The early word on MarShawn Lloyd: ‘Reminds me of’ D’Andre Swift
South Carolina blue-chip freshman running back MarShawn Lloyd won’t be able to talk with the media until this time next spring.
But to hear his Gamecocks teammates tell it, his play is doing plenty of talking as he competes for a vacant starting spot.
Lloyd came to Columbia with a lot of hype. He was a top-50 national recruit and joined a backfield down its top three rushers. He’s already drawn some glowing comparisons through four practices in the spring.
A sampling of those:
Corner Jaycee Horn: “MarShawn is looking good. Fast. Super fast. Reminds me of a lot of, like we played (Georgia’s D’Andre) Swift. I always tell him, they remind me a lot of each other, in how they run the football.”
Swift was a two-year starter for the Bulldogs and averaged 6.6 yards per carry for his career.
Linebacker Ernest Jones: “MarShawn’s quick. That has been one thing I have witnessed firsthand. ... He’s trying to take it to the older guys. He’s doing his job to earn himself a spot.”
Running back Deshaun Fenwick: “I love MarShawn. MarShawn is like a really good guy. He’s really talented, and I’ve seen a lot of things out of MarShawn that I’m going to like for next couple of years. ... He did a spin move (Tuesday) in practice that was really impressive. He’s really athletic, really, really, really fast.”
Defensive end Zacch Pickens: “He’s fast as I don’t know what. He’s real quick with everything. Like, he wants to be the top guy. To be a running back in this league that’s kind of what you want.”
Defensive end Aaron Sterling: “Oh, he’s got some potential. He’s going to be something special. ... In the backfield I got a chance (to tackle him). He did a little spin more, got up out of there.”
Head coach Will Muschamp: “He’s a one-cut runner. He gets the ball north and south. He’s got a low center (of gravity). There’s not a lot of soft spots to hit. Very intelligent guy who works extremely hard. I’ve been very pleased.”
