South Carolina football ended the season 4-8, and just 1-7 in SEC play. South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer is promising a rebound in 2026. As the coach is promising a rebound season, he is also making changes to his staff, firing his third offensive assistant.
According to Chris Clark of Gamecock Central, South Carolina has dismissed its running backs coach, Marquel Blackwell. He becomes the third offensive coach terminated by Beamer this year. Offensive line coach Lonnie Teasley was fired in mid-October, while offensive coordinator Mike Shula was let go at the start of November.
Blackwell was in his second season coaching running backs at South Carolina. He instantly improved the running game in the first year. The Gamecocks averaged 184.4 yards per game on the ground in 2024, which was fourth in the SEC. The running game took a steep decline in 2025. South Carolina averaged just 111.1 yards on the ground, the second-worst in the conference and 118th nationally.
The running game could never find consistency. Rahsul Faison led the team in rushing, running the ball 96 times for 470 yards and three scores. Meanwhile, LaNorris Sellers, the quarterback, was the second leading rusher with 270 yards. Still, that was a major drop from the 2024 campaign in which he ran for 684 yards and seven touchdowns.
Blackwell started his coaching career after his playing career ended in 2006. He spent time at the high school ranks before joining his alma mater, South Florida, in 2009. From there, he has spent time at Western Kentucky, Florida, Toledo, West Virginia, Houston, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M. The former quarterback has primarily worked as a running backs coach in his career, although he was the co-offensive coordinator for one year in Houston before being demoted.
Beamer was not fired after a terrible season, but it is clear, he knows changes need to be made if he wants to avoid the unemployment line next year. He has now made another one of those changes.
