South Carolina fans and students gathered Monday for a rally in support of injured running back Marcus Lattimore, who suffered a serious knee injury during his team's win over Tennessee on Saturday.
Perhaps as many as 1,500 people showed up to voice their support for Lattimore, including teammates and head coach Steve Spurrier. Spurrier read a message from South Carolina governor Nikki Haley declaring the day Marcus Lattimore Day in the state. He also delivered a message to fans on Lattimore's behalf. "The message Marcus gave to me is, 'Tell 'em I'll be back.' So he'll be back," Spurrier said.
He even found time to get in an awkward jab at Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers:
And Spurrier just called Clemson "school that used to beat us a lot that doesn't beat us anymore." Says Dabo usually offers "garbage, BS."
— Travis Haney (@TravHaneyESPN) October 29, 2012
Monday also happens to be Lattimore's 21st birthday, and his teammates led the crowd in the singing of "Happy Birthday" at one point. Lattimore watched the entire rally on the internet, according to university president Harris Pastides.
Lattimore has 662 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns on 143 carries this season.