Mike Furrey is now calling plays for South Carolina. What wrinkles could we see?
The greatest hope for South Carolina this week comes from the unknown.
Following the Gamecocks’ loss to No. 7 Ole Miss two weeks ago — USC’s fourth-straight SEC defeat — head coach Shane Beamer fired offensive coordinator Mike Shula. While he didn’t technically name an interim OC, he promoted wide receivers coach Mike Furrey to be the main play-caller.
Beamer also noted that the offensive coordinator role will be a collaborative effort among Furrey, offensive line coach Shawn Elliott and running backs coach Marquel Blackwell.
All that is to say: It’s not clear what the Gamecocks’ offense is going to look like on Saturday against No. 3 Texas A&M.
Might that be a phenomenal benefit for South Carolina, a chance to catch the Aggies — who come into the game as 19.5-point favorites — off guard?
“Yeah,” Beamer said Tuesday. “Though I’d say that’s every week. You want to throw things at teams that they don’t expect.”
Does that mean the Gamecocks pull from what Furrey did as the head coach and play-caller of Division II Limestone? Or what Elliott ran while leading Georgia State? Or what he likes from one of his many previous stops.
Or, does South Carolina look very similar with a few wrinkles?
That seems to be the most-likely outcome. Think about it: Shula did not lock himself in a dark room and compile the game plan all on his own. The entire staff had a hand in prepping the USC offense.
Now, did Shula have the final say? Was his voice leading the way? Of course. But those other assistants were part of the process.
What helps South Carolina is the fact that Shula was fired heading into the bye week, meaning Furrey and the offensive staff had an extra week to self-scout and make the necessary tweaks.
Beamer said Tuesday that the game plan still includes about the same number of plays, noting that some stuff has been taken out while other concepts have been added.
Perhaps that includes concepts that get Sellers out of the pocket, something the Gamecocks had success with against Alabama then abandoned a week later at Ole Miss.
“I wouldn’t say much has changed,” wide receiver Vandrevius Jacobs said. “I guess just a little bit of stuff that he (Furrey) likes.”
Jacobs hits on an interesting point. Thinking back to that Ole Miss game, South Carolina did not lose because of play-calling. It lost because it couldn’t execute, because quarterback LaNorris Sellers missed on too many throws and the rushing attack never got going.
Perhaps all the Gamecocks need is a new voice over the offense, especially one like Furrey’s.
“Obviously he’s a very intense guy,” quarterback Luke Doty said. “He coaches with a lot of passion, a lot of energy. And, you know, I think that’ll get us going in the right direction.”
If Furrey’s positivity can boost the confidence of Sellers and South Carolina’s offense, maybe that’s enough for the Gamecocks to start executing, to start putting points on the board.
“You hope the quarterbacks and the rest of the offense kind of feed off that confidence and energy,” Beamer said. “But what gives you confidence in a game is going out there and performing well. So that’s what’s going to matter.”
And will added confidence be enough to knock off Texas A&M at Kyle Field, a place USC has never won (0-5)? Time will tell.
Next South Carolina football game
- Who: South Carolina (3-6, 1-6 SEC) at Texas A&M (9-0, 6-0)
- When: Noon Saturday
- Where: Kyle Field (College Station, Texas)
- Watch: ESPN
This story was originally published November 12, 2025 at 7:00 AM.
