Marcus Lattimore's pro day wasn't just a normal pro day. It was a celebration.
The South Carolina running back was able to work out Wednesday, less than six months after he had surgery to repair a devastating anterior cruciate, lateral collateral and posterior cruciate ligament injury. All 32 NFL teams were in attendance. They burst out in applause after Lattimore was done, according to USA Today's Robert Klemko.
"It was crazy," Lattimore said. "I did not expect that at all. Pretty much every scout came up to me and said that was amazing and inspiring."
Lattimore caught passes and did some agility drills, but he still has a long way to go before he's fully healthy. Still, there is some optimism he could play in 2013. Lattimore told The State he had "no doubt" that he will play in the first half of the 2013, which jibes with what he told NFL.com's Jeff Darlington last month.
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said Lattimore "may have jumped into the first round" with his performance Wednesday. We wouldn't go that far, but there's no question that Lattimore would have been this draft class' top running back before his injury. Teams might be willing to take a risk on Lattimore's injury because of that immense talent, like the Buffalo Bills once did with Willis McGahee, selecting him 23rd overall in the 2003 NFL Draft.
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Don't be too surprised if Lattimore goes higher than draftniks project. Just like McGahee.
"I want to be an inspiration," Lattimore said. "To let people know that with hard work, and when you trust in God, you can come back from anything and do anything."
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.