ROCK HILL -- On any other team - or in any other year - South Pointe defensive end Gerald Dixon would be the star of the show.
In helping the Stallions to the Class AAA state championship game, where they'll face Myrtle Beach on Saturday in Columbia, Dixon has recorded 19.5 sacks. And yet nobody even cares.
Such is life playing with the nation's No. 1 college prospect, fellow defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, whose proverbial shadow is larger than the actual one cast by his NFL-sized frame.
College coaches have flocked to this football powerhouse - the Stallions are seeking their second state title in the program's fifth year of existence - with regularity over the last year, hoping to lure Clowney and his rare size and skill set into their program. But before he joins college royalty, the 6-foot-6, 250-pounder has one more prep game to showcase his talents for the masses.
"He's got 180-pound athlete numbers," South Pointe coach Bobby Carroll said. "He's got a 36-inch vertical jump. He power cleans 335. He's a sub-4.5, electronic-timed 40, and he's extremely flexible. He can bend over backwards and pick up a quarter."
But his best trick is rushing the passer. More often than not, he has to defy the odds to get there. Clowney has 26.5 sacks - along with 155 tackles, 24 tackles for loss, two interceptions and five defensive touchdowns - this season, even though he is regularly double- and triple-teamed. One team even quadruple-teamed him this season, using two wings, a tight end and an offensive tackle to block him.
Even those extreme measures rarely work. Clowney is truly a man among boys.
"Coming into the season my coaches told me I was going to be a leader whether I liked it or not," said Clowney, who is considering USC, Clemson, LSU, Alabama, Ohio State and Florida State. "I just took that and made strides to lead my team to victory every week. I wanted to do as much as I could."
Clowney isn't facing as many triple teams these days. Opponents seem to have figured out that if they do it, Dixon and the other talented Stallions who are left unblocked typically end up making the plays. Dixon, who has a litany of FBS scholarship offers himself, has 132 tackles this season.
Dixon's presence on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage has made it nearly impossible for opposing tailbacks to turn the corner. He and Clowney have forced many teams to try their luck into the heart of South Pointe's defense and that hasn't been effective either.
The Stallions give up an average of just 12 points per game - more than 40 percent of the 168 given up this season came in early tests against Class AAAA, Division II finalist Northwestern and Independence (N.C.) - and have held four of their last five opponents to single digits. Clowney and Dixon have been the catalysts.
"Teams have been running away from him," Dixon said. "So, I've had to make plays. They've tried to challenge me, so I've had to step up. We've both had to step up our games this year."
Clowney has been forced to do it with the intensity of the recruiting limelight shining down directly on him. Rivals, Scout and ESPN all named him the top overall prospect in the Class of 2011, the first Palmetto State player to earn that designation.
With it comes a hoard of media attention and responsibilities. Couple that with the attention he receives from college coaches - 91 of them dropped by South Pointe last May - and it can be a burden. However, Clowney has still produced the expected results, leading the state in sacks and helping the Stallions to another title game appearance.
"He just has a relentless attitude that he's going to be in on the play," Carroll said.
"[Myrtle Beach quarterback Everett] Golson reminds us of Donovan McNabb. He's got great vision down the field and he can scramble. So, we are going to depend on our defensive line. We try to put a lot of pressure on quarterbacks. We've hit some quarterbacks this year and it's rattled them and changed their game. That's what we're going to try and do."
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