Tennessee Football’s got a handful of established coaches on its 2026 schedule, but one coach in particular stands out as someone who could potentially be coaching for his job this year. His hot seat isn’t on fire this offseason, but it’s been one that’s talked about as heating up depending on how his team performs this fall.
That would be South Carolina coach Shame Beamer.
Beamer was hired in the same 2021 coaching cycle as Tennessee’s Josh Heupel and has been with the Gamecocks’ program for the past five seasons. During that span, he’s got a 33-30 record through 63 games. Beamer’s program went 7-6 in 2021, 8-5 in 2022, 5-7 in 2023, 9-4 in 2024, and 4-8 in 2025. He’s got a 1-2 record in bowl games, winning the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in his first season and losing in the Gator Bowl and Citrus Bowl in 2022 and 2024. The Gamecocks did not make the postseason bowl slate during the 2023 and 2025 seasons.
ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg took a look at some of the way-too-early coaching hot seat candidates on Monday, with Beamer landing in the second tier. He didn’t land in “The Hottest” tier, but he did lead off the “We Want This To Work” tier.
“Beamer has undeniably improved South Carolina’s profile, recording AP Top 25 finishes in 2022 and 2024, and beating top-12 Clemson teams in both seasons,” Rittenberg writes. “But memories are short in the SEC, and the Gamecocks backslid last season, finishing 4-8 with just one conference victory.”
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Similar to Josh Heupel overhauling Tennessee’s defensive staff this offseason, Beamer also went to work to improve/retain the personnel around him. The Gamecocks hired Kendal Briles as their new offensive coordinator, while also retaining key players such as quarterback LaNorris Sellers and defensive end Dylan Stewart. Sellers did not land on one of the three All-SEC teams last season, but Stewert did come in as a second-team player.
South Carolina can’t afford another losing season, though, and the stakes only get higher with the additional conference game for the nine-game SEC schedule. If things start to go in the wrong direction again, Beamer’s seat might start heating up.
“The 48-year-old Beamer often talks of his affinity for South Carolina and sees the job as more of a destination than other coaches would,” Rittenberg writes. “But a repeat of 2025, especially with Sellers back, would be difficult to overcome.”
Rittenberg also notes that Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati, who was hired in December 2024, was not the original person who hired Beamer back in 2021.
South Carolina will host Tennessee on Saturday, Oct. 24, in Columbia, SC. Other notable games on the Gamecocks’ schedule include road trips to Alabama, Florida, Oklahoma, and Clemson, with home games against Texas A&M and Georgia.
The only other SEC coach on the list is Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby, who falls under the “Progress Needed” tier. Lebby is entering his third year with the Bulldogs’ program in 2026.
Check out ESPN’s full list here.
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