 p.m. Tuesday (New Year’s Eve)
- Where: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida
- TV: ABC
- Line: South Carolina by 10