Shane Beamer rips refs after Gator Bowl loss to Notre Dame

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer. Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports

South Carolina HC Shane Beamer rips officials after Gator Bowl loss to Notre Dame

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated Dec 31, 2022 11:26 AM ET

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer was not happy with the officiating during Friday's 45-38 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl loss to Notre Dame, and he let the world know it after the game.

Following the loss, Beamer scorched the game's officials, telling reporters, via Dwayne McLemore of The State, "Thank God for John McDaid and the SEC and the officiating crews we have in that league."

Beamer's anger stems from a blindside-block penalty assessed to the Gamecocks late in the first half against Notre Dame, which the head coach disagreed with so vehemently on the sidelines that officials flagged South Carolina 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct.

"I don't believe I deserved to get a flag," Beamer said. "I hate to see it sometimes when officials try and make the game about them."

A very angry Shane Beamer close to getting ejected here. Looks like he might bump the ref trying to defend his player's illegal block. A lot of officials wouldn't be patient with this. pic.twitter.com/mXVKS2GmFu
— Cork Gaines (@CorkGaines) December 30, 2022

With 1:25 left in the second quarter, a flag on Dakereon Joyner wiped out an Ahmarean Brown punt return, sending Beamer over the edge. After the play, Beamer had an animated exchange with an official seemingly mimicking the block Joyner laid before officials penalized the coach.

South Carolina HC Shane Beamer gets called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. pic.twitter.com/2gNFzEeBKl
— CFB Kings (@CFBKings) December 30, 2022

South Carolina held a slim 24-17 advantage going into halftime before a wild second half ended in Notre Dame's favor.

The Gamecocks trailed 38-31 midway through the fourth quarter before an O'Donnell Fortune 100-yard pick-six knotted things back up at 38-38. However, Notre Dame would respond late, as quarterback Tyler Buchner orchestrated a 12-play, 80-yard scoring drive, capped off by a 16-yard touchdown pass to Mitchell Evans with 1:38 left on the clock to put the Fighting Irish up for good.

Mitchell Evans didn't have a catch in the regular season.

He's got three today, and his biggest one just put the Irish back in front. #GoIrish ☘️

(via @NDFootball, ESPN)pic.twitter.com/VjK5vCn5QJ
— Notre Dame on NBC (@NDonNBC) December 31, 2022

Mike Santa Barbara

Mike Santa Barbara is a Wilmington, Delaware native (Yes, it's a real place) with over a decade of sports writing experience. A diehard Philadelphia sports fan, he has two dogs named after Flyers and cried real tears when the Eagles won Super Bowl LII. You can follow him on Twitter at @mike__sb

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