COLUMBIA, S.C. — The last time Erik Kimrey had the headsets on for an official game, it was the 2020 SCISA state championship in November. That game ended with Kimrey earning his 12th state title with the Skyhawk program.
But after 17 years of leading Hammond football, Kimrey jumped at the chance to join Shane Beamer’s staff at South Carolina.
A former quarterback under Lou Holtz at South Carolina, Kimrey has been a Midlands fixture all his life. A Dutch Fork graduate, Kimrey was a graduate assistant under Holtz at Carolina before taking the Hammond job. After building Hammond into a SCISA powerhouse, Kimrey’s coaching career took a dramatic turn in December when Beamer asked him to join the Gamecock coaching staff.
The son of longtime high school coach Bill Kimrey, Erik is in charge of a position that is expected to be more of a focus than in years past. In fact, two tight-end sets could be part of the arsenal for the Gamecocks as they look to take advantage of a deep position.