'I Love Buzz': How South Carolina's Shane Beamer Learned From Texas A&M's Williams
Football coaches usually take advice from other football coaches. South Carolina's Shane Beamer is built of a different cloth.
Beamer, the son of longtime Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, returned to Blacksburg to coach with his dad from 2011-15. In 2014, the Hokies elected to make a change in basketball, hiring Buzz Williams away from Marquette.
Since then, the Beamers and Williams have grown a bond for the love of the Hokies and athletics. It's why Shane Beamer hasn't shied away from taking advice from the now Texas A&M basketball coach early on in his tenure with the Gamecocks.
"I love Buzz," Shane Beamer said Tuesday at SEC Media Days in Atlanta. "He was somebody that I had a lot of respect for when he was at Marquette before he came to Virginia tech and somebody that spent a lot of time with me as an assistant football coach. He is the head basketball coach [and he's] helping me in my career."
The Aggies hired Williams away from Blacksburg in 2019. After COVID-19 canceled the NCAA Tournament in 2020, A&M took a step back in 2021. Last season, the Aggies surged through the SEC Tournament but failed to make the tournament despite facing Tennessee in the conference finals.
A&M would lose to Xavier in the NIT Invitational finals in March.
Shane Beamer would on to coach at Georgia and Oklahoma before landing the Gamecocks' job in 2021. When the Aggies traveled to Columbia to face the Aggies in January of 2021, Williams made sure to stop by and talk ball.
"He spent probably two hours with me, just talking and letting me ask question," Beamer said. "Even now, still to this day... I mean, I texted him last week."
Last season, South Carolina impressed under Beamer, going 7-6 despite a lack of a stable quarterback. The Gamecocks added Oklahoma passer Spencer Rattler this offseason and former Sooners' tight end Austin Stogner to replace the production of veteran Nick Muse.
This season, the Gamecocks will play host to the Aggies at Williams-Brice Stadium on Oct. 22. No doubt Williams will be visiting to see his old friend again.
"I love watching him play and consider him a great friend," Beamer said.
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