It’s not just football that had the nation’s attention on Tuesday. A tense mid game situation in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl between South Carolina and Illinois gave birth to a new narrative. Shane Beamer and Bret Bielema never would’ve imagined that one day they would be recreating one of the internet’s most popular memes! And that too out of animosity! 

We might be familiar with the meme that has a woman yelling at a cat. A fan posted an edited picture of this viral meme with Shane Beamer and Bret Bielema on X on December 31. It’s a collage of the South Carolina HC pointing his finger in fury as his staff held him back while the Illinois HC stood on with a slight smile. The caption read, “Shane Beamer and Bret Bielema literally did the meme. It’s perfection.”

The woman yelling at a cat meme emerged in 2019 on X. It’s a screenshot of a woman in an episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills pointing her finger at an Ottawa cat in a chair who sported a smug expression. It’s so viral; we’ve all seen that meme somewhere or somehow. And now that beloved meme has transcended to college football! 

This new CFB meme got its foundation at the 2024 Citrus Bowl inside Camping World Stadium in Orlando. It happened late in the third quarter as Bielema rubbed salt in the wound by taunting the South Carolina sideline with a ‘substitution posture’ while checking on an injured Jaheim Clarke. This was the second time Bielema had done this, and with the Gamecocks already down 14-10, it really got under Shane Beamer’s skin.

It was a game of tit-for-tat all along, with both coaches trying to gain an edge with late substitutions. Then, Bielema sent three defensive players onto the field as the play clock wound down, forcing Beamer to burn a timeout. Bielema’s laughter after this play probably didn’t help matters. And the picture in the meme is a product of his tantrum, as Beamer had to be restrained. But needless to say, fans are loving this version of the meme!

Fans go wild over CFB meme

An excited fan couldn’t get over this creative rendition of the meme. They stated, “Pure Gold.” That’s just the beginning. Another person also gave a salute to the meme. They wrote, “This is art!” We gotta appreciate the artist’s eye for detail and the perfect timing and action. 

Another person added more spice to the situation. They wrote, “Beamer said” and then added a gif. It featured a beaten-up boxer fighting against the crowd with the words, ‘someone hold me back.’ 

Some people even found the meme pleasing. They commented, “Oh that’s beautiful.” But for Shane Beamer, it’s anything but beautiful.

Losing 21-17 to an underdog team wasn’t on the cards for South Carolina. But it paved the way for a new perfection. As one person summed up with a gif saying, “Perfection rarely occurs but here it is!” It may be at the cost of the Gamecocks, but it’s not often that CFB gives root to memes. 

It may be an unfortunate bowl game for Shane Beamer and Co. but it’s good to fight tense situations with fun, and this meme did that!