He thought it was a good idea at first. But the more he thought about it, the more he doubted himself.
Who did he think he was, anyway? A redshirt freshman walking into the coach's office and asking to switch positions?
But that's exactly what he did.
Three days into spring practice, McGee built up enough courage to petition JMU football coach Mickey Matthews for a spot on defense. A running back all his life, McGee realized the only way he would see the field on Saturdays would be as a cornerback.
"I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it," McGee said Friday.
McGee didn't enter Matthews' office unprepared. He scribbled five questions on a piece of paper; the most important one addressed a possible move back to offense if things didn't work out at cornerback.
"He said yes," McGee said. "That's what I was looking for. But he told me once I made the move, I might not want to go back."
McGee has flourished at cornerback — a glaring weakness last year for the Dukes, who finished 7-4 and missed the playoffs. His surprising ascent on defense has earned him a starting nod; Matthews placed McGee atop the depth chart at one cornerback spot for next Saturday's season opener against Bloomsburg.
On offense, McGee was assured of nothing heading into spring practice, even though he was the offensive scout team Player of the Year last season. Seniors Alvin Banks and Maurice Fenner were locks, but McGee also sat behind junior college transfer Eugene Holloman, junior Antoinne Bolton and redshirt freshman Reggie Hicks.
"When he realized how many running backs we had and all the corners we were losing," Matthews said, "he knew he had a better chance to play at corner."
McGee couldn't stand the idea of another year on the sidelines.
"If I'm going to make the move," he figured, "I'm not going to sit the bench."
McGee said the transition was difficult, only because of the deep playbook he was forced to memorize. Athletically, there was little drop-off.
It has been awhile since he has been timed in the 40-yard dash, but McGee said he consistently ran in the 4.3- to 4.4-second range as a senior at Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach.
"He's the fastest kid on the team," Matthews said. "I don't know who's faster."
McGee used that speed to rush for more than 1,300 yards in each of his final two seasons at Ocean Lakes. He was an All-Group AAA selection as a senior.
McGee's initiation at cornerback began during JMU's spring game, where he stole the show with lightning-quick closing speed and ferocious tackling. Matthews said he knew immediately that McGee could become one of the team's best cornerbacks — even before the spring game.
"After two or three practices, you could tell," he said. "When you move kids, if it doesn't pay big dividends really quick, it probably won't work."
Speed and toughness were not a problem, so McGee concentrated on improving his technique. The change is dramatic, Matthews said, but McGee sometimes catches himself backpedalling too long, especially against slower receivers.
That won't work in practice, let alone on Saturday afternoon.
"I don't want to get embarrassed in front of 20,000 people," he said.
Matthews, a defensive assistant for 20 years before coming to JMU, has been famous for taking offensively gifted players and sneaking them onto the other side of the ball. Defensive lineman Chuck Suppon and defensive end Kevin Winston were both quarterbacks in high school, and Matthews moved redshirt J.D. Skolnitsky from tight end to defensive end.
McGee got through spring practice on pure adrenaline. In the nearly four months between the spring game and the start of preseason practice, he began to rethink the move to defense.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, he thought, to sit behind Banks and Fenner for another year. And when they're gone, maybe he could work his way up and get some playing time as a redshirt sophomore.
"At running back, I had this hunger and drive," he said. "Even though I had these guys in front of me, I knew my time would come. Then, at corner, I lost that drive and motivation."
He found it rather quickly.
"I'm applying what I used to apply at running back," he said. "Now that it's back, everything is good."
* Contact Ryan Sonner at rsonner@nvdaily.com
Scotty McGee
Year: Redshirt freshman
Position: Cornerback
Height/Weight: 5-9 170
High school: Ocean Lakes (Virginia Beach)
Career highlight: 2005 Offensive scout team Player of the Year.
