Shane Beamer On Clemson Rivalry: "I Don't Wanna Lose That Game"
One of the most significant issues being hashed out right now at the SEC's annual Spring meetings in Destin, FL, is what scheduling model the conference will utilize, with multiple pros and cons for each one. The biggest complaint with a 1-7-7 or 8-game model is that several marquee SEC rivalry games would no longer occur annually.
However, what hasn't been discussed nearly as much with the 3-6-6 or 9-game scheduling model is that some SEC teams, including South Carolina, would have to potentially reevaluate the future of their annual rivalry games with in-state non-conference opponents. For the Gamecocks, a nine-game SEC schedule, plus a game against one of the top programs in college football, the Clemson Tigers would automatically make their schedule one of the most daunting ones in the sport.
When speaking to the media in a gaggle setting on Wednesday, Shane Beamer was asked whether or not he saw a path to preserving the rivalry if the conference went to nine games, and the third-year head man needed no time to ponder the question.
"I would want to," Beamer immediately stated. "I know how important that Clemson game is to the people of our state, and I think it's great for College Football. I don't wanna lost that Clemson game, without a doubt. That's something that we haven't even discussed," he recalled. "Certainly not everybody in the SEC plays a perennial Top 5 program at the end of the season, but we love that from a competitive standpoint. I love it from a rivalry standpoint and a college athletics standpoint."
As mentioned earlier, the issue of preserving rivalries will affect a certain portion of SEC teams during these discussions, but another issue is trying to balance out the strength of schedule for all the member teams so as to not give anyone an unfair competitive advantage. When broached with this question, Beamer insinuated that this is what these coaches sign up for in the conference.
"That's for other people to figure out, but I think when you look at who we play, whether it'd be eight conference games, nine conference games, plus Clemson, plus you look at our out of conference [games] coming up, I know we got App. State, Virginia Tech, [and] Miami just in the next four or five years, I mean that's as tough year-in and year-out as anybody plays."
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