Plenty of optimism from USC at Media Day Sunday (AUDIO)

[FeatheredCock]

With a couple of practices in the books, USC held its official preseason Media Day Sunday afternoon at Williams-Brice Stadium. The players put on their uniforms to pose for team pictures and then they joined Steve Spurrier and the coaches to hobnob with the media.

We spent out time taking in Steve Spurrier, running back Marcus Lattimore and quarterback Conor Shaw. At the bottom of this story you can listen to what they had to say.

Hopefully you followed along to our comments via the SportsTalk Twitter feed, but if not, here is a quick recap of some of the highlights from what he heard and saw Sunday:

• It appears freshman defensive back Rico McWilliams suffered a serious knee injury in practice. Spurrier said it happened when McWilliams was running down the field and got tangled up with a receiver. It sounds like the injury will require surgery and cost McWilliams the season.
  
• McWilliams hasn’t been around long enough for fans or media to get to know very well, but running back Marcus Lattimore said he is dedicating his season to him. Lattimore said Williams was a very hard worker and was respectful to him and his teammates from the time he stepped foot on campus. Lattimore called him a future leader of the program. ( note: Marucs Lattimore is a class act.)
  
• Spurrier said running Lattimore and Shon Carson both appear to be back to full strength following knee injuries that cut their 2011 seasons short. Spurrier said Lattimore told him he can make all of the cuts and moves he could make prior to the injury.
  
• Lattimore said he will not shy away from contact and plans to run the same way he always has. He said he doesn’t expect to have to carry the ball more than 30 times in a game because of the solid depth behind him.
  
• Spurrier said the receivers are catching more passes than in years past. He said the receivers know how to run their routes and the quarterbacks are doing a good job getting them the ball.
  
• Connor Shaw said he has a lot of confidence since this is his third fall camp. He has embraced the leadership role. A lot of players said the off-season workouts were better than ever in large part because of Shaw’s role.
  
• Shaw said he has a lot to prove in the passing game. He said he will continue to work hard to show he is more than just a runner.
  
• Shaw said he worked on getting stronger to help him take the wear and tear of carrying the ball ten to 15 times per game.
  
• Shaw said the team is embracing the preseason hype, but they are staying level headed because the hype in the preseason means nothing.
  

AUDIO:

Download

0:00

Steve Spurrier at USC Media Day [23:30]

AUDIO:

Download

0:00

Marcus Lattimore USC Media Day [17:13]

AUDIO:

Download

0:00

Connor Shaw USC Media Day [2:30]

link: http://sportstalkgolive.com/index.php/2012/08/05/plenty-of-optimism-from-usc-at-media-day-sunday-audio/

 

[Alan]

It's always good to be optimistic