Legends compare Lattimore to Herschel and Bo

South Carolina freshman running back Marcus Lattimore burst onto the SEC scene last weekend with a dominating performance over Georgia in Columbia. Lattimore rushed for 182 yards on 37 carries and two touchdowns in the Gamecocks 17-6 win.

The freshman had 103 rushing yards at halftime, but his bruising style in the fourth quarter carried South Carolina to victory. His performance thus far has drawn comparisons to some of the all-time great SEC running backs and some say he is next in line.

Legends Vince Dooley and Pat Dye coached arguably the two best at that position — Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson. Here are their thoughts on Lattimore through his first two games:

Dooley: “I think, right now, the way he’s going, he can be one of the great freshman running backs in the conference.

I’m really impressed with the way he sees. He finds daylight, and when he finds it, he’s got a great spurt. And then he’s just really a brute of a guy.

I don’t how many tackles bounced off of him in the Georgia game, but I didn’t see him much in the third quarter. Then I’m wondering, ‘Does this guy have the stamina to go four quarters?’ But he came back in the fourth quarter and he really brought them home to win the game. So, he is durable enough and tough enough.

I don’t know that he has the speed of a Herschel, but he’s sure got the toughness and the mental toughness. And he probably can see as good or better than Herschel. And he might just have as good of a spurt from a standing position as Herschel.

If he keeps going at the rate he’s going, he’ll be one of the great freshman running backs — at least that I’ve seen — in this conference.”

Dye: “First of all, Vince said (Lattimore) might could see better than Herschel. Herschel would run so fast, he couldn’t see. That’s the biggest difference that I’ve seen between Lattimore and Herschel and Bo is speed.

He had a lot of 7, 8, 9, 10, 15 yard runs, and he’s got a knack for finding the soft spots. And then, he is a load to tackle.

But I’d have to see him a little more before I’d want to compare him to Herschel and Bo because they’ve stood the test of time.

I don’t know how fast Herschel was. He was a little bit faster than Bo — about a foot on the hundred (yard dash) — and Bo ran a 4.2 (40-yard dash). Lattimore probably runs a 4.5 or 4.6, but Bo and Herschel could score from anywhere on the field.”

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