Nebraska Recruiting: Marquis Black Commits to the Huskers!

Great news from the land of peaches