Why some South Carolina players are wearing 'Football Guy' shirts
Typically when players roll into the media room for interviews, they’re typically wearing a shirt emblazoned with the South Carolina logo or a shirt with one of the sayings Shane Beamer adopted for the team after arriving.
But Debo Williams brought something in new Wednesday afternoon for his meeting with the media.
The Gamecocks’ third-year linebacker rocked a black shirt with a script “Football Guy” written on the front with garnet lettering. And it took him a lot to even have the chance to wear it.
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“There are 120 guys on the team and I want to say about 25 of us got that from making every practice, every workout. You didn’t fail anything during the workouts or in our timed runs and you didn’t fail anything,” Williams said.
“You got through all the weighted stuff we were doing–bench press or anything we’re doing–and hit your max goals. I think literally 20 to 25 guys got it so I wear it proudly. I put in a lot of work to get it.”
That’s a lot of achievements over the course of the summer, and it’s no secret then why Williams got the shirt and is eager to wear it.
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He even mentioned there were only a few guys in the linebacker room who got it, mentioning Stone Blanton, Colin Bryant and Pup Howard by name.
But with about 120 players on the team, for less than a quarter of the players to get it is a big accomplishment.
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“It’s some real dogs,” Williams said. “It takes a lot.”
Williams is trying to take that strong offseason now to the field where he’s in the competition to start at linebacker.
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The Gamecocks lose two starters–Brad Johnson and Sherrod Greene–but get Mo Kaba back off of injury. They also return guys like Williams and Blanton while enrolling a four-star prospect in Howard.
That’s still a competition with the second and final scrimmage of the preseason looming. And Williams feels prepared at either spot in Clayton White’s defense.
“With our defense at MIKE and WIL, it’s interchangeable once you get the basics down. If you’re playing MIKE you should be able to know WIL. Once you perfect your first position it’s the same thing,” Williams said. “Honestly, once you perfect it, it’s easy to get both.”
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The Gamecocks practice Thursday and Friday to round out the week before Saturday night’s scrimmage. The first few periods of Thursday’s practice will be open to the media.
