In 2012, Marcus Lattimore suffered one of the most unfortunate knee injuries in college football history. The South Carolina running back never played again in college, but he rehabbed and managed a brief entry into the NFL before retiring in 2014 without ever playing a game. Lattimore does good work in South Carolina in his post-playing career and recently tried to sign on as a coach with the Gamecocks, though the NCAA didn’t allow it.
Marcus Lattimore says he had problems with how South Carolina handled injuries
Lattimore said some thought-provoking things on Tuesday. Let’s think about them.
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Lattimore spoke on Tuesday at a forum for the Knight Commission, an organization that tries to promote athlete welfare and an educational focus in college athletics. CBS' Jon Solomon took down some of Lattimore's testimony about his time at South Carolina, and there's a lot to go over. Here's what Lattimore said, via Solomon:
Marcus Lattimore says he and other players questioned some of the strength and conditioning program in college.
— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) May 10, 2016
Lattimore: 9 of 15 players he spoke with got injured in weight room. He wonders if some injuries could be prevented with better hires.
— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) May 10, 2016
This is a legitimate thing to think about, definitely. But from the outside, it’s impossible to know exactly what went on with the injured players Lattimore is citing, which makes it hard to assign blame or think up exactly the right solution.
Lattimore says he was told some strength and conditioning coaches were hired due to their connection to the head coach.
— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) May 10, 2016
Relationships are an overarching determining factor in how football staffs get filled out. Coaches travel from job to job, and head coaches bring coordinators and position coaches with them. That regularly extends to strength coaches, too, but just because two professionals have a relationship doesn’t mean one can’t reasonably and fairly hire the other.
Marcus Lattimore said after his injury he didn't feel comfortable "whatsoever" talking to a sports psychologist who was part of SC's team.
— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) May 10, 2016
Lattimore said he might have felt more comfortable if he spoke to a sports psychologist who was independent of Gamecocks football team.
— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) May 10, 2016
This is the most overtly worrisome thing here. Whether South Carolina knew it was doing it or not, there's real danger in using medical professionals whose motivations give pause to the players they're supposed to be serving.
Lattimore’s injury, in particular, was horribly traumatic. If he felt the sports psychologist who was meant to help him was pushing some kind of company line, that should be a concern. But there’s nuance here, too, and just because one player felt uncomfortable with one staff person doesn’t invalidate that staffer’s work.
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