Marcus Lattimore makes Grand Strand appearance, plans more

Marcus Lattimore is one of the most decorated football players in South Carolina history.

While he isn’t active on the gridiron anymore, he’s still heavily involved with the sport and the fans.

Lattimore – who retired from the NFL in 2014 due to issues with his knee – was signing autographs, taking pictures and meeting with fans Saturday afternoon during the grand opening of outdoors superstore Gander Mountain in Carolina Forest.

“I really don’t make it out [to Myrtle Beach] a lot but there’s Gamecock fans all over the place, especially in Myrtle Beach,” Lattimore said. “I’m glad I was able to help with the grand opening of Gander Mountain, which is a great store. A lot of fans came out and I just appreciate their support over the years and just everything they’ve done. To do this, it’s something I enjoyed so it’s been awesome.”

Lattimore was in Myrtle Beach for just one day, but he plans to do even more along the Grand Strand.

“I’m going to be doing a camp here this summer in Horry County,” Lattimore said. “I’m not sure on the location yet, but I will be doing a camp this summer for sure so everybody come on out; we’re going to have a good time. We’re going to be doing a lot more camps throughout mainly the Southeast.”

A native of Duncan, Lattimore attended James F. Byrnes High School and was named the ESPN RISE National High School Junior Football Player of the Year in 2008. During his senior year, he earned USA Today high school All-American honors and was named South Carolina’s Mr. Football.

He chose South Carolina over Auburn on National Signing Day, a decision he’s glad he made.

“I stayed in-state when I committed to play at [South] Carolina. I grew up as a South Carolinian and I feel like that’s one reason why I receive the support that I get and I just play the game the right the way,” Lattimore said. “The fans – they gravitate towards the players who do that like [myself], Connor [Shaw], Dylan Thompson and like Stephon Gilmore. I’m just proud and if you do it the right way, you’ll have fans forever.”

Lattimore holds USC school records for the most rushing touchdowns (38) and total touchdowns (41). He was also named SEC Freshman of the Year in 2010 when he set the South Carolina single-season touchdown record (17).

He cherishes the time he spent as a Gamecock, and the impact is still taking effect.

“When my class got there, things started to change. We started believing,” Lattimore said. “Alshon [Jeffery] and Stephon [Gilmore], they recruited me to come in and we focused on keeping all of the [South Carolina] guys in-state and got them to go to South Carolina or Clemson. You see the success from both schools when you keep guys in-state so it was a great experience; I wouldn’t change anything.”

Lattimore’s favorite moment at South Carolina? Beating then-No. 1 Alabama on Oct. 9, 2010. Lattimore had 23 carries for 93 yards, two rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown from quarterback Stephen Garcia.

“So many good memories; too many,” he said. “All three Georgia games, the Florida game, Tennessee game [were all good], but probably the Alabama game when we beat them they were No. 1; that was the biggest highlight.”

Steve Spurrier, who coached Lattimore at South Carolina, guaranteed the former running back a position with the team if he wants it. While Lattimore is unsure what his future holds with the school, he is thankful for Spurrier’s support.

“When I went there, I knew I was going to play for a legend; a SEC legend, Heisman trophy winner. He has all of these accolades. But he loves football and that rubbed off on me,” Lattimore said. “Every guy, they can just feel his love for the game of football and his players. He’s tough on you but he makes you better as a player and person. It was wonderful playing under coach Spurrier.”

Meanwhile, Lattimore is trying to make an impact through his charity, The Marcus Lattimore Foundation. Founded by himself and his stepfather, Vernon Smith, the initiative is to supply high school athletes with the funding they need for insurance and medical costs.

“[Davis] is the president of the foundation and he does all of the main work but we started it and it’s for high school athletes who don’t have sufficient insurance; we cover that and anything health-related or injury-related,” Lattimore said. “But we have three different sides to the foundation; we have a life skills program, outreach program and a sports performance program. We’ve been doing some great things the past few years and we’re going to continue that.”

And while he isn’t continuing his football career, Lattimore is moving forward.

“I’ll always miss [football]. But you have to move on; you can’t dwell on the past,” he said. “I had fun playing football and there were a lot of great times, a lot of bad times but through it all I’ve learned so much and I grew as a man. I used football and football didn’t use me, and that’s the biggest thing.”

This story was originally published April 19, 2015 at 10:35 PM with the headline "Marcus Lattimore makes Grand Strand appearance, plans more."