How South Carolina might divide its touches among trio of talented running backs
South Carolina’s backfield is oozing with options.
With a trio of talented backs in senior ZaQuandre White, junior Kevin Harris and freshman MarShawn Lloyd, offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield’s system has ample options in the backfield for his first season in Columbia.
But for as talented as the Gamecocks are at running back, it remains to be seen how those carries will be divvied up.
“We have guys that we can hand the ball off to 35 times per game; we have guys that we can throw the ball out of the backfield and use as receiver types as well,” Satterfield said in April. “... I think that group, as far as getting your best guys on the field, can allow you to do some personnel groupings to get multiple backs out there at a time ‘cause they do catch the ball so well and they are so explosive with the ball in their hands.”
MarShawn Lloyd
Through spring ball and now headed for the summer, Lloyd feels like the safe bet to inherit the bulk of South Carolina’s 2021 carries assuming his health issues are behind him. The former top-50 recruit saw his first season at USC end during fall camp when he suffered a torn ACL. Lloyd worked out in a brace during the spring — a normal precaution off ACL surgery — but he’s been mostly full-go.
Should Lloyd be ready when South Carolina kicks off its opener against Eastern Illinois on Sept. 4, the Gamecocks would add a game-breaking addition to its backfield. At 5-foot-9, 215 pounds, the former DeMatha High School standout isn’t the biggest bodied of USC’s options, but his combination of balance and speed should make him a home-run hitter alongside presumed starting quarterback Luke Doty.
Bill McGregor, who coached Lloyd at DeMatha, told The State he profiles similarly to former Stag and longtime NFL great Brian Westbrook. Westbrook, like Lloyd, is smaller, but packs a balanced and powerful punch at the line of attack, while possessing serious speed in the open field.
“If he touches it, he can take it all the way,” McGregor said. “He had that extra step, that extra gear that most high school backs do not have.”
Kevin Harris
Harris heads into the season as the most known commodity of all of South Carolina’s backs. After Lloyd went down with a knee injury, the former three-star recruit torched Southeastern Conference defenses en route to a 1,138-yard, 15-touchdown season a year ago.
With Lloyd back in the fold and White emerging, Harris could see a dip in that production, though.
The Georgia native was at his best between the tackles and when he could get north-to-south. Harris isn’t the speedster Lloyd or White is, but a bit more bruising and bulkier at 5-foot-10, 225 pounds.
In 2020, 10 of Harris’ 15 touchdowns came inside the 20-yard-line. Of those scores, seven were from three yards or shorter.
Given the depth in the backfield, Harris could be called on more as a situational runner in short yardage and goal line sets.
“The biggest thing with Kev, he’s one of those backs that when you look at him, you don’t think that he’s 230 pounds,” South Carolina running backs coach Montario Hardesty said in April. “He can move, he can run inside and outside, but he can also catch really well.”
ZaQuandre White
White is the unicorn of the Gamecocks’ talented trio. Through one-plus seasons in Columbia after transferring in from Iowa Western Community College, he’s shown flashes of the ability that made him the No. 7 running back in the 2017 class in the 247Sports Composite rankings.
The Florida native’s most prolific 2020 moment came when he ripped off a 21-yard carry against Vanderbilt. More recently, though, he recorded 95 yards and a score on 14 carries in South Carolina’s annual Garnet and Black game in April to back up the acclaim he’d earned during spring ball.
Standing 6-foot and 210 pounds, White is the tallest of South Carolina’s expected contributors in the backfield. Given his ability to make people miss and his speed in space, he profiles like a third-down back that can offer a nice balance to the smaller Lloyd and Harris.
“I will never, ever, ever overlook the fact that he has not missed one snap of spring ball,” Satterfield said in the spring. “He’s carried it a ton, he’s got hit a ton, he always shows up, he’s always there and he’s always dependable.”
Dividing up the carries
USC head coach Shane Beamer was on staff at Georgia when the Bulldogs trotted out a 2017 backfield that included Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, D’Andre Swift and Elijah Holyfield. That year, Chubb led the way with 223 carries, while Michel (156 carries), Swift (81 carries) and Holyfield (50 carries) earned their fair share of touches.
South Carolina hasn’t had a trio of running backs each record at least 80 carries in the last 10 years. The closest comparison came in 2012 when quarterback Connor Shaw recorded 131 touches alongside tailbacks Marcus Lattimore (143 carries) and Kenny Miles (104 carries).
Armed with as talented trio of tailbacks as any team in the SEC — not to mention returnee Rashad Amos and newcomer Caleb McDowell — USC stands to approach the season with 2017 Georgia-like splits in mind.
But with kick off still two months away, it’ll take until the season opener until anyone gets a tangible look at how running back touches get divided going forward.
Correction: A previous version of this story referred to NFL running back Brian Westbrook as Frank Gore. The State regrets this error.
This story was originally published July 7, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
