Marshall turning heads at collegiate level
NFL Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman is headed to Super Bowl LI in Houston next month after helping his team defeat the Green Bay Packers 44-21 to capture the NFC championship last Sunday at home.
Before being taken by Atlanta in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft from the University of Minnesota — where he earned first team Big Ten and Third Team All-American honors as a senior — Hageman, 6’6” and 318 pounds, built quite the legacy as a prep athlete at Minneapolis Washburn.
During his senior year he was one of the most sought after football players in the nation, playing tight end while leading the Millers — under the direction of Head Coach Giovan Jenkins — to a Minneapolis City Conference title.
That spring he led Washburn to the 2009 Class 3A state basketball title playing center for former St. Cloud State University great and Harlem Globetrotter Reggie Perkins, who is the school’s current athletic director.
After receiving scholarships from Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, Hageman chose to stay home and attend the U of M as the sixth-best tight end prospect in the country. He entered the U of M to play tight end.
During the next five years, after switching from tight end to the defensive line, Hageman developed into one of the top defensive tackle prospects in the NFL.
Marshall making mark
University of Nevada-Reno shooting guard Marcus Marshall is rapidly becoming a top NBA prospect during his final season of collegiate basketball.
Before coming to Nevada, Marshall starred at St. Paul Johnson, under Coach Vern Simmons, for three seasons, helping the Governors capture the Class 3A state boys’ basketball championship in 2010.
After averaging 16 points per game, he then led them back to the state tournament and a third place Class 3A finish his senior season, in which he averaged 22.4 points per game while becoming one the state’s top prospects.
From there it was on to Missouri State, where he was Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year in 2013 after netting 19.5 points per contest. He transferred to Nevada after the 2015 season and has been on fire after sitting out last year as a redshirt
Marshall, who stands at 6’3” and 190 pounds, is currently averaging 21.7 points per game overall and 24.4 in conference play.
Mitchell Palmer McDonald welcomes reader responses to mmcdonald@spokesman-recorder.com.
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