South Carolina's Shane Beamer defends QB LaNorris Sellers

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer pushed back Tuesday on the notion that a change at quarterback is needed after a rocky past two games for former SEC Freshman of the Year LaNorris Sellers.

The Gamecocks, who travel to No. 8 Alabama on Saturday, fell to 2-1 last weekend when it let slip a 16-0 lead at home and lost to Mississippi State, 41-34. Sellers had two passes intercepted -- one resulted in a field goal, the other a touchdown.

The performance came on the heels of an underwhelming outing a week earlier in which Sellers completed 10 of 23 passes for 96 yards, no touchdowns and an interception in a 45-9 win over Towson.

Beamer was asked Tuesday whether he gives a stronger look to the backup QB when the starter doesn't have his best game.

"Every week you're always trying to get everyone to play," Beamer said. "LaNorris needs to play better. We all need to play better. None of us were good enough on Saturday night. But in practice each week, it's always about competition and getting everybody ready to play."

A reporter then asked Beamer about rumblings from those who say a change at quarterback is needed.

"People outside of this building don't get to decide that," Beamer said. "We win as a team and lose as a team. Are there some throws that LaNorris would like to have back or throws he would like to make? Yeah. Absolutely. And then there's also some plays we made or didn't make on defense and special teams that every single person would like to have back.

"As I told LaNorris, when you lose a football game, the two people who get the most blame are the coach and the quarterback. And it's no different this week. We'll worry about what we can control. LaNorris needs to be better. I need to be better. Our entire team needs to be better."

Backup Cutter Woods, a sophomore who appeared in three games last season, has completed 7 of 11 pass attempts this season for 74 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. Lucian Anderson, a senior and former Bowling Green transfer, is 2-of-2 for 24 yards.

"Competition is a core value of this program," Beamer said. "So, yeah, we got really good quarterbacks. LaNorris is a good quarterback. Cutter Woods is a good quarterback. And we're always competing in practice and working and striving to be our best."

Sellers isn't the only one who has come under fire of late in Columbia. A "Fire Beamer" chant was heard during the loss to Mississippi State.

Beamer, the son of Virginia Tech legend Frank Beamer, is 35-31 in five-plus seasons at South Carolina. The Gamecocks went 9-4 in 2024 but dropped to 4-8 last season.

"Saturday sucked," Beamer said of the loss to Mississippi State. "We're not going to sit around feeling sorry for ourselves. That's life, guys. Stuff happens. And we've moved on. Everybody else can talk about what it looks like. ... I don't have to tell my team anything! Go respond and go back to work.

"And guess what? It's called sports. They may play better and coach better than us on Saturday. And they may win the football game. And we'll come back here on Sunday and get right back to work again. Because that's what life in the SEC is."

Was it the game plan or the execution that cost South Carolina vs. Mississippi State? Beamer, growing frustrated with the line of questioning, said it was both.

"I don't want to pull the whole Bill Belichick, 'We're on to Cincinnati,'" Beamer quipped. "But we're on to Cincinnati. We've moved on. That's where we are. We need to be better."