Initially, Raekwon McMillan wasn't sure if he would be able to handle his new role at Ohio State.
That's not to say he wasn't physically ready by any means, with all the recruiting laurels and expectations that come with being a five-star recruit from the south. The praise and hype surrounding a big-time recruit typically translates to a starting spot on the field from Day One, but McMillan found himself in a dogfight with senior Curtis Grant — a guy doing everything in his power to keep his spot in the lineup.
The two were friends and both saw time, but by season's end, Grant's on-field leadership qualities meant he got the nod over McMillan during the team's run at the first ever College Football Playoff National Championship.
"I was kind of uncomfortable last year, not being a starter," McMillan said Thursday. "Starting your whole career and then coming to college and not being in the starting lineup, it made me work harder in practice. So I'm thankful for it."
The assumptions of greatness for McMillan were surely merited — at a solid 6-foot-2 and 240 pounds, he looks the part when you think of stud linebackers at a place like Ohio State. But he had to take a backseat to Grant when it mattered most on the field. That's what happens when you're behind a capable senior.
Now, however, it's all on McMillan. Whether he likes it or not.
"We need that middle linebacker to be — I mean, he’s got some big shoes to fill," co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Luke Fickell said. "He played a bit last year, but that’s a true leadership role. If you’re not strong down the middle, you don’t have a chance to be any good in any defense you’ve got."
McMillan admits he wasn't ready to prepare the way he needed to in order to get on the field a year ago, but that's now all in the rearview mirror and he's fully aware of the task in front of him.
"It's been a long process, but a great process for me," McMillan said. "Coming in, being highly recruited, all that's in the past but it's high expectations now that I'm in the starting lineup so I gotta make sure everything's good."
His teammates joke and prod at him often, dubbing him "The Chosen One" as a result of his five-star status and what they heard about him from the press. That, though, is just a motivational tactic because they can see plain as day how sky-high his ceiling is as a collegiate linebacker.
"The saying with him is he just has to keep everything in perspective, keep all those ducks in a row and take it one step at a time," senior Joshua Perry said. "Not try to do too much. I think that we're doing a pretty good job of just letting him know that. Keep reminding him. He's making a big push and we do really need him to be a great player and a great leader because of what Curtis did last year."
At a place fresh off its eighth national title, Ohio State's coaching staff is yearning to find new ways to keep their players uncomfortable so that dreaded feeling of complacency doesn't seep through the cracks.
For McMillan, it's been that way since the beginning and is now more important than ever.
"Me and Coach Fickell had a conversation about me not being comfortable. Being uncomfortable breeds growth," McMillan said. "So if I'm around here comfortable, I won't become a better leader. I have to be uncomfortable in my position even though I'm the leader and growing as a leader."
