In Heated Rivalry, Dabo Swinney and Shane Beamer Square Off as Likable Coaches

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer share a bond and friendship, despite coaching on opposite sides of a nasty rivalry.

Hate, jealousy, contention, contempt, pettiness and snarkiness. 

Those are just some of the words used to describe college football rivalries. Fan base vs. fan base. Player vs. player. Coach vs. coach. 

It's all supposed to produce friction. It's been a decade since Clemson's Dabo Swinney went on his "real Carolina" rant. The jabs back then between Swinney and former South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier were used to fuel an already intense rivalry throughout the Palmetto State. 

Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in Columbia, it's Dabo Swinney vs. Shane Beamer, Round 1. The new head coach for the Gamecocks was an assistant under Spurrier and knows how these two sides feel about each other, so it's supposed to get nasty, right? 

"I've known Shane a long time. Always had great respect for him and that's not ever going to change," Swinney said. "Just because somebody wears a logo, that doesn't mean I can't like him anymore. I've always liked Shane. Shane is a great coach, a great man. Love his family. Love his dad. I've always had a good relationship with his mom and dad. I have a lot of respect for him."

Those don't sound like fighting words. You can't even get an ounce of bulletin-board material out of that. 

Let's check the other side. 

"I've got a ton of respect for him," Beamer said about Swinney. "I consider him a friend. He's been very good to me since I took over here at Carolina. His wife has been good to my wife Emily. I think a lot of him. We're both competitors and looking forward to a fantastic environment Saturday night.

"The relationship is fantastic."

Fantastic? What? These words don't breathe hate. There's no animosity here. What is this, two nice guys going against each other in a football game?

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Actually, that's exactly what it is: Two nice guys going against each other in a football game. And truth be told, Swinney and Spurrier actually liked each other too. 

But that's not how it's supposed to be. Sure, there should be some level of professionalism displayed, but it's O.K. to let loose a little about the opponent. That's not happening here. And don't expect it to any time soon. 

Sure, as they have showdowns and things happen and feelings get hurt and all that, maybe something more sinister develops, but Swinney and Beamer are more alike than they are different. 

They came up through the assistant ranks at the same time in the same state. Both were recruiting coordinators at the same time. They're both genuine, and genuinely likable coaches. It's hard to say the same about the last regime at South Carolina, considering many of Will Muschamp's own fans didn't care for him. 

This era will be vastly different, and maybe that's not a bad thing.  

"Pretty cool that it's kind of come full circle in some ways that we were both previously assistant coaches at our schools and now we're both the head coach," Beamer said. 

"I think the biggest thing with Shane is he's a positive guy, and he keeps looking at it as half-full," Swinney said. "That's what it takes."

This exchange of kind words might take some getting used to for everyone involved in this rivalry.

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