DMV to SC: How Gamecocks, Shane Beamer are making recruiting inroads in D.C.-Maryland-Virginia

South Carolina’s roster has an increasingly East Coast look.

Since Shane Beamer was hired as head coach in December 2020, the Gamecocks’ staff has made heavy inroads recruiting the Washington, D.C.-Maryland-Virginia area, also known as the DMV. That’s included signing five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor (D.C.) and four-star defensive end Desmond Umeozulu (MD) in the 2023 class, among others.

The State spoke with high school coaches and recruiting analysts who work in the DMV to understand how and why South Carolina has been able to sign and/or land commitments from six players from the region in the 2023 and 2024 classes.

The group polled included:

Bill McGregor (head coach, DeMatha Catholic High School): longtime head coach at Maryland powerhouse DeMatha College High School. Coached 2023 four-star OT signee Oluwatosin “Tree” Babalade.

Randy Trivers (head coach, Gonzaga College High School): coached 2022 Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams, former Holy Cross player with a winning percentage over 70% in nine years at Gonzaga.

Andy Stefanelli (head coach, Our Lady of Good Counsel): coached NFL Pro Bowler Stefon Diggs as an assistant coach, been on staff at Good Counsel since 2007 and replaced the school’s all-time winningest head coach in 2017.

Daemon Powell (head coach, C.H. Flowers High School): Coached 2023 four-star Gamecocks DE signee Desmond Umeozulu, walk-on tight end Maurice Brown II and currently has 2024 four-star USC DB commit Brayden Lee.

Adam Friedman (national recruiting analyst/rankings director, Rivals): Covers recruiting up and down the East Coast. Based in the DMV and has worked with RIvals in varying capacities for over a decade

Brian Dohn (national analyst, 247Sports): Covers recruiting nationally for 247Sports following time at Scout.com and the Los Angeles Daily News.

*Answers have been lightly edited for clarity and length*

BP: South Carolina seems to be making a more conscious effort to recruit the DMV, are you feeling that in practice?

Andy Stefanelli: “Yeah, I think certainly since Shane Beamer has taken over, there’s definitely been more of a presence. We’re attracting a lot of interest from a lot of schools, but South Carolina has made, it appears to me, a concerted effort to really hone in on the top players in our area and certainly the top players on our team. And not just a cursory pop in, make your presence known and then out. They’re here consistently, every opportunity.

“Sterling Lucas has done a really good job with our area. We’ve had multiple coaches (from South Carolina stop by). It’s not just the area recruiter. Pete Lembo, who’s at South Carolina now, was at Maryland previously. And on a personal note, my son played at Maryland and he was his position coach. So, I have a personal relationship with Pete. Great guy. He’s an awesome guy and just a great person, aside from being a football coach. With that, when he went to South Carolina, of course, that helps a little bit there.”

Brian Dohn: You have to look at ‘why,’ first of all. And there’s two easy reasons. Shane Beamer is familiar with that area from his time at Virginia Tech. When he was at Oklahoma, he got some kids (from the DMV) out of there. So he’s got a ton of connections. And the parents of these kids grew up when Virginia Tech was really good, and know Frank Beamer. ... They understand who he is and the family he’s from. He’s a personal guy, who is dogged in recruiting. And you get a guy like Pete Lembo, who does really well up there, too, who has great connections up there, knows the coaches. The (high school) coaches trust them. And when the coaches trust you, that filters down to the kids.”

Adam Friedman: “Yeah, 100%. As soon as Shane Beamer came in on one of his first big recruiting road trips he stopped through the DMV. I think it was a priority for them from Day 1. I think it’s an area that, like you said, many people identify as an area that South Carolina should recruit.

“All the national contenders cherry pick recruits out of this area almost every year. Florida State was doing this back when they were winning national championships with Jimbo Fisher and competing. They also did it in the Virginia Beach area while Virginia and Virginia Tech were down. And it’s kind of the same principle (with South Carolina).”

