MARCUS LATTIMORE CLIMBED a stage in the autumn of 2019 and slipped on a black jacket. He fought the urge to rip it off and throw it away.
He looked out at his admirers assembled in Colonial Life Arena. He was now, officially, what he had long been in their hearts and minds: a member of the University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame.
He'd given an entire state permission to dream big dreams. Allowed legions of fans to believe they belonged with collegiate royalty. And for a spell, they did. In the three years Lattimore was a running back for the South Carolina Gamecocks, from 2010 to 2012, they faced Clemson, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia 10 times; they were winners all but once.