I sat down with running backs and tight ends coach Jay Graham for a Q&A last week as we neared the middle of spring football practice. Read what he has to say about Marcus Lattimore and the running backs crew, incoming recruits at RB, and more: What to look for from the running backs in 2011:
Hopefully a lot of the same things we did last year but just a little better. Breaking tackles is something I always emphasize. What's good for spring practice is minimizing mistakes and paying special attention to detail. If we can do that we can help the team and offense win.
What are you evaluating in the running backs in looking beyond Marcus Lattimore?
You're almost looking for a '1B', a guy that can go in and be a starter if something happens with Marcus and there's not much of a let-up. I was glad our running backs came back and had a good game in the bowl game but there was a little letdown with the whole team [when Marcus went out]. But when a guy can come in there and fill in and make some plays it really helps the momentum for the team.
You got to be ready when your opportunity comes along but it's very hard to sit there and wait. Is it this week, is it 5 running plays or is it 20 and that's the key. I try to make sure I spend almost more time with those other guys and make sure they're ready to go just in case something happens.
Kenny Miles is ahead of Eric Baker right now just from having played the last year but Baker has really surprised me so far [coming off being injured].
What are some of the biggest focus areas for Marcus, areas for improvement?
I think the biggest thing is don't worry about what you can't do. Just get better at what you're good at because you can always do that. I think learning the offense more and being a coach when you're not in helps you do that. He's been able to sit back and watch and he's getting really good at that. He's telling guys what to do and it's helping him be more of a leader and be more vocal. He's a guy that's responsible, says 'these are the drills we're doing' and takes guys out early before practice and does drills. As a leader he has taken over and his overall understanding of the offense is helping him.
Comment on incoming RB recruits:
Shon Carson was really underrated coming in. He's a really good football player. I'm just hoping we get him in the fall, don't know what will happen with baseball and the decisions he has to make. He's very quick, very fast and he can catch the ball and go from zero to full speed in a second. He's explosive. That's a guy we don't have as far as being THAT explosive for his size. I'm excited to get him.
Brandon Wilds is a very versatile player, a bigger running back, about 225 [pounds] right now. Deceptive speed, good ball skills and ability for his size, we're excited to have him. He's certainly a player who's going to be very good in the future and we're looking forward to having him here in August.
How are you adapting to coaching an additional/new position(tight ends) this season?
It's not that bad because last year I had to know it with [Patrick] DiMarco moving around. It was important that I know. He was listed as a tight end but he played both positions so it was an easy transition.
How are the defensive guys who moved over to tight end this spring adjusting and progressing?
Chaun Gresham and Corey Simmons have worked really hard and they're just learning the little things: you line up different, your stance is different, you're not a defensive end anymore you're a tight end. Looking at signals every play, doing stuff totally different, trying to avoid people as opposed to running into them. They've done a good job in week one, their learning curve has been very fast because we're not slowing down the plays that we're putting in for them. They're learning. I tell them not to get frustrated, just keep working hard and by the end of the week you'll feel a whole lot better about what we're teaching.
I want to go "beyond the bio" a little, tell me more about your personal story - being from North Carolina, your playing days at Tennessee and in the NFL, to coaching at South Carolina.
Both my parents worked for IBM and we moved around a lot. I was born in Durham, moved to Virginia, went to high school in Concord, NC. I played there in high school, the Concord Spiders. I wasn't very good at first, I hadn't really played much football before high school, only about two years, but ended up playing running back and going on to Tennessee.
I was injured a lot in the NFL so I had a lot of time to really learn football and that's what I did. I ended up coaching guys on the sidelines because I was injured three out of my first four years. The injury bug bit me and I hurt my knee, hurt both ankles. I didn't want to just sit there in my bed so I coached. Coach put a clipboard in my hand and said, "start charting stuff" and I thought, "man this is kinda fun" so I called Coach Fulmer [back at Tennessee] and he said come on back when you're done. He didn't tell me what grad assistant meant so I was doing EVERYTHING, bringing lunches, etc. But that's how you learn, you get time with a coach to learn football every day and you do whatever they need to get that time. When you're breaking down film you have to get it right. I remember one time I was filling things in the grid and I was one line off and threw the whole system off. Coach went crazy. But it'll make you remember about doing things the right way and checking your stuff. I learned a lot in my two years as a GA and my four years coaching leading up to coming here.
Favorite memory so far at South Carolina?
Beating Alabama, just with the history. That game meant a lot to our players. We came off losing to Auburn and that's the first time I saw our guys just have the perfect game, they did everything they were supposed to do. They played with great technique. You could see what we could be if we continue to do those things. We're still trying to get there and that was a good glimpse into what we could do.
The guys were ready to play and win that game. If we can bottle that up and get to the point where we minimize mistakes and play as a team with that kind of effort we can make some things happen, but it's still going to take some time.
How different is being a college football player today from when you were a player (not THAT long ago!)?
It's a lot different. The internet, cell phones, back then you had to go to a phone with a cord on it [laughing]. With the internet and all that stuff guys have to be more careful about what they do. There's just a lot of things going on, more pressure from the media and internet. The game itself hasn't changed much, just the stuff surrounding the game. Everything is on a bigger stage than it was when I was in school.
Spring practice continues this week with practices on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday at 4:00 PM at the Bluff Road Proving Grounds practice fields and a scrimmage in Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday at 10:00 AM. All practices are open to the public. Photography (still or video) is only allowed for the first 15 minutes of practice and no autographs are allowed.
The Garnet and Black Spring Game is set for April 9th at 1:00 PM with the Gamecock Fan Fest to follow.
- Brittany Lane
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