"Your last name is not going to keep you in the business if you're not any good, so I just worked really hard to overcome any perceptions of that," Beamer told 247Sports. Even so, he learned from others and proved himself outside his father's shadow. Should he stay in Blacksburg and begin his coaching career as a graduate assistant for his father, or pack his belongings and leave his hometown for a less-stable future?īeamer chose the road out of town, though his father's reputation helped jumpstart his career as a graduate assistant at Georgia Tech and Tennessee before he was hired by Sylvester Croom in 2003 as an assistant coach at Mississippi State. He played in the national championship for what would be the final game of his playing career in 1999, and at the zenith of the Beamer family's notoriety, the oldest son had plenty of options after college. The whispers grew louder when the long snapper and receiver chose to play for his father at the height of "Beamerball" in the late 1990s. "The only reason is because his dad is the football coach across town."
The family name served as a notation for his own success as a baseball and football player at Blacksburg High. Everything he achieved was seemingly in his father's shadow. The son of legendary Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer was acutely aware of his surroundings, particularly the perception he was the kid with the silver spoon in Blacksburg. Perhaps the 43-year-old former Oklahoma assistant could have landed this gig - or another head-coaching job at a Power 5 school - much sooner had he chosen an easier path in 2000, but spiteful whispers made him weary and re-shaped his outlook.
That's how Shane Beamer sees it as he enters his first spring as South Carolina's head coach. Twenty years is a long time to wait, but not if you're working toward your dream.
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