Malcolm Dixon was named the tight ends coach by head coach Jamey Chadwell in January 2020. Dixon made the move from tight ends to wide receivers in April 2022, moving back to the position group that he coached at North Greenville in 2019.
Dixon worked with the tight ends in each of his first two seasons for the Chanticleers and helped to mentor All-American Isaiah Likely. Likely would go on to be drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the fourth round (139th overall pick) in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Over his first two years on staff at CCU, Dixon coached Likely who was named a second-team All-American by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Pro Football Network (PFN), and College Football All-SIS, while also earning Pro Football Focus (PFF) All-America third-team honors and Phil Steele All-American honorable mention accolades. He was also named a 2021 John Mackey Award semifinalist and was a two-time first-team All-Sun Belt pick (2020 and 2021) under Dixon’s guidance.
In 2021, Likely hauled in 59 receptions for 912 yards, both of which were second on the team, and led the Sun Belt with 12 receiving touchdowns. His numbers ranked second among tight ends in all of NCAA D1 FBS football.
Dixon also worked with tight ends Patrick McSweeney and Michael McFarlane in 2020, as well as McSweeney, Xavier Gravette, TJ Ivy Jr., and Logan Mauldin in 2021, teaching them all the offense as well as helping their maturation while also working alongside the offensive line unit that was a semifinalist for the 2020 Joe Moore Award which is presented annually to the nation’s top offensive line unit.
In 2021, the Chanticleers went 11-2 overall and closed the year out with a 47-41 win over the 2021 MAC Champions in Northern Illinois at the 2021 Tailgreeter Cure Bowl. The Chanticleers, whose lone two losses came by a combined five points and were against two teams that combined for 18 wins on the season, were one of just 28 teams in all of FBS to post double-digit wins in 2021.
With their back-to-back double-digit wins total in 2020 and 20201, CCU was one of just six teams in all of FBS to post back-to-back double-digit win seasons in the last two years (2020 and 2021) and was one of just 10 teams in all of FBS to total 20-plus wins over the last two years (2020 and 2021) – Alabama (26-2), Louisiana (23-2), Cincinnati (22-2), Coastal Carolina (22-3), Notre Dame (21-4), BYU (21-4), Georgia (22-3), Oklahoma (20-4), Oklahoma State (20-5), and Clemson (20-5).
Coastal was one of only four teams in ALL of FBS to rank in the top-25 in both total offense (5th) and total defense (25th), one of only seven teams in ALL of FBS to rank in the top-30 in both most first downs on offense (25th) and fewest first downs allowed on defense (27th), and one of only eight teams in ALL of FBS to rank in the top-25 in both scoring offense (5th) and scoring defense (25th).
The Coastal offense finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in team passing efficiency (192.01), as Grayson McCall led the nation and set a new NCAA FBS single-season record with a passing efficiency rating of 207.6 on the year. The offense also finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in average yards per rush on the season (5.84 ypr) and in third-down conversion percentage (53.8 percent), was second nationally in yards per play on offense (7.74 ypp), and ranked fourth nationally in fourth-down conversion percentage (76.9 percent).
CCU also ranked fourth in all of FBS in completion percentage (70.5 percent), as McCall ranked No. 2 nationally in all of FBS in completion percentage (73.0 percent), and was fifth nationally in both passing yards per completion (15.23 ypc) and total offense (494.7 ypg). McCall ranked No. 1 nationally in yards per pass attempt (11.92 ypa) and No. 2 in passing yards per completion (16.32 ypc).
The offense also finished the season ranked No. 5 nationally in scoring offense (40.9 ppg) and was one of only five FBS schools to average over 40 points per game on the season.
In 2020, the Chanticleers won the program’s first-ever Sun Belt Conference title, posted an 11-1 overall mark, including an 8-0 Sun Belt Conference record, and played in the program’s first-ever FBS postseason bowl game.
The 2020 season marked Coastal Carolina’s first-ever undefeated regular season and the first time that the Chanticleers were ranked in either the Associated Press Top 25 Poll or the Amway Coaches Poll presented by USA Today Sports.
The Chanticleers posted two wins over FBS top 25 nationally-ranked opponents, the first two such victories in program history, four wins over top 50 opponents, and was ranked as high as No. 9 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll and No. 11 in the Amway Coaches Poll, both Sun Belt Conference records. The Chanticleers were also ranked as high as No. 12 in the College Football Playoff rankings, also a Sun Belt record.
In his first season at Coastal in 2020, Dixon helped tight end Isaiah Likely pick up second-team All-America recognition from Pro Football Focus (PFF) and earn 2020 All-Sun Belt first team and 2020 Phil Steele Sun Belt Conference All-Conference first team accolades.
Likely spearheaded the tight ends group with a total of 30 catches for 601 yards and five touchdowns on the season. His 601 receiving yards were eighth in the Sun Belt overall but first among all Sun Belt tight ends, while his average yards per catch of 20.03 yards per reception was first in the Sun Belt and 10th nationally. He caught at least one pass in 10 of the 11 games in which he played and recorded a career-high 118 receiving yards in the win over Appalachian State (Nov. 21) on just three receptions. His catches of 75, 72, and 57 yards were all three of the longest pass plays on the season for CCU’s offense in 2020.
Dixon also worked with tight ends Patrick McSweeney and Michael McFarlane, who combined for three receptions for 26 yards on the season, but most importantly worked alongside the offensive line unit that was a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award which is presented annually to the nation’s top offensive line unit.
Dixon joined the Coastal Carolina football staff after one season at North Greenville University where he coached the wide receivers.
Prior to his year-stint at NGU in 2019, Dixon spent four seasons at Charleston Southern from 2014-18 where he began as a graduate assistant working with the offense and helping with day-to-day operations of the football program.
After two seasons, Dixon was promoted to coaching the tight ends and running backs. He also assisted in weekly game planning and scripting the team’s daily practices. He was also in charge of coordinating the Charleston Southern special teams.
The four-year letterwinner also played for the Bucs as the team’s quarterback from 2010-13. Throughout his career, he played for head coach Jay Mills from 2010-12 but finished his career under coach Chadwell in 2013, helping the Bucs go 10-3 that season.
Dixon graduated from Charleston Southern in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology administration and again in 2016 with his MBA.
Malcolm Dixon's Coaching History
2014-16: Charleston Southern (Graduate Assistant - Offense)
2017-18: Charleston Southern (Tight Ends/Running Backs/Special Teams)
2019: North Greenville (Wide Receivers)
2020-22: Coastal Carolina (Tight Ends)
2022-present: Coastal Carolina (Wide Receivers)
