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USC RB MarShawn Lloyd excited to join forces with Caleb Williams at last

March 29, 2023

LOS ANGELES — From little league through battles at rival high schools Gonzaga and DeMatha, quarterback Caleb Williams and running back MarShawn Lloyd were always on opposite sides. But when they met in the handshake line, they always talked about one day teaming up.

So when Lloyd entered the transfer portal in January, Williams was quick to text his old friend with a recruiting pitch to USC. The message: “Come here now, let’s win a national championship and then let’s go to the league.”

“I was like, ‘Let’s go,’” Lloyd said. “I’m all for it.”

Lloyd spent three years at South Carolina before transferring to USC. He missed his freshman season with a torn ACL, then was worked into action the next year.

As a redshirt sophomore, he led the Gamecocks in rushing with 573 yards and nine touchdowns on 111 carries while playing in nine games. He also averaged 9.8 yards per reception while making 18 catches.

There was no shortage of options for Lloyd’s services when he entered the transfer portal following the season. Tennessee was the first to reach out, soon followed by Michigan State and Michigan.

But as he studied USC’s offense, he found the perceptions of the Trojans running a pass-heavy scheme to be unfounded.

“If you look at the numbers, the running back is getting the ball like 20 carries a game,” Lloyd said. “I just like the way that they execute at all levels as far as passing the ball, O-line blocking. I just felt like it would be a great fit.”

Since getting to USC, that’s been Lloyd’s main goal: To fit, like many of the transfers who found their place in the locker room a year ago.

He’s learning the offense from returning backs Austin Jones and Darwin Barlow, while simultaneously looking to teach freshmen A’Marion Peterson and Quinten Joyner the ins and outs of being a college athlete. He prefers to do so by example but understands that a word of wisdom is helpful for underclassmen.

And Lloyd knows he has to keep focused on the same prize that his teammates have been working toward.

“We all want to go to the league one day, obviously, but we all want to win a national championship,” Lloyd said. “They were so close last year – we, now – we were so close last year so I just feel like with these little missing pieces, we can be a really good team.”

He joins a crowded running back room. In addition to Jones – who started in the injured Travis Dye’s place last season – and Barlow, talented sophomore Raleek Brown returns from last year’s team.

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Brown is being asked to wear many hats for the Trojans, potentially lining up at receiver and returning kickoffs or punts. The addition of someone like Lloyd allows USC to be more creative in its usage of Brown.

“Having five guys back there that we’re pretty excited about, it’s allowed us to move Raleek around,” head coach Lincoln Riley said. “That room has been a real bright spot here in camp.”

But Lloyd has versatile skills, too, which is why Williams has long dreamed of pairing with him and is already scheming what they will do next season.

“He has good vision, he catches the ball well out of the backfield. We might flex him out,” Williams said. “He’ll get the ball in his hands and he’ll do his thing. He’s been doing the same thing since eighth grade.”

Orange County Register

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USC RB MarShawn Lloyd excited to join forces with Caleb Williams at last

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