It’s already the fourth weekend of college football, but it took until now before I got a chance to watch Coastal Carolina and quarterback Grayson McCall. The Chanticleers hosted Sun Belt rival Georgia State on Thursday night, a good challenge for the fifth-year quarterback.
McCall entered the season generally projected to be a Day 3 or priority free agent level of prospect and featured on the Senior Bowl and Shrine Bowl watch lists. The 6-foot-3 gunslinger had two impressive seasons of aggressively throwing down the field, leading the nation in yards per attempt in 2021 and in the top 10 in 2022.
He’s working with a new head coach in Tim Beck and offensive philosophy, one that has more sight reads and shorter, quicker routes built into the scheme, with less designed runs and RPOs, though those do still happen. Based on his performance in the loss to the Panthers, it’s a work in progress for McCall to adjust.
It could also be that the lack of a solid offensive line against a pretty strong Georgia State front had something to do with that. McCall was under heavy pressure most of the night, especially in the first half. He didn’t have a lot of time to survey the field.
McCall did some things that really detract as a prospect. He frequently stared down his primary target and didn’t deviate from the pre-snap read. It led McCall to miss seeing better options elsewhere on the field.
He also took too many avoidable hits, both as a passer and a runner. McCall has gained some bulk for his final season, and he’s going to need it if he doesn’t protect himself better. Georgia State got several big, clean, legal hits on McCall that he didn’t need to take.
There were some definite positives. McCall came out in the second half and settled into a nice groove, aided by a more concerted effort to run the ball and prevent the defense from teeing off on him. The ball placement and catchable touch on McCall’s throws stood out. The touchdown strike that capped the first Chanticleer drive of the second half showed McCall at his best.
He is tough, no doubt about it. McCall can still throw strikes on the move, just not many down the field. Not rushing the play despite being under pressure, that’s a great NFL quality and McCall showed some of that vs. Georgia State.
That McCall has an NFL future. It was a reminder of the faded middle-round draft hype McCall carried around this time a year ago, surrounded by a better overall roster. Coastal Carolina’s new offense is more NFL-friendly, but that hasn’t necessarily been friendly to McCall’s NFL prospects.
