What Does Newly Hired OC Kendal Briles Bring From TCU to South Carolina?

The offseason is in full swing for Shane Beamer and the South Carolina Gamecocks. After finishing the season at 4-8, the Gamecocks hammered on their 2026 recruiting class and are now gearing up for the madness of the transfer portal, which opens up in less than a month.

The Gamecocks also had another critical task in their offseason itinerary- finding an offensive coordinator. After putting together arguably the worst offense in the SEC in 2025, this search was potentially the most important step in rebounding for the 2026 season. The poor offensive output led to Mike Shula, who had been granted the role of offensive coordinator prior to the season, being fired after a 30-14 loss to Ole Miss.

Earlier in the week, it was announced that South Carolina decided on former TCU offensive coordinator Kendal Briles to be their next offensive coordinator and quarterback coach. Briles also spent time in the SEC as he served the same role for the Arkansas Razorbacks from 2020-2022. With no room for failure in 2026, what does Briles bring to the 2026 Gamecocks?

Offensive Improvements

Josh Hoover couldn’t have hand delivered this ball any better to Jordan Dwyer. pic.twitter.com/63QUWrSrRN
— Nick Girimonte (@GirimonteNicky) November 22, 2025

Briles' 2025 campaign at TCU saw an abundance of explosive game play. TCU’s QB, Josh Hoover, was top five nationally in passing yards per game. The team overall was top 30 nationally in yards per game, averaging 425.3 on the season and ultimately finished with an 8-4 record.

For the Gamecocks, all of the listed stats above were poor, especially the 4-8 record. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers especially regressed, as his touchdowns and yards on the season drastically declined. By default, the offense as a whole suffered. A lot of the struggles the offense saw certainly could be attributed to the vanilla play calling from Shula when he wore the hat of offensive playcaller.

Briles’ success this past season through the air shows he has the knack for drawing up creative schemes that allow his offense to be dynamic and put up a lot of yards and points. With there being a lot of noise regarding Sellers potentially entering the transfer portal, having an offensive mind like Briles could be the move that keeps the incoming redshirt junior in Columbia for the rest of his college career.

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