Film Don't Lie | Nick McCloud
“Does he play corner?”
I think that question was asked almost every day this offseason when there was talk about a potential graduate transfer for Notre Dame. The answer was always no until former NC State corner Nick McCloud popped onto the radar as a potential target.
It was obvious to everyone that corner was a need for Notre Dame. They have only two experienced ones on the roster in TaRiq Bracy and Shaun Crawford. Both are capable of playing valuable snaps, but at 5’10” and 5’9” respectively, they don’t exactly fit as defenders who can match up with some of the big opposing receivers who play along the boundary.
That’s why McCloud is the right on the field fit for Notre Dame. He’s big (6’1”) and has started 19 career games before the 2019 season. He’s an off the field fit with him being a captain at NC State as well. He can help provide leadership to a young group of corners working with new coach Mike Mickens.
Before an injury had him sit out last fall, he was a productive player in 2018, finishing with 10 passes defensed in 10 starts. He’s someone who can find the football, play against big receivers, and come up and tackle in the run game. At the bare minimum, he’ll compete to start and be a mentor to younger players. It’s impossible not to see it as a good pickup.
But how good is McCloud? Is he capable of being the kind of corner who can match up with the top receivers Notre Dame will face? We’ll see if he can, but I went back and watched every snap of his against Clemson in 2018 to find out how he fared against their great group of pass catchers.
To get straight to the point, McCloud did not have a great day. Neither did his team as a whole (they were blown out 41-7). There was clearly a talent gap between Clemson and NC State minus those great defensive linemen they had in 2017.
McCloud had the misfortune of matching up with Tee Higgins for most of the game and like many others who have covered him, it didn’t go well for McCloud.
Higgins was targeted five times and he caught all five for 84 yards and a touchdown. McCloud certainly didn’t back down from the challenge. He’s a long armed individual who plays physical in press coverage, but Higgins was able to box him out when McCloud was tight to him like on this comeback route.
The big play came early in the game when he was flat out beat on the post by Higgins. There really was no excuse for it with McCloud playing well off. Higgins just blew by him. He is faster than his 40 time would suggest, he ran a 4.54 at Clemson’s Pro Day this year, but is not a true burner by any means.
Speed is a definite question for McCloud. If he’s going up against elite speed, it’s going to be tough for him to match up.
After getting burned, McCloud seemed to play a bit careful in off coverage after. When asked to bail, he gave up a lot of cushion and that allowed some easy completions. He’s a much better player in press than when he’s lined up off. He’s not the smoothest transitioning, but his physicality is an asset.
Fortunately for Notre Dame, Higgins is off to the NFL, but it’s not like Clemson won’t have great options. Justyn Ross is returning and this game happened right as Ross was starting to break out.
He was targeted six times against McCloud and finished with four catches for 66 yards. Included in that were two 20+ yard gains with this one showing Ross defeating McCloud’s jam.
He might have lost that by alignment from the jump, but it’s tough to say if he felt he was going to have more safety help on an inside route and if the RPO delayed that help.
McCloud did have a pass breakup versus Ross with this great finish against a slant to force a field goal for Clemson.
I know he struggled in this game, but I loved his compete level on this kind of play. It was one of two slants he broke up on the day.
The numbers don’t lie. If you’re expecting a big lockdown corner who can shut down Clemson’s receivers, then you’re not being realistic. Higgins and Ross got the better of McCloud, but it’s also worth mentioning that this was two years ago. Things can change a lot in that time for college football players and maybe it will for McCloud after working with Mickens.
McCloud will help Notre Dame this season, whenever that season is, in some capacity. They absolutely needed someone who can provide his experience, compete level, and size to play the boundary.
He may not be Julian Love, but he is capable of being Nick Watkins for the Irish. Considering the circumstances, a player of that caliber joining the team at this point in time is a big development.