NFL DRAFT CLASS OF 2021 INTERVIEW: CORNELL POWELL | CLEMSON | WIDE RECEIVER

Interview with Clemson wide receiver Cornell Powell

Author:
The NFL Draft Bible
Publish date:
Mar 25, 2021 1:00 AM EDT

What clicked for you this past season? It was my fifth year, my last year of eligibility, I knew I had to go get it. Be a difference-maker, go out there and showcase my talent on my last go-round. So, going out there, attacking each practice, each workout as such.

How has the five years at Clemson shaped you to be the player you are and how has the coaching staff, Dabo and Venables, helped you? Being here five years, I’ve been in that wide receiver room, I’ve been around great talent and it just makes me raise my level of play, raise my competitiveness and raise my intensity. Every day you have to go out there and compete, so it just brings out the best in me. Being under coach Swinney is a dream come true. He made me a better man. He ensured that I graduated and that I became a better person, that I left a better person than when I came in. Being under coach V and coach (Tony) Elliott their leadership and their respective sides of the ball, coach V is intensity in practice, he brings out the best out of you each and every day. Then coach Elliott is so intelligent, so I was. He knows so much, and you always pick up little nuggets from him. So, learning how to be knowledgeable from him and transition it into the game.

Not getting much attention, how does that motivate you for draft? It’s never really about attention. You just have to put your head down and work and go get what you earn. You can’t deny film, you can’t deny numbers, you can’t deny tape. It just motivates me not to try to prove anybody wrong but prove myself right. I knew that I had the abilities, and I knew that I belonged on this level, so every day it’s just working towards that and trying to be just one percent better.

Lined up outside and in the slot, which one do you feel most comfortable running routes out of? Being here at Clemson I learned how to play all three, being versatile, knowing that will help at the next level. Obviously, I like being in the boundary because that means you’re going against the best cornerback on the other team and that allows you to elevate your game. You get a lot of one-on-one matchups. You have to make those 50-50 balls, 80-20, so I feel like being in the boundary allows me to showcase my talent and allowed me to be a difference-maker on the field.

You could’ve packed up and left for somewhere to play right away, what does that say about your character? Staying with it helped separate me from a lot of guys. It shows I’m ready to compete and I’m a team-before-self guy. It really goes back to how I was raised and how my mom raised me, never run away from anything, never try to take the easy way out. I just love to compete. I knew I belonged on this level, so trying to prove myself every day.

Who’s the guy coming back to Clemson next year we’re not talking about right now but a year from now everybody will be talking about. Also, who was the guy who impressed you the most as an opponent from this past year? The first one I would say a standout freshman EJ Williams, how he came onto the scene. We were depleted at receiver and he stepped right up, a true freshman. He made some big plays. I think he’s going to have another standout year and keep improving. From this past season, the two guys I’ll give credit to (as opponents), Jason Pinnock from Pitt, wore No. 15, then Nick McCloud from Notre Dame, he wore No. 4. Those two guys are really good, long, lengthy with great speed. They allowed me to elevate my game and I had to bring my best in those two situations.

What have you been doing to improve for the NFL draft? I’m just going to keep working, work on the little things, things I think will help separate me at the next level, and studying the game by taking little notes and nuggets from great players in the league right now like Davante Adams, Keenan Allen, DK Metcalf. Just trying to take things from them and put it in my tool belt. Every day is working, never being satisfied.

You’re a guy that’s not getting as much attention as maybe you should get leading up to the draft, what does that do for you as far as preparing for the draft? It’s never really about attention, you just gotta’ put your head down and work. You’re gonna’ get what you earn so…you can’t deny film, you can’t deny numbers, you can’t deny tape so uh, it just motivates me no not try to prove anybody wrong, nut just try to prove myself right. I knew that I had the abilities and I knew that I belonged on this field at this level, so I’m just trying to work towards that and try to be one percent better.

Sticking it out for five years and waiting your turn, how do you think that resonates to the younger guys? It just goes back to trying to earn everything and not being entitled. A lot of guys come in four and five stars and they just want it handed to them, but when you get to this level, you start at the bottom of the barrel and go prove yourself each and every day. I just hope I can inspire people to stick with it and really earn it because it feels so much better to say, yeah, man, I did that. No one ever gave me anything. I worked for everything I got rather than saying I was given this and that. Just trying to be a light.

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