For Gamecocks’ Stallworth, bowl a little more time with seniors

Being part of a student organization, or say a football team, provides certain sorts of life lessons. College is rife with moments for growth, and working together with folks younger and older can teach someone how to work their way up, wait their turn or grow into the kind of person they once looked up to.

It also teaches how to deal with a specific kind of change.

A player joins a team, looks up to and befriends older teammates and will eventually watch them move on. It's the way of the world, but is an early experience with a type of change one has throughout life.

That will come for South Carolina defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth soon enough. But the chance to go to the Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 29 means a little more time with teammates.

"I love this honestly," Stallworth said. "Being around these guys everyday. It's a great experience. I'm going to miss all the seniors (about to) leave. I'm just living it up right now with my guys before they leave."

South Carolina's last group of seniors left Columbia without a bowl trip, snapping a run of four consecutive classes ending their careers on the right side of the scoreboard.

Stallworth said he's grown close with the small cluster of seniors on the roster, and while he and many other Gamecocks expect to use the Birmingham Bowl as a springboard to bigger things, this one has special weight for the guys on the way out.

"That's great," Stallworth said of getting more time with teammates. "Especially with Marquavius Lewis. He's never been to a bowl game before, coming out of JUCO. It was a great experience for him. I'm going to miss that guy. Darius (English), T.J. (Holloman), Jon (Walton), we're from the same region. There's a lot of guys on here, Chaz Elder, Chris Moody, that I'm going to miss."

This story was originally published December 22, 2016 at 5:55 PM.