Connor Shaw (2010-2013) quarterbacked the South Carolina football team during the most successful era in program history, and he is part of the 2021 class for the University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame. He is now part of head coach Shane Beamer's staff with the Gamecocks as the Director of Football Relations, and he sees parallels between his playing era and what is happening with the program now.
"I remember coming in as a freshman with that 2010 class, and you could already see the structure and leadership from some of those veterans," Shaw recalled. "We had high goals, high standards and high expectations for what we wanted to be. A lot of those goals we accomplished. Between winning 11 games three years in a row, not losing a game inside Williams-Brice Stadium the last two years, and not losing to our in-state rival. Those were things that hadn't been done and helped build a new level of expectations at South Carolina because of those things that we did during those four years.
"We're already on our way with the culture that Coach Beamer is putting in place. I definitely want to be a part of South Carolina's success and sustain that success. I want us to be contenders in the SEC East again every year."
Looking back, Shaw learned a great deal under former South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier, and he hopes some of his experiences will carry over to this generation of Gamecocks.
"The two things that I will take to my grave from Coach Spurrier, and I think our team adopted his mindset, are that he is the most confident and most competitive person I have ever met in my life," Shaw said. "Our players saw that on a day-to-day basis, and we adopted that mentality. We walked into every stadium with the understanding that we were going to kick their tail.
