LEXINGTON, S.C. — Brad Lawing's first stint at South Carolina was in 1989 when he followed Sparky Woods from Appalachian State to Columbia.
One of the most respected defensive line coaches in the country, Lawing touched the lives of numerous players and coaches during his career which also took him to current Power 5 programs Michigan State, North Carolina, Florida and Florida State.
But Lawing is long associated with the South Carolina program as he had two stops in Columbia. Lawing was in Gamecock colors from 1989 to 1998 and again from 2006 to 2012.
One of the players he coached at South Carolina was Travian Robertson who came to Columbia from Laurinburg, North Carolina. Earlier this year, Robertson was named the Gamecocks' defensive line coach and he will no doubt try to impact his players in the way Lawing impacted him.
On Friday, a memorial service for Lawing was held at Lexington High School and Robertson was one of the speakers. Travian says Lawing was all-business between the lines but off the field, he was a caring coach who fancied himself a comedian with a wide array of jokes and stories that were always at the ready.
Lawing passed away last week at the age of 65 but his legacy as a coach and father figure will continue on in his former players like Travian.