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The first day heralded quarterback Malcolm Long stepped on South Carolina State’s campus wasn’t pretty.
The South Carolina Mr. Football recipient came to school after his senior year at Gaffney High School out of shape and, at around 270 pounds, way over weight. One of the men that Long repeatedly credited with helping him get back in shape -- SCSU strength and conditioning coach Thomas Stallworth -- is now gone.
Stallworth confirmed that he left his post at SCSU Wednesday to take the same position with Grambling State University.
“I wanted to further my career,” Stallworth said. “I had been at S.C. State for four years, and I just wanted to go to another good program.”
Stallworth, who played college football at Tennessee, said leaving was tough because he didn’t get to tell all of the players he had been working with in the weight room goodbye.
“Really, unfortunately, it is a double-edged sword,” he said. “By me leaving first session...there weren’t that many guys there for me to see face-to-face. I told all my guys there before I left them, to a man, I wanted to shake their hands and give them a big hug.
“They have grown in me, and I have grown in them,” he continued. “In some ways, it was a lot easier because there weren’t that many guys, but at the same time I hate that I wasn’t able to see all of them.”
Stallworth said that he would always have Orangeburg in his heart.
“My time in Orangeburg has been a wonderful experience,” he said. “I joke with some of the coaches that I’m moving on, but I can never forget it. This is where my family started. I got that because of Orangeburg so it’s not like the school or city will ever be far from my heart at this point.”
South Carolina State head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough said that a replacement for Stallworth could come in the very near future.
“(Stallworth) did a nice job,” he said. “We will replace him. We will be okay. We might be better.”
T&D Sports Editor Brian Linder can be reached by phone at 803-533-5553 or via e-mail at blinder@timesanddemocrat.com. Check out his blog, Welcome to Linderland, at www.thetandd.com.