Say it ain't so... The Virginia Tech Hokies nearly pulled off the upset bid of the favored South Carolina Gamecocks at beautiful Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Instead, the No. 13 team in the nation proved victorious over the hopeful Hokies with the help of some good, old-fashioned Beamer Ball. Yes, Shane Beamer used his family's famous recipe of winning big with special teams ... to win big.
While the final score of 24-11 will not do this game service in the end, Virginia Tech felt like it was one play away from seriously threatening the Gamecocks all afternoon long. Although Kyron Drones was able to connect on a few great passes down the field, inconsistencies in the short game contributed to the Hokies' offense never fully getting into rhythm under their new coordinator Philip Montgomery.
There are plenty of positive takeaways from the game from a Virginia Tech standpoint, but the 80-yard punt return for a touchdown from Vicari Swain off the foot of Nick Veltsistas prove too much for the Hokies to overcome. South Carolina was able to tack on an additional seven points to essentially seal it on a 64-yard touchdown strike from LaNorris Sellers to Nyck Harbor. The pick ended all hope...
Virginia Tech should be better than the Hokies were a year ago, but this loss will sting for a while.
Virginia Tech loses to South Carolina due in large part to Beamer Ball
This was by far the most important play of the ballgame, flipping it forever in South Carolina's favor.
Breed: Different pic.twitter.com/0I5syG22c0
— South Carolina Football (@GamecockFB) August 31, 2025
Beamer was able to avoid being upset by his alma mater on Sunday. While the Gamecocks could approach the top 10 once the new AP Top 25 Poll drops later this week, Brent Pry is one again left to pick up the pieces. It was the epitome of a close, but no cigar performance. Again, there were positives to be had, but not enough to come away with a winnable non-conference game in the end.
After watching this game, it became readily apparent that both teams need some more time to adjust to their new coordinators in place. Montgomery had his moments, as did Sam Siefkies... While Mike Shula put forth a mostly frustrating mess in his first game as South Carolina's offense coordinator, it was one again the special teams bailing out the Gamecocks in a big way. It always had to be this way.
For now, Virginia Tech cannot feel sorry for itself, as Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt are up next week.