Marcus Lattimore shares what went wrong at end of Will Muschamp era with Gamecocks
By Keith Farner
Published:
Marcus Lattimore is South Carolina royalty, and as a member of the staff during the Will Muschamp era, the former star running back has a unique perspective about how it went down, and what went wrong.
Speaking on a Gamecock Central podcast, Lattimore shared his thoughts on the end of the Muschamp era, and also mistakes he made. Lattimore has stayed connected to the program since he was a player. Until about 2 years ago, he was South Carolina’s Director of Player Development for 2 seasons. He was replaced by Connor Shaw.
“There’s factors that you can’t see,” said Lattimore, who was hired by Muschamp as the Director of Player Development and worked at USC from Jan. 2018 to Jan. of 2020. “For example, there were things in the weight room where things weren’t gelling. There were links – everybody has to be on the same page, there were links within the building that were off… In the building as a whole I don’t think we were doing a good job of creating a unified culture. Everybody was separate and it felt more business-like.
“And when you’re dealing with human beings, yes there are times for business, but human beings need be seen, heard, loved, cared for. You have to feel loved within the building. Was there a love at times? I’m not saying There wasn’t but they don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
Lattimore explained his shortcomings, and how he dealt with being a star in the building.
“I don’t think I was doing the best job that I could’ve done,” Lattimore said. “There were some things that I could’ve done better. At that time in my life, I was still really focused on what people thought about me. I was still in this mystique of Marcus Lattimore which I think led me to be a little inauthentic with guys. A little bit superficial. It wasn’t something I noticed until I stepped out of it.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
