Shawn Elliott Talks Transition To TE Coach, Trying To Learn More About His Players

The newest South Carolina football assistant coach is ready for what's to come with his new position, getting to know his new players.

There are a lot of positives with South Carolina bringing back former assistant football coach Shawn Elliott. The Camden native knows the program like the back of his hand, has head coaching experience that head Shane Beamer can lean on in staff meetings and on gamedays, and has injected excitement into the fanbase due to the noted passion and energy he brings.

The only potential question mark people will ask about this move relates to the position Elliott will coach: tight ends. Shawn has only coached the position once in his entire career, and that was back with his alma mater, Appalachian State, back in 1999 and 2000. During his re-introductory press conference on Tuesday morning, Elliott was asked about the transition to that position and the challenges that will come. The main message: the responsibilities are all-encompassing.

"I think you're just involved in so much more of the passing game, the route combinations and concepts. That's one thing. I'm not gonna call it a challenge because I've been around football my entire life," Shawn lamented. "I think as the tight ends coach, really, it makes you [get] involved in everything through the course of the offense - You're just so much more involved in everything you do offensively."

Shawn Elliott high-fives an offensive player running back to the sidelines after a touchdown (17th Oct., 2015) / Jim Dedmon | USA Today Network

The other challenge for the Gamecocks new tight ends coach will be getting to know players who weren't around in Columbia when he was last on staff in 2016. Especially in today's college football, coach-player relationships on both a micro and macro scale are extremely important, and while Elliott hasn't had much time so far to get to know the players at his position, he's already making an effort when he gets the chance.

"I just worked with the tight ends this morning for about 20 minutes. It's a feel thing, you know. Today, as we were running through drills, I mean, everyone in the tight end [group], each rep, I said, 'Before you go, you got to stand up, you got to say your name, you got to say where you're from and give me something about you,' because I want to ultimately know everything I can about these individuals, not just about their athleticism, but about everything that's involved in their life."

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