Why did Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall tweet that he will ‘p*** teal’?
The Golf Digest headline called it the “… greatest quote in the history of organized sport.”
It was a line buried at the bottom of a Dec. 21, 2021 Twitter post from Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall. The message began with a tone that could leave a Chanticleer fan wondering if one of the nation’s premier passers was indeed moving on.
“What an unbelievable two years it has been for this football program and university. I am so incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity to be apart (sic) of such a historic run in Coastal football history,” the Tweet stated.
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There was good reason to wonder if the two-time Sun Belt Conference player of the Year would be moving on. McCall, now a redshirt junior, helped lead Coastal to back-to-back 11-win seasons. He set the FBS single-season record with a 207.6 passing efficiency rating, beating the previous marks set by former Alabama and current New England Patriots starting quarterback Mac Jones (203.1 in 2020) and Heisman winner Joe Burrow (202.0 in LSU’s National Championship season of 2019), now the starter for the Cincinnati Bengals.
Relaxed transfer NCAA rules meant McCall could have switched to another school, maybe one from one of the Power Five conferences, and played immediately.
Others wondered if, after going 22-2 and passing for 5,386 yards, 352 completions on 495 attempts with six interceptions, in his two seasons as the Chants’ starter, McCall would jump into the NFL Draft.
“There was a lot of speculation and things like that,” McCall said. “It’s obviously something that I was thinking about just because of how much success we were having,” McCall said.
He also wondered if his coaches would still be around. After going 5-7 in his first season as the official head coach, he was interim head coach in 2017 when then-coach Joe Moglia was on medical leave, Jamey Chadwell’s Chanticleers went 11-1 in 2020 and 11-2 last season, and rumors swirled that the coach was on the short list for a handful of openings at Power Five schools.
“Once I talked to Coach Chadwell and (quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator Willy) Korn, and found out that they were staying, I knew that I also wanted to stay here and finish what I started here,” McCall said.
The 2022 preseason Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year said his goal in coming to Coastal Carolina was to help turn the program around and become a championship team, and he’s done that. The Chants were Sun Belt Co-Champions in 2020, and defeated Northern Illinois in the 2021 Cure Bowl for the program’s first-ever bowl win.
“With much speculation going on all across the country, I felt like you guys should be the first to hear the truth from me,” the Tweet continued. “I am coming back to play another year of college football, and it will be in Conway, South Carolina.”
Then came “The Quote”:
“When I say I p*** teal, I mean it. One last ride baby! Let’s do it! Chants forever.”
McCall said he didn’t really expect that line to become as big as it has.
“To be honest with you, at first I didn’t really think it would take off. I knew that some people would like it, some people would hate it, but overall, everyone seemed to like it, and the fans are loving it, so I couldn’t have asked for anything more,” McCall said.
Media outlets nationwide picked up on the announcement, including several non-sports sites. The Tweet brought reactions from college football heavyweights as well, getting response and or retweets from the likes of ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit and Sports Illustrated columnist Pat Forde.
The quote helped McCall garner a Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deal with Myrtle Beach area clothing company Native Sons, which has created a line of shirts, hoodies and tank tops and more that feature the words “The Real McCall,” which is name of the Heisman Trophy campaign created for the O’Brien, Manning and Unitas awards nominee.
Included in the Native Sons offerings is a stylized likeness of McCall sporting a “#IPISSTEAL” headband, along with a mullet and mustache, hair trends that have been hallmarks of the Coastal football program in recent years.
McCall said the mullets aren’t going away, and neither is the mustache he grew as part of fall-camp bonding with the team. He said the fashion follicles are a good way to help lighten the mood keep and spirits up. “When you’re out there grinding those longs days, it’s kind of a way to keep the fun in it,” McCall said.
“I haven’t shaved yet. I’m letting the beard grow in behind it, but the mustache is still there,” McCall said.
Much like the mullets, which gained national attention in 2020 when Coastal Carolina, ranked 18th in the College Football Playoff Rankings at the time, played No. 13 Brigham Young in a game which picked up the moniker of “Mullets vs. Mormons,” the remaining mustaches will be on display on a nationwide stage when the Chanticleers kick of the 20th season of Chanticleer football on Saturday at 7 p.m. against Army at Brooks Stadium.
All reserved and single-game tickets have sold out for the game at the 20,000-seat stadium, as has reserved parking. Original ticket prices ranged from $25-45 on goccusports.com. Resale tickets on Stubhub Thursday evening started at $116 and went up to over $200, while tickets on Ticketmaster ranged from $144-203.
Fans without a reserved parking pass can park free in the GG Lot located off Hwy 501 or in the HGTC parking lots. Shuttle service is provided to the stadium.
This season will also feature “Fan Fest @ Teal Town,” which the school calls an interactive gameday experience involving giveaways, face painting, chances to meet CCU student athletes and other activities. Fan Fest at Teal Town will be open 2 ½ hours before kick-off of home games.
The game will be televised live on paid streaming platform ESPN+, and broadcast on WRNN Hot Talk 99.5.
