O'Donnell Fortune and Marcellas Dial ready to take over as leaders in secondary
College football teams are forced to replace players with fresh talent every year. In South Carolina’s case, it is having to fill major holes left at defensive back.
After leading the SEC in takeaways last year, the Gamecocks lost Cam Smith and Darius Rush to the NFL. Both were not only vital to the team’s success but also proved to be valuable as leaders.
Fortunately for the Gamecocks, they won’t have to look too far to find their new leaders on the outside. Marcellas Dial and O’Donnell Fortune return as experienced players in the secondary.
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“Me and Cell, we’ve got a bigger role now. We have the younger guys coming in, looking up to us. They’re looking at us, they’re watching us, they’ve seen what we’re doing. So it’s big for us to lead them into the right decision, the right way, and keep them on the same page,” Fortune said.
Dial and Fortune, not to mention David Spaulding as well, will be leading a more youthful group. Nick Emmanwori and DQ Smith, who were thrusted into larger roles as freshman last year, will look to take the next step in their development. DeAngelo Gibbs and Vicari Swain could also be new names to watch competing for reps this season.
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During their time playing with Smith, Rush and others, Dial and Fortune picked up on a lot of things that they could instill in this year’s group.
“Just how Darius Rush comes to practice every day. He comes with that focus mentality, locked in every play, know what’s coming before the play comes together,” Fortune said. “With Cam, I just love how his mentality is on the field. He’s going to get everything done. He knows what he’s doing and he’s going to play dirty, he’s going to play raw.”
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It’s not just being leaders that the two will be concerned about. After all, they did come back with the intention of building their draft stock.
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Dial finished third amongst Gamecock defensive backs with 45 tackles and intercepted three passes. Fortune, meanwhile, only made two starts last year but had 16 tackles and two interceptions.
They’ve done enough to gain the respect of their counterparts on the offensive side of the ball, most notably from Juice Wells.
“Marcellas and OD man, they’ve been staying on business for sure,” Wells said. “They make me a better receiver, I make them a better corner. Those are the guys I do respect in the SEC, but anybody else, nah.”
