Grayson McCall, QB Coastal Carolina: Offseason 2023 NFL Draft Profile
McCall was a two-star recruit from Porter Ridge High School in Indian Trail, N.C. in the class of 2019
Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall has come a long way from his days as a two-star recruit. The North Carolina native is the reigning two-time Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and will end his college football career as one of the conference’s most decorated players of all-time. Let’s see how McCall’s accomplishments and skills project to the 2023 NFL Draft.
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Grayson McCall, QB Coastal Carolina: 2023 NFL Draft Profile
Classification: Redshirt junior quarterback from Indian Trail, N.C.
Background: McCall was a two-star recruit from Porter Ridge High School in Indian Trail, N.C. in the class of 2019. He was the No. 2,889 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 2,593 (three-star) for On3.com. McCall was an unranked two-star recruit for Rivals. He did not receive a star rating or a grade out of 100 from ESPN. In high school, McCall completed 50% of his pass attempts for over 3,863 yards and 34 touchdowns. He also rushed for 3,003 yards and 41 touchdowns. As a senior, McCall threw for 1,337 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 1,460 yards and 21 touchdowns. In 2017, he passed for 1,414 yards and 13 touchdowns while also rushing for 907 yards and 12 touchdowns. McCall also played basketball at Porter Ridge. He was voted a team captain for Coastal Carolina for the 2022 season.
2021 Production: 11 games, 241 attempts, 176 completions, 2,873 yards, 27 touchdowns, 3 interceptions + 93 carries, 290 yards, 4 touchdowns
2020 Production: 11 games, 250 attempts, 172 completions, 2,488 yards, 26 touchdowns, 3 interceptions + 111 carries, 569 yards, 7 touchdowns
2019 Production: 2 games, 4 attempts, 4 completions, 25 yards, 1 touchdown (Redshirt Year)
Injuries & Off-Field: Missed one game with an upper body injury (2020), missed two games with an injury (2021)
Awards: 2020 First-Team All-Sun Belt, 2020 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, 2020 Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year, 2020 FWAA Most Inspirational Freshman, 2020 FWAA Freshman All-American, 2021 First-Team All-Sun Belt, 2021 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, 2021 Blanchard-Rogers Trophy, 2021-22 Cure Bowl MVP
Pros: Rarely had passes batted down at the line of scrimmage, offense involved few screens, time to throw was within NFL expectations, mobility to threaten defenses with his legs, feet remain active in the pocket, comfortable throwing on the run, puts adequate velocity on short to intermediate throws, puts touch on the ball at all levels, examples of throwing with anticipation, high level accuracy and ball placement on short to intermediate throws, room to add more muscle to his frame, feels when the pocket is collapsing and moves to counter, connected on a 45-yard touchdown against Texas State
Cons: Significantly fewer downfield attempts than other quarterbacks studied, fumbled seven times in 2020 and 11 times in 2021, little to no experience under center, telegraphed throws, limited instances of reading the whole field, plenty of one-read plays, not an elite runner, throwing motion brings his elbow up high, college offense won’t translate to the NFL (big learning curve), his pre- and post-snap processing will be challenged at the next level, suspect arm strength and accuracy on deep passes
Overview: McCall is unofficially listed at 6'3", 215 lbs. He displays excellent accuracy and ball placement on short to intermediate throws. McCall doesn’t have elite speed or burst, but he’s showcased mobility and upside as a runner. His release height makes it unlikely defenders knock down his passes at the line of scrimmage. McCall shows the velocity to drive the football into small windows at the short and intermediate levels but also knows when and how to apply touch to his throws. Unfortunately, Coastal Carolina’s RPO, one-read offense won’t translate to the NFL and hasn’t prepared McCall for life in the pros. While we don’t know that he’s incapable of processing large amounts of pre- and post-snap information, those abilities weren’t on display at Coastal. The Chanticleers also haven’t given McCall many opportunities to show off or improve his downfield accuracy.
Overall, McCall is an efficient and productive quarterback, but he’s developed as a scheme-specific player in an offense that doesn’t share many tasks or traits with NFL schemes. There are a lot of skills NFL quarterbacks need that McCall hasn’t shown consistently because Coastal Carolina’s offense doesn’t require them. With all of these question marks, McCall’s current ceiling is the middle of Day 3.
Role & Scheme Fit: RPO-heavy scheme
Round Projection: Mid Fifth to Early Sixth
Player Comparison: N/A
Submitted: 08-03-22