Beamer family ties are a big story at this year’s Aflac Kickoff weekend

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer is no stranger to the team that the Gamecocks will be facing Aug. 31 in the Aflac Kickoff Game.

He expressed how much the matchup meant to him during SEC Media Day interviews last month.

“Personally, it’ll certainly be unique playing a school you spent so much of your life at,” Beamer said. “... This one’s different because there’s a statue of my dad outside the stadium. It’s different from that standpoint. I’ve got great memories.”

This, however, isn’t the only important connection Beamer has with the opposing program.

With multiple family and legacy ties to Virginia Tech, this game will mark the first time that Beamer has faced the Hokies as a head coach.

The significance is that Frank Beamer, Shane’s father, won more games than any coach in Virginia Tech history, along with it being Shane’s alma mater as a player and an assistant coach.

Let’s take a trip down memory lane with the Hokies’ success under the Beamers.

It was the year 1987 when Frank became head coach at his alma mater, and he remained in that job through the 2015 season. He collected 238 wins and put the Hokies on the college football map, capturing four conference titles — one in the Big East (2004) and three in the ACC (2007, 2008, 2010).

In 1999, Beamer earned national coach of the year honors after leading the Hokies to their first undefeated regular season and a ticket punched to compete in the national championship game against Florida State.

The Hokies also were undefeated that season, the first 11-win, undefeated regular season in program history.

Receiving numerous titles and coaching players with exceptional honors and titles of their own throughout his tenure wasn’t all he was known for.

Ever heard of the term “Beamer Ball”?

That became the nickname for Virginia Tech’s aggressive, opportunistic style — excelling on offense, defense and especially special teams.

The term is now adopted by the Gamecocks, led by Frank’s son, Shane, who knows his dad’s style of play and has implemented it into his program.

Shane followed in his father’s footsteps, playing under him and graduating in 1999.

After climbing the coaching ranks, including a stint back at Virginia Tech as associate head coach and running backs coach (2011–15), he landed his first head coaching job at South Carolina in 2021, and now he’s looking to face his old team in a new position.

After expressing his outlook on this year’s matchup against the two teams for the Aflac Kickoff Game, Shane then went on to explain the intensity behind it because of the importance surrounding game one, but emphasized keeping the focus on the players on the field rather than just the historical matchup significance.