Odom says Watson likely won't return to basketball team

COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina coach Dave Odom says he hasn&#39;t heard from Derek Watson and doubts the junior will rejoin the basketball team. <br> <br> Watson, the Gamecocks&#39; star running back, played with the basketball team for two weeks before the Outback Bowl. <br> <br> At the time, football coach Lou Holtz said Watson had approached him for permission to play basketball, saying he wanted to be in an organized program during the off-season. <br> <br> Watson dressed for two games in December, and garnered some of the biggest cheers when he played for two minutes and scored a point against Providence on Dec. 3. <br> <br> Odom expected Watson to rejoin the team this month, but the coach said Tuesday he hasn&#39;t heard from the former ``Mr. Basketball&#39;&#39; from Palmetto High School. <br> <br> ``I&#39;m assuming that he took some personal time, like all the football players did after the long season,&#39;&#39; Odom said. ``I would expect we&#39;ll learn more about Derek&#39;s situation when school begins next week.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Watson&#39;s brushes with trouble since he came to Columbia included an off-season incident last year when he punched a girl in the arm. He pleaded guilty and was accepted into a program for first-time offenders.