Shane Beamer is making the South Carolina Gamecocks a college football force once more. Fresh off the back of their most successful season since 2017 and with the program on a clear upward trajectory, Beamer received a contract extension, salary rise, and subsequent net worth boost following the 2022 college football season.
Shane Beamer’s Salary and Contract in 2023
Following a culture-changing beginning to his tenure with the Gamecocks, Beamer put pen to paper on a contract extension in Jan. 2023. The new deal aims to keep the South Carolina head coach in Columbia through the 2027 college football campaign. Under the terms of his contract extension, Beamer’s salary for 2023 will be $6.125 million.
The salary in the first year of his new deal is significant for Beamer. Under his original contract with the Gamecocks, their head coach was due to earn $2.75 million for the 2023 college football campaign. The first-time head coach was the lowest-paid coach in the SEC, with Clark Lea’s salary at Vanderbilt unknown due to their status as a private school.
Digging below Beamer’s salary for the 2023 college football season, there’s even more good news for the South Carolina head coach. The former Virginia Tech wide receiver and long snapper will get an incremental increase for every year of his new deal. The Gamecocks will pay him an additional $250,000 each year, culminating in $7.125 million for the 2027 season.
Beamer’s impact in Columbia has been instantaneous.
Arriving for the 2021 campaign, the South Carolina head coach turned around a team that went 2-8 in the disrupted 2020 campaign and led them to a bowl game and 7-6 record in his first season as a head coach. Beamer led the team to an 8-5 record that included wins over top-10 teams Clemson and Tennessee in 2022, earning his contract extension.
“Coach Beamer has done a tremendous job as the leader of our football program,” South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner said upon the announcement of Beamer’s contract extension and salary rise.
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“His passion and desire to excel on and off the field have inspired our student athletes and our great fanbase. I am very excited about the synergy and trajectory of our football program. He knows what a high-quality football program should encompass. I am delighted that he is our football coach.”
Echoing Tanner’s sentiments around the on and off field impact Beamer has had on the Gamecocks program, punter Kai Kroeger enthused about his head coach during a sit down with College Football Network.
“He’s probably the most influential person that I’ve been around,” Kroeger says of his head coach and the impact he’s had on his career. “Seeing where the program was at when I first got here, I was shocked at how someone could come in and change the attitude in the program and how everyone views the program.”
Beamer’s impact on culture change and on-field success has the potential to make him an attractive proposition during the next head coach hiring cycle. Interestingly, South Carolina didn’t alter the buyout structure of his original contract.
If another team wants to lure the Gamecocks head coach away from Columbia, it’ll set them back $5 million in the first year, reducing by $1 million in each subsequent year. For what it’s worth, Beamer doesn’t sound like he’s going anywhere.
“I am so fortunate to be the football coach at the University of South Carolina,” said Beamer on the announcement of his contract extension. “I’m very proud of what we’ve done the last two seasons, but it’s just the beginning. The best days of Gamecock football are about to happen.”
Beamer’s Net Worth
Under the terms of his contract extension, Beamer has a total net worth of $31.875 million over the next five years. That is based on the South Carolina head coach’s base salary and doesn’t include any additional payments that he may receive while with the Gamecocks.
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Beamer’s contract includes a comprehensive incentive package woven into his deal that could see him earn $1.25 million if he can lead the Gamecocks to a national title. As we near a new format for the College Football Playoff, the South Carolina head coach’s bonus structure includes amounts for first-round ($300,000) and quarterfinal ($500,000) appearances.