BP: Given that, there’s always been a perception South Carolina could recruit well in the DMV, but it hadn’t necessarily materialized previously. Why do you think that pipeline has actually started to come to some level of fruition the past couple of classes?

Bill McGregor: “I think so much of it is relational. When coach (Steve) Spurrier was there, he did a great job. He’s an outstanding coach and was fantastic. I’m not sure if he had the same type of relationships up here, as Coach Beamer does. If somebody else was the coach at South Carolina, maybe they would have the relationships that exist, but (Beamer) does have those relationships.

“Pete Lembo was a head college coach at (Ball State, Elon and Lehigh) that would always recruit the D.C. area. (Defensive line coach Sterling Lucas) spoke at our clinic. Sterling has a great background being with the Ravens. That’s just a story of the guys on the staff that did have that relationship in this area and it helps a lot. It’s not a stranger walking in. It’s totally different when one of those guys walk in as opposed to somebody who’s just new to the D.C. area. It means a whole lot.”

Brian Dohn: “(Shane) Beamer has those relationships. You gotta remember when Frank Beamer was at Tech, they recruited the DMV hard. And when Shane was there they recruited DMV hard. When (Shane) was at Oklahoma, go back and look and they got kids out of there. … So you say ‘Why have they made the inroads so quickly?’ Well, they didn’t. They already had the inroads. It was already there. I think people overlook that.”

Daemon Powell: “I’m seeing (them) a little more. You have to take your hats off for South Carolina. They do a great job recruiting. This is a rough business. One thing about these kids, they know what’s real and not. I give it up to South Carolina because they’re pretty much real on their word. I think that’s a good thing.”

Adam Friedman: “I think it’s a number of reasons. The easiest one to point to is Shane Beamer and his family’s connection to the DMV area over the years while his dad was coaching at Virginia Tech. He does a great job connecting with the players, the parents, all of that, and he’s learned a lot of that from his dad throughout the years.

“... But I’m looking at the rest of the staff that (Beamer’s) got, Pete Lembo has recruited this area for years. Torrian Gray has a ton of connections to the area. Sterling Lucas has really stepped up and been a great addition to the area when they try to bring in more coaches there. Coach (Lonnie) Teasley has also been really good. Coach (Justin) Stepp is well known, as well. Taylor Edwards, the director of player personnel personnel, worked at Maryland for a little while. So he brings pretty in-depth knowledge there. If you’re looking at all of those reasons combined, it’s really helped them lay really good groundwork here for what seems to be a growing pipeline.”

Ben Portnoy: How much weight does the “Beamer” name carry in the DMV with Frank’s history at Virginia Tech and Shane’s time recruiting the area?

Bill McGregor: “His dad is known by everybody. Really well-respected, well-liked. Everybody thought the world of Frank. He had a great run at Virginia Tech as the head football coach, so right away you walk in the door and have somebody knowing all about your family history there. Now Shane has obviously gone on his own and just done a tremendous job.

Andy Stefanelli: “That’s interesting. It carries some weight with me because I know the history of Shane’s dad and what was done at Virginia Tech. With kids, I don’t know. I don’t know if the ‘Beamer’ name — I chuckle about that with the kids, like what they don’t know.

Daemon Powell: “I’m older. To me, it matters. I don’t think to the kids it matters that much. I mean, honestly, I really don’t think it matters that much. What I think matters is real recognizes real. These kids recognize if they are going to be in a good program, or somebody’s trying to pull something over. I’m not saying that nobody else is (genuine). I’m just saying that’s the feeling they felt (at South Carolina). Like, this is something that could be special here.”

Randy Trivers: “I think it does. It’s funny, I was just having a conversation this weekend — it was a bunch of old guys sitting around and we were talking and a guy had on a Michael Jordan shirt. I said: ‘That’s a great shirt you got there. What’s amazing though, is you don’t realize how time goes so fast and how many people, especially young people that really didn’t see Michael Jordan play.’ And so when the name comes up, the thought of the debate ‘Who is the greatest of all time?’ You hear LeBron James’ name all the time. And LeBron is phenomenal, of course. But I’m sitting with all these old dudes and there’s no one like Michael Jordan. I’m a big LeBron fan, but he ain’t Michael Jordan.

