No Lattimore to stop, but plenty of motivation for Gators against South Carolina
Tuesday, November 8, 2011 | Football, Scott Carter
One of the most memorable moments at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in 2010 was the cold November night South Carolina came to town.
The Gamecocks and Gators met for the SEC East title and a berth in the league championship game in Atlanta. Shortly after South Carolina's 36-14 win, former Gators coach Steve Spurrier celebrated the win with the Gamecocks in the place he dubbed The Swamp.
The primary reason was the player wearing No. 21 for South Carolina: freshman running back Marcus Lattimore. The Gators had no answer for Lattimore than night as he rushed a career-high 40 times for 212 yards and three touchdowns.
“It was tough. Lattimore ran all over us,'' Gators defensive tackle Jaye Howard said Monday. “Our defensive line just didn't hold up. This year we are going to try and impact the game more.''
The Gators travel to South Carolina on Saturday seeking to knock the Gamecocks out of the SEC East race with Georgia. The Bulldogs knocked the Gators from the race two weeks ago and following South Carolina's 44-28 loss at Arkansas a week ago, the Gamecocks must win to keep pace.
Unlike a year ago in Gainesville, Lattimore won't be a factor.
“Our worst fears were realized,'' Spurrier said on the day South Carolina learned of Lattimore's fate.
He suffered a season-ending knee injury Oct. 15 at Mississippi State while blocking for teammate Bruce Ellington. Mississippi State defensive back Nickoe Whitley rolled onto Lattimore's leg on the play and ended his season.
A senior, Howard wouldn't have minded a final test against the 6-foot, 232-pound Lattimore.
Instead, the Gamecocks will rely mostly on true freshman Brandon Wilds, a 6-1, 223-pounder who ran for 137 yards on 28 carries in his first game as Lattimore's replacement two weeks ago against Tennessee. Wilds managed just 21 yards on 10 carries in the loss to Arkansas.
“I'm not scared of competition. We want them at their best. Unfortunately for him he got hurt,'' Howard said. “We would have loved to play him. We've already faced great running backs. They are certainly a great team. They are going to come out with a lot of trick plays. We all know that.''
Over the past five weeks, the Gators have faced five of the SEC's top seven leading rushers.
Alabama's Trent Richardson ran for 181 yards, LSU's Spencer Ware for 109, Auburn's Michael Dyer gained 73, Georgia's Isaiah Crowell finished with 81 and Vanderbilt's Zac Stacy rushed for 49 in Florida's 26-21 win Saturday, snapping a four-game losing streak.
Lattimore remains the league's second-leading rusher behind Richardson (116.9 yards per game) and third in yards (818) despite missing the past two games.
While the challenge of stopping Lattimore isn't on the table, Howard remembers last year's game and how it felt walking off the field knowing a third consecutive trip to Atlanta for no longer possible.
The mission on Saturday: “We don't want them to go to Atlanta. We wanted to go there, so now let's just try to keep them from getting there.''
