Illinois will line up McCoy at the 3-technique, and he has qualities that make him a good fit. The first thing I notice on film is his instincts, a vastly underrated trait for a defensive lineman. McCoy diagnoses plays after controlling his opponent and finds the football. He can react on the move against the pass or the run. He anticipates rather than guessing. Of course, the HUDL film is a highlight reel, so we are only seeing his good plays. But he seems to always be in the right place at the right time.
Lovie Smith likes nimble athletes along the defensive line, and McCoy can move. His foot speed really stands out on his film. He recently ran a 4.92 forty at the Nike Opening Regional, and we see him chase down ball carriers on his film. He has excellent outside speed that should translate into blowing up plays from the backside once he's coached up.
Austin Clark will need to work with him on his get-off. You want the D-linemen making low and sudden movement, something McCoy is cable of athletically, but he gets a bit too high initially on occasion, which is common with high school linemen. He'll have to improve at playing with leverage, but once he beats his man he does a good job playing through traffic and making plays.
McCoy's aggressiveness is a big plus. He's intense, a face-up wrap tackler, and is relentless chasing the football. McCoy delivers some big blows on this film when attacking ball carriers. He turns speed to power and makes big hits. His initial contact isn't quite as aggressive, however, and we see him hand wrestling with offensive linemen on a few plays. That should improve after some time in the strength program, along with more power to hold his ground.
Physically, McCoy isn't imposing for a Big Ten recruit at around 260 pounds, but he has long arms and the frame to eventually play in the 290 range. Overall, Illinois is getting a nice player who we see as a mid 3-star prospect.
Lovie Smith likes nimble athletes along the defensive line, and McCoy can move. His foot speed really stands out on his film. He recently ran a 4.92 forty at the Nike Opening Regional, and we see him chase down ball carriers on his film. He has excellent outside speed that should translate into blowing up plays from the backside once he's coached up.
Austin Clark will need to work with him on his get-off. You want the D-linemen making low and sudden movement, something McCoy is cable of athletically, but he gets a bit too high initially on occasion, which is common with high school linemen. He'll have to improve at playing with leverage, but once he beats his man he does a good job playing through traffic and making plays.
McCoy's aggressiveness is a big plus. He's intense, a face-up wrap tackler, and is relentless chasing the football. McCoy delivers some big blows on this film when attacking ball carriers. He turns speed to power and makes big hits. His initial contact isn't quite as aggressive, however, and we see him hand wrestling with offensive linemen on a few plays. That should improve after some time in the strength program, along with more power to hold his ground.
Physically, McCoy isn't imposing for a Big Ten recruit at around 260 pounds, but he has long arms and the frame to eventually play in the 290 range. Overall, Illinois is getting a nice player who we see as a mid 3-star prospect.
