Marcellas Dial feels like 'my game is at its best right now'
Marcellas Dial knows there’s a difference, but it’s something he’s been preparing for since arriving at South Carolina three years ago.
Playing behind NFL defensive backs in Cam Smith and Darius Rush, Dial spent the last two seasons largely as the Gamecocks’ second or third cornerback depending on injuries.
This year–with both of his predecessors off to professional pastures–it’s Dial’s show as the team’s No. 1 cornerback. And it’s not something he’s taking lightly.
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“The biggest difference is probably all of the pressure on you,” Dial said. “Everyone is expecting you to do everything right and lead that group. Taking on that role hasn’t been hard. I’ve been ready for it and prepared myself for it.”
Dial arrived at South Carolina prior to the 2021 season, coming in from junior college, and quickly jumped into the fray in the defensive backfield.
South Carolina’s played Dial over 1,200 snaps over the last two seasons with 17 starts–10 of which came last season while Rush or Smith dealt with various injuries.
But there’s a difference between being a piece of the puzzle and being the cornerback tasked with covering the opponent’s best receiver that week.
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“That’s going to be the thing with Marcellas. Now we’re counting on you to be the guy. Can he mentally and physically do the things we need him to do to be the guy?” Torrian Gray said. “I think he accepts that challenge and wants that. That’s exciting to see.”
Because of how good Smith and Rush were, Dial saw plenty of targets over the last two seasons. Quarterbacks have targeted him 109 times over the last two seasons.
Teams have just 55 receptions (50.5 percent) for 710 yards while throwing three touchdowns against him. Quarterbacks have also thrown three interceptions when targeting Dial with 17 pass breakups. Quarterbacks have a 69 NFL rating when targeting his receiver.
Last season, he allowed 32 catches on 66 targets (48.5 percent) for 428 yards while quarterbacks had a 65.7 rating when targeting him.
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He showed what he could do last year in South Carolina’s win over Clemson, allowing just one catch on 12 targets with a pick. It’s that kind of play the Gamecocks will ask him to spread out over the course of an entire season.
And it also seems like Dial has started to show it in camp.
“Cell, he’s like a pro. He does everything right. I’m trying to learn from him with on-the-field stuff. He’s a great communicator. I’ve seen a big jump from him,” Nick Emmanwori said. “Cam and Rush left after last year and he stepped into that role like it was nothing. Like it was meant for him. He’s a pro. He does everything right. He’s one step ahead of the game. He’s going to be a great player for us this season.”
What’s next for him is to improve in the run game on the perimeter to pair with his already good coverage skills.
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“I feel like my game is at its best right now. I’m very confident in myself and what I can do. The biggest jump I made was being more dominant on the perimeter,” he said. “Just coming up and making tackles and plays on the perimeter while not just being a cover guy.”
Dial and the rest of the Gamecocks defense will have their hands full early drawing reigning ACC Player of the Year Drake Maye in the season opener.
Maye completed 66.2 percent of his passes last year and averaged 8.4 yards per attempt with 38 touchdowns to seven picks last season. It’ll be a good barometer early for Dial as the team’s go-to guy in the backfield.
“This week we’re trying to focus on ourselves and saving North Carolina for next week. We’ve seen some film. We know he has a lot of hype around his name,” Dial said. “He’s expected to go number one in the draft this year. I’m very excited to go against him and compete against him. I have high expectations for me.”
