Shawn Elliott Named South Carolina's Interim Head Coach

South Carolina named co-offensive coordinator Shawn Elliott as its interim head coach Tuesday following the abrupt resignation of Steve Spurrier on Monday night, as reported by ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach.

Thayer Evans of Sports Illustrated first reported Elliott would take over for Spurrier.

Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated states Elliott has been waiting for this opportunity and draws a parallel to Clemson's Dabo Swinney:

Elliott spent more than a decade at Appalachian State, first as a player and then as an assistant, before joining Spurrier's staff in 2010.

Naming an interim from within the current coaching staff rather than trying to immediately find a full-time replacement following the sudden change of heart from Spurrier is the right move. It provides a sense of stability and gives the department time to conduct a full search.

The team is off to a tumultuous 2-4 start with two blowout losses to ranked teams (Georgia and LSU). The Gamecocks' game against the Tigers also had to be moved to Louisiana after historic floods impacted South Carolina, making it incredibly difficult to focus on football.

Elliott, who's served as the run game coordinator and the offensive line coach, will do his best to help the players make it through the difficult stretch. Depending on how the team responds, he might emerge as the best long-term option for the position as well.