Practice report: Abu Lamin, D-line will be leaner, meaner

Abu Lamin is leaner, and he’s promising South Carolina’s defensive line is going to be meaner.

“We have a lot more confidence. We are flying around,” the senior nose tackle said. “Everybody is doing their job. We don’t want to repeat last year.”

The Gamecocks were No. 119 in the nation in sacks last year with 14. Lamin expects that to change drastically this year.

“We are attacking, going after them,” he said. “We still have gap integrity, but we’re going to go attack, like a pack of wolves, a pack of lions. We are going to go get them, and we ain’t letting go.”

Lamin weighed 333 pounds last year but is down to 303 this year.

“I feel like I can move a lot more,” he said. “I am flying around, I don’t feel as sluggish. I feel more agile.”

Lamin, Phillip Dukes and Gerald Dixon Jr. are rotating the nose tackle snaps so far, Lamin said.

South Carolina expects to rotate 10 defensive linemen during games this season, co-defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward said.

GREEN POSTMORTEM

Coach Steve Spurrier declined to say if cornerback Wesley Green’s citation for possession of one ounce or less of marijuana in March played a role in his departure from the team this week.

“I don’t want to get into all of that,” Spurrier said. “I think the best thing is he gets a fresh start somewhere else. He’s had some issues, as we know. We wish him the best. He’s a good player. Hopefully, he can get it all straightened out and go from there.”

Green, a redshirt freshman cornerback from Lithonia, Ga., left the team this weekend, the school announced Monday.

“Wesley was one of my good friends, so that surprised me,” sophomore Al Harris Jr. said. “Hurt me a little bit, but he’ll be OK.”

Harris Jr., Rico McWilliams, Chris Lammons, Chaz Elder and Jamari Smith are working at cornerback this fall, Harris Jr. said.

“We’re just trying to get better,” he said. “I’m making the most of my reps. (Starting) is very important. I want to be a starter, so I have to work and make plays.”

STADNIK OUT

Green is not the only four-star prospect whose Gamecocks career ended this week.

Junior offensive lineman Brock Stadnik, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound North Carolina native, will take a medical hardship designation, ending his collegiate career, Spurrier said.

Stadnik was widely considered one of the nation’s top 20 offensive line prospects coming out of Greensboro, N.C., in 2011, but he never cracked South Carolina’s offensive line rotation. He is on track to graduate in December, Spurrier said.

RUNNING BACK ROTATION

Running backs Darius Paulk and Rod Talley were given the scholarships vacated by Green and Stadnik. It was a nod to their hard work, but also an indication of their value as tailbacks, Spurrier said.

“We are sort of loaded at running back,” Spurrier said. “We have eight of them, it seems now. They are all very good. Their time will come.”

INJURY UPDATE

Wide receiver Pharoh Cooper (hand, knee), linebacker Jonathan Walton (knee), defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth (chest), defensive end Gerald Dixon (leg) and tight end Connor Redmond (back) sat out Tuesday because of injury.

“If we had a game tomorrow, I’m sure (Cooper) could play, but he’s taking a day or two off right now,” Spurrier said.

OPEN SCRIMMAGE

The Gamecocks plan to scrimmage Saturday at 5 p.m. and have that workout open to the public at either Williams-Brice Stadium or its practice fields behind Gamecock Park.

This story was originally published August 11, 2015 at 11:46 AM.