“My point is when you bring up the idea of the ‘Beamer’ name — on the one hand, my initial reaction is, ‘Oh hell yeah people know the Beamer name, Frank Beamer.’ What he did at Virginia Tech was amazing. The sustainability, the longevity and the success that he had and the relationships that he built — particularly in the state of Virginia, but getting here to D.C. and Maryland, as well. They did very well here. But when I think about what I was saying, It’s amazing how when time goes by a little bit, you forget that people don’t know or they’re forgetful. So I would imagine there’s a little bit of yes and a little bit of no.”

BP: Do you remember your early impressions of Shane when he started recruiting the area or how you would characterize him?

Bill McGregor: “Young guy behind the ears. I honestly don’t remember the first time I met him, but I met him so many times being involved with Virginia Tech over the years. Great, great, great person. Great personality. The kids like playing for him. He’s upbeat, he’s positive. He’s a younger guy. Kids gravitate to that. And I think they feel that he delivers what he says he’s gonna deliver. Kids are excited right now in the DMV about going to South Carolina. They’re hot.”

Randy Trivers: “There’s a sincerity about him, a professionalism. He’s just a genuine human being. He’s similar to his father in that way. That ability to connect with people. That’s a special trait that he has. And that’s important in recruiting, because when you think about recruiting, a lot of that’s trust. Relationships and trust. If a family is going to say, ‘Hey, we would like our son to go to that school,’ or a young man is talking to perhaps multiple schools, at some point this idea of trust comes into your mind and comes into your heart.

“There are a lot of people in the recruiting business that are nice. They’re gonna be kind or nice. Some people tell you nice things about yourself, make you feel good, that type of thing. But what is your gut telling you in terms of ‘Can I trust this person, or this school, or this program?’ And I think Coach (Beamer) has a good way of conveying that and winning people’s trust.”

BP: The SEC as a brand itself seems to resonate more and more with recruits just as a conference and a place that players want to go. Is that just perception or is that what’s actually happening?

Bill McGregor: “They’re on TV all the time. It’s the premier league in the country. And then even the opportunities that you have after football. If you’re good enough, maybe they can get a look or get into a pro camp or get into a combine. Kids from the Southeastern Conference, that happens for them.”

Daemon Powell: “I think it has different levels to it. A lot of kids want to play in the Power Five. A lot of kids want to play in a really good conference. And I think the SEC, to them, it’s a very good conference. They just want to play in the big time, in big-time events. And, again, South Carolina is growing. You could tell how they did well last year. You can see that Coach Beamer has done a very good job with that program.”

Andy Stefanelli: “It matters. I get that comment a lot from our players. Even when they don’t have it narrowed down to a school, they’ll say, ‘I’d like to play in the SEC.’ I think around here the SEC and Big Ten carry the most weight, at least with our kids. Those seem to be the schools — and Notre Dame. Those are the schools, those are the conferences our kids want to play in. But the SEC definitely has weight.

“And, again, that’s a common thing with our players. Whether it’s Florida, or Georgia or South Carolina, typically if one’s recruiting them a couple others, as well. They go down and they visit and they’re like, ‘Yeah, I want to play in the SEC.’”

Randy Trivers: “I think there’s something to that. But you’d be surprised sometimes how naive a lot of people are to some of the things that — not everybody’s as really a dialed in college football fan in terms of the nuances of this league versus that league versus this rivalry versus this program.

“In some cases, programs that are maybe not as traditionally strong, the naivete piece kind of helps them a little bit. But there are some brands out there that endure. There are these lasting brands that are the ‘Mercedes of college football’ or the ‘Rolling Stones of college football.’ Sometimes it’s something that’s a long-lasting, classic brand. Those names sometimes resonate with the common fan a little bit more. That’s an interesting thought, but I think there’s both ends of it.”