SANTA CLARA -- Rookie running back Marcus Lattimore passed the eye test during his first practice with the 49ers on Thursday.
“He looks good,” fellow 49ers rookie Eric Reid said on Friday. “He looks really good in pads. He’s bigger than I thought he’d be in pads.”
Reid and Lattimore (5-foot-11, 221 pounds) were college rivals in the SEC. Reid was part of the LSU defense that held Lattimore, a star at South Carolina, to just 35 yards and a touchdown on 13 rushing attempts last season.
“It was a big game,” Reid said. “He was one of the better backs in college.”
Two weeks later, Lattimore sustained a grisly knee injury that ended his season and dropped him to a fourth-round pick in the NFL draft. This week, he was cleared to practice for a 21-day window. The 49ers plan to place him on injured reserve in three weeks.
“I can only imagine being out with that type of injury how anxious he is to get back,” Reid said. “I’m really happy for him.”
