It’s news that people have widely expected to come down the pipe for the last 5 to 6 weeks. On Friday afternoon, after the University of South Carolina’s Board of Trustees met with one another, the train of thought turned into reality.

Head coach Shane Beamer has received a new, regarded by most, well-deserved lucrative deal that will pay him 33.125 million dollars over the next five seasons.

In terms of the nitty gritty details, Beamer will receive 6.125 million dollars in 2023, and his annual salary will see a $250,000 bump throughout the lifetime of the deal, ending with a 7.125 million dollar payment in 2027. When comparing the available details of Shane Beamer’s contract to other coaches in the SEC, where does the 45-year-old rank amongst his counterparts?

When looking at his annual salary heading into 2023, Beamer is the 11th highest-paid coach in the conference, sandwiched between Arkansas’ Sam Pittman and Tennessee’s Josh Heupel, who may see his own raise and extension soon in Knoxville. Out of the in-conference coaches who’ve coached for three years or less, Beamer ranks sixth out of the nine.

While those specific rankings might paint a picture that depicts this deal as being outrageously unfair, other details must be considered. For one, Beamer has seen his annual salary more than double compared to the terms in his first contract, one that was set to pay him 2.75 million annually through the 2025 season.

With his new contract, Beamer now has the opportunity to make almost 2.5 times the amount that he would’ve been able to make on his original deal. The other factor that must be considered is that Beamer has been wildly successful in his short time as Carolina’s head coach.

The top seven highest-paid coaches are tenured coaches or those who put together a double-digit win season at one or multiple stops, neither of which Beamer has accomplished yet in his career.

There’s no question, however, that this contract is a profound message sent by the University of South Carolina’s administration and athletic department that they endorse the vision that Beamer has set for South Carolina’s football program. If the team continues to progress as it has in his short career so far, he will have the opportunity to earn an even better deal down the road.