After two years on the USC football team, focusing only on his job was no longer enough for safety Marvell Tell III.
Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast’s system does not allow for isolation. Coverage is constantly shifting, and players need to be aware of the bigger picture and communicate consistently on who is covering which players or zones. So Tell adapted last season.
“He’s become, I’ve heard him say it a bunch, a true student of the game,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “He believes in it now. And he really took that up last year and has really progressed it even more this year.