It felt inevitable. On Tuesday, it became official.
South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer named LaNorris Sellers the starting quarterback for the 2024 season opener, giving the reigns of the offense to the 6-foot-3, 240-pound South Florence High alum.
Sellers beat out Auburn transfer Robby Ashford, who will serve as the Gamecocks’ backup but still might have a role in the offense.
Beamer said he first spoke with Ashford in his office Tuesday and told the 21-year-old that he would head into the season opener as South Carolina’s backup. Beamer also texted Sellers to come by his office, but the redshirt freshman didn’t see the message ahead of the team meeting.
That meant Beamer had to deliver the news out on the practice field, telling a suited-up Sellers that he had won the starting quarterback job.
His response: “OK.”
“Then it was just back to what he was doing,” Beamer said. “That’s just him.”
The decision, Beamer said, took into account months of practice reps, performance in competitive situations, work in the summer, how they were in the meeting room with offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains and, of course, a little bit of gut instinct.
Numbers can tell you who completed more passes over the past six months, but the unquantifiable is who a coach trusts the most. Who they have the most confidence in to win games on Saturdays. And, for now, that is Sellers.
“LaNorris has been consistent,” Beamer said. “He continues to get better each week. His poise, his consistency, his understanding of what we’re trying to do. He’s done what we’ve asked him to do coming out of spring practice.”
In other words: Get ready for the Sellers show.
“God blessed him with a lot of abilities,” Beamer said of Sellers. “When you’re talking about a guy who’s close to 240 pounds and runs really well. He’s a winner. ... He is a competitor. ... You take all those qualities, then you just add his poise and consistency day in and day out, there’s a lot of things to like about him.”
Though he only played in three games as a true freshman last season, preserving his redshirt status, Sellers never looked fazed. He threw one of the prettiest touchdowns of the season, a 50-yard bomb to Tyshawn Russell against Furman , and scored a 36-yard rushing touchdown against Vanderbilt.
With Spencer Rattler off to the NFL , South Carolina did not snag a massive name in the transfer portal, making Sellers the de-facto favorite. In the spring game, Sellers was superb, completing 9 of 11 passes and running for a score.
Now, last week, the dual-threat Ashford told the media, “I feel like you’ll see both of us on the field.” When asked about that on Tuesday, Beamer didn’t rule it out, but also wasn’t definitive.
“The guy that gives us the best chance to be successful is gonna be the guy that’s out there week in and week out,” Beamer said Tuesday. “That’s not to say we’re gonna be rotating quarterbacks every plays. We’re not doing that.
“But LaNorris has got to continue to progress like he has been, and Robby has to continue to progress like he has been. That’s only going to make it better.”
South Carolina 2024 schedule
Bolded games indicate those with start times that are set. Kickoff times for games with early, noon, night or flex designations will be determined during the season
- Aug. 31 – vs. Old Dominion – 4:15 pm, SEC Network
- Sept. 7 – at Kentucky – 3:30 p.m., ABC
- Sept. 14 – vs. LSU – Noon, ABC
- Sept. 21 – vs. Akron – Night (6 to 8 p.m., TBD)
- Oct. 5 – vs. Ole Miss – Flex (afternoon or night kick, TBD)
- Oct. 12 – at Alabama – Noon, ABC or ESPN
- Oct. 19 – at Oklahoma – Early (noon to 1 p.m., TBD)
- Nov. 2 – vs. Texas A&M – Night (6 to 8 p.m., TBD)
- Nov. 9 – at Vanderbilt – Afternoon (3:30 to 4:30 p.m., TBD)
- Nov. 16 – vs. Missouri – Afternoon (3:30 to 4:30 p.m., TBD)
- Nov. 23 – vs. Wofford – 4 p.m., SEC Network Plus
- Nov. 30 – at Clemson – TBD
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