South Carolina's Shane Beamer Expecting To Face 'The Best Version' of Ole Miss

The version of Ole Miss football that takes the field Saturday afternoon won't be the one that left Oxford last weekend.

uSep 28, 2024; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin gives direction during the second half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Shane Beamer isn't expecting the version of Ole Miss that took the field in last week's loss to Kentucky to arrive at Williams-Brice Stadium.

He knows the No. 12 Rebels are showing up with a vengeance since the fate of the College Football Playoffs dangles in the fate of Saturday's outing.

"I know we're going to get the best version of Ole Miss," Beamer told reporters this week. "They've got a lot of really good players on offense. Juice is a good player, but you sit there and watch No. 9 [Tre Harris], the other receiver. They targeted [Harris] 15 times Saturday. So, we better not be caught up in one player – we better be aware of him."

Wells is a name Gamecock fans should remember given his staunch exit. After joining the program in 2022 from James Madison, Wells became a go-to target for Spencer Rattler, totaling nearly 1,000 yards en route to an 8-4 finish with upsets over Tennessee and Clemson.

The following year, Wells was limited to three games with an injury. He initially planned on returning to Columbia for another year but quickly pivoted to the transfer portal and committed to Ole Miss.

During an interview on the Locked on Ole Miss Podcast, Wells said that he wanted to play with a veteran quarterback and compete for a College Football Playoff berth.

"I wanna win," Wells said. "I don’t like losing. I’m a competitor.”

Juice Wells on why he transferred to Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin pic.twitter.com/TRUdS8RFzY

— Steven Willis (@TheStevenWillis) April 3, 2024

Wells isn't the only target Ole Miss has outside of Harris, but he'll need to rebound after being invisible in a 20-17 loss at home. Jaxson Dart only targeted him twice, though one pass was overthrown on third down.

Since joining the Rebels, Wells has been a solid No. 2 option, hauling in 14 passes for 274 receiving yards and four touchdowns.  

Sep 28, 2024; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin (left) and Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops (right) shake hands after the game at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Beamer, who guided South Carolina to a 30-6 win over Kentucky in Week 2, knows a win would likely put the Gamecocks in the top 25 for the first time in two years. Sitting at 3-1, South Carolina is a play or two away from being 4-0 after going down to the wire against LSU in a 36-33 loss.

But unlike the Wildcats, South Carolina can expect Ole Miss to be prepared. In fact, Beamer is counting on it with Lane Kiffin calling the shots at practice.

"I'm sure Ole Miss will learn from that Kentucky game. I know Lane talked about it in his press conference yesterday," Beamer said. "Kentucky's defense is structured a lot differently than we are, so you can't really look at it and say it's going to be the same because we're just different in a lot of ways."