Demario McCall Kept Head High, Helped Where He Could During Redshirt Year

As a true freshman in 2016, Demario McCall was a big play waiting to happen. He received snaps mostly during the end of blowouts, and was tasked with running headlong into the line of scrimmage in order to move the clock. When given an opportunity to expand his line of scrimmage horizons, however, he was one of the Buckeyes’ most explosive playmakers.

McCall played in six games as a true freshman, and when given more than a couple of cursory carries, he was productive. He had total offense games of 100 yards, 85 yards, 73 yards, and 101 yards in little more than a quarter of work in each of those games. Because of his performance as a freshman, much was expected of him as a sophomore in 2017.

Unfortunately, McCall dealt with injuries for much of the season, and yet was still productive in the one game where he touched the ball more than a few times. Against Rutgers, he had 12 touches for 138 yards, with two touchdowns. After the game, Urban Meyer said that McCall still wasn’t healthy. He was essentially shut down one week later in order to preserve his redshirt.

It was a frustrating season for McCall, who is now making the transition from running back to H-back.

“The season was pretty difficult for me, but one thing about me is that I kept my head high,” he said recently. “And the people who kept my head high for me and helped me keep my head high was my brothers on this team and my father and my mom. My family. I give a shout out to them for doing that for me.”

McCall had expectations for himself as a sophomore, but injuries never allowed those expectations to get off the ground. Reliance on his family kept him going, however.

“I don’t think there was a day that went by that I didn’t talk to my father,” he said. “He calls to check on me to see how I’m doing physically and how I’m doing mentally. That’s what he asks all the time, and I tell him how I’m doing mentally and I tell him how my body is feeling physically.”

McCall is healthy now and good to go for winter workouts. This is also where he will continue his progression as an H-back. He is far from the first player to make the transition from running back to receiver. Jordan Hall did it a bit when Urban Meyer first arrived. Dontre Wilson did it. Curtis Samuel perfected it. Parris Campbell was a good fit there last season and will be again in 2018.

Campbell’s transition was easier than most because he has only ever played receiver at Ohio State, and wasn’t moved to H-back until his fourth year. His experience is still one that can provide McCall with some positive insights

“Yeah, I’ve talked to him,” Campbell said. “There was a point in time where he was kind of down and out when he realized that he wasn’t going to be a part of the rotation. He was kind of down. I just told him that when there’s stuff like this, you’ve just got to keep working, which he’s always done. There really wasn’t a whole lot of talking that really needed to be done because of the kind of worker he is and the kind of player he is.”

In addition to the move to H-back later in the season, McCall also spent plenty of time on the scout team. Even though he wasn’t on the field, he was having a good time helping the Buckeyes get better on defense.

“I had a ball on scout team this year,” he said. “The one thing I did is I got my defense better. I was balling on scout team. You’re just competing. The one thing I try to do is find the holes that I can and try to use my speed to get to the edge. I just try to do more than what the opponent can do. Just be myself, basically.”

McCall’s days as a scout-team running back are over now, however. The Buckeyes have plenty of tailbacks for that job this coming season. And anyway, Demario McCall is now an H-back. Or at least he will be by the time September rolls around.

“So in this offseason that’s one thing I’ve got to do is hone my receiver skills because all my life I’ve been a tailback,” he said. “Switching over to H-back has been tough for me. I’m still learning a little bit, the route running and ball skills.”

Based on everything he has shown in his first two seasons — even in its limited state — McCall has proven that when he has the football, very good things happen. Now he will be playing a position at Ohio State that lends itself to big plays. He will be the only H-back on the roster with experience running between the tackles, but it will be the pass catching that really determines how valuable he can be in 2018.

And his teammates have complete confidence in him to get the job done.

“Demario, he’s an extraordinary athlete. When he was playing, every time he touched the ball I think he scored,” Campbell said. “As a receiver, he has a lot of developing to do, but he knows that. He’s not one to complain, so there’s not a whole lot of talking to do with him just because he’s a grinder and he knows how to work. He knows that he’s going to get better over this period of time.”

“It’s really going to be about ownership on his part,” said receiver Terry McLaurin. “You can give somebody the tools, but they have to use them. And the way he’s bounced back from a little bit of disappointment, I have no doubt that he’s going to come back hungrier and really take off.”