ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- During spring ball, there was some cursory mention of sophomore edge rusher Nate Marshall. Then, his name was absent from any and all mention of edge rushers who were standing out -- all the way through fall camp. It was game week when head coach Kyle Whittingham finally elicited Marshall's name, noting that he had some off-the-field issues.
"Nate Marshall, who had some struggles in spring, some things that I wasn't real pleased with off the field, he's really grown up in the last eight months," Whittingham said. "Hopefully he can stay on that trajectory."
So what were those issues?
Marshall had to work through them in order to see the field. And see the field he's been doing -- including making the big play to end the game
against Oklahoma. His sack on quarterback John Mateer was the final play of the game, solidifying the win for the Wolverines.
But he hadn't been taking the 'student' aspect of 'student-athlete' seriously, and that had precluded him for some time from being among those who would have been considered for field action.
"I'd say the biggest thing that I had to scale back on was missing class," Marshall said. "I was missing a lot of class earlier in the year, and that was just something I couldn't do, especially with this new coaching staff, so I had to hone in on that. I've actually done great with that. I got academic all-Big Ten."
Marshall says that he wasn't a big fan of going to class during the previous regime, and there was little consequence for not showing up. The psychology major now has a newfound zeal, but it took a little negative reinforcement for him to get there.
"Not as much. It was just more so talking to them more than guidance. The new staff came with more punishment, so that was definitely a little bit different," Marshall said. "I'll just break it down: the first miss is an early morning lift for yourself. The second miss is an early morning lift for you and the entire edge group. The third one is the entire defensive unit has to come in. It's Saturday, 6 a.m., by the way.
"It never got to the third one. It only got to the second one."
His teammates didn't love the 6 a.m. weekend workout, but they took it in stride, all the same, knowing that he had learned his lesson. And it's a lesson he had hoped to learn, not one that he was shying away from.
"I definitely feel like I had to make some change," Marshall said. "I didn't know when it would come within myself. I've been trying to change for a long time now, but I finally brought it within myself to make the change."
And now, Marshall feels closer to head coach Kyle Whittingham as a result of the tough love. It's helping him build confidence, not only as a football player, but also as a man -- something he credits his coach with. As a result, he feels like he's on the right trajectory in all areas.
"It's been a process, I'll say for sure. Had a lot of things to clean up character-wise, but I've cleaned it up now, and I feel very great about myself as a player and as a man."
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan's Nate Marshall reveals off-field issues that held him back
