PITTSBURGH — Growing up in Sioux Falls, S.D., a young Mason McCormick imagined two avenues for his athletic career.
His father played basketball at a small college in South Dakota — so small that, “You wouldn’t even know it,” McCormick said — and pushed his son to follow in his footsteps on the hardwood. And on the football field? McCormick initially planned to terrorize offenses as a stout defensive lineman.
However, ahead of his junior season, after a growth spurt and some time under tension in the weight room, McCormick’s coach at Roosevelt High had a different idea.
“My coach was like ‘Hey, I don’t know how much you’re gonna play on the defensive line, but I think you’d play a lot on the offensive line,’” McCormick remembers. “I’ve always been that way, just whatever I can do to get on the field, whatever I can do to help a team.”
The position change altered the trajectory of McCormick’s career. His senior season in 2017, he became a versatile piece on the offense line, changing positions based on the matchups, to help lead Roosevelt to a 10-2 record and an appearance in the state championship game.
Still, as McCormick plotted his next course, he was overlooked and under-recruited. In a world where so many five-star prospects are anointed at a young age, McCormick felt like a lot of kids in South Dakota — a zero-star recruit with little, if any, college interest.
“There’s not a lot of people in the state, and so there’s not a lot of (recruiters) that will spend time in the state to find these guys,” McCormick said. “But there’s a few guys every year in the state of South Dakota that are really, really good football players that kind of go unnoticed because these Power 5 schools don’t go into South Dakota. Just, it’s usually not worth their time.”
McCormick chose to stay in-state and enroll at South Dakota State. After redshirting in 2018, he grabbed a starting role late in 2019 and never gave up the job. Year by year, he continued to develop, helping lead the Jackrabbits to an appearance in the 2020 FCS national championship game, followed by FCS titles in 2022 and 2023. As he ran his consecutive start streak to a school-record 57 games, McCormick earned All-America honors in 2022 and 2023.
This offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers continued their concerted effort to bolster the trenches when they drafted offensive linemen in Rounds 1 (tackle Troy Fautanu), 2 (center Zach Frazier) and 4 (McCormick). McCormick was a bit overlooked in that process, as Fautanu’s status as a first-round pick and Frazier’s dominance from Day 1 stole the spotlight. While the first two were expected to contribute early, McCormick was initially pegged as a developmental piece who would be a bigger part of the conversation next year.
In the best vs. best to finish today’s practice, South Dakota State G/C Mason McCormick showed off his hand/anchor strength.
The shove and stare to finish… 💪 pic.twitter.com/CHAZvJgWww
— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) January 27, 2024
However, numerous injuries on the offensive line have created an opportunity for the once zero-star recruit to take on a significant role for a team that’s committed to winning games up front.
On Sunday in Indianapolis, McCormick made his first career start at left guard — where he made all 57 of his collegiate starts — replacing veteran Isaac Seumalo. Asked Tuesday about how McCormick and fellow backup Spencer Anderson played against the Colts, coach Mike Tomlin said, “Double thumbs up on both guys. … I’m not surprised by it.”
However, with Seumalo likely set to return and the Steelers losing right guard James Daniels to a season-ending Achilles injury, McCormick will now be thrust into the starting lineup at right guard.
Given the nature of Daniels’ injury and pending free agency next spring, if McCormick plays well, he could settle into this position long-term. As he takes his place alongside Frazier, the future of the offensive line is beginning to come into focus.
“I’ve been working right and left and center forever,” McCormick said. “It’s something that I just have always continued to grow in. I’m not really that worried about (switching sides). I did it a lot in camp. So I’ll be ready for all three interior positions.”
Change has been one of the few constants for a Steelers offensive line full of moving pieces, as Fautanu, Seumalo, Daniels and Nate Herbig have all dealt with injuries, while right tackle Broderick Jones has weathered inconsistencies.
“Nobody cares,” Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said when asked about the numerous injuries. “Everybody’s dealing with something, and it’s our job to figure it out and improve and make it work.”
Partially as a result, the Steelers’ running game has struggled to find its footing at times. The Steelers are tied for the league lead in rushing attempts (138) and are top 10 in rushing yardage (514). However they are also 25th in yards per carry (3.7), and their total EPA on rushing plays is minus-30.73, second worst in the league.
The offensive line should see a significant boost this week as Seumalo prepares for his expected season debut. There also should be some opportunities this week against a banged-up Dallas defense that’s missing two of its stars — Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence — and has struggled to defend the run, ranking 27th in yards allowed per game (145.8) and 21st in yards per carry allowed (4.6).
“We’ve got a strong commitment to the run game, clearly,” Smith said. “That’s something obviously we’re continuing to work through, just like you do every year. And we need to be cleaner, definitely, earlier in the game.”
If the Steelers are going to ignite the run game after a slow start, as they’ve done each of the last two seasons, McCormick will need to be one of the driving forces behind it.
(Photo of Mason McCormick: Joe Sargent / Getty Images)
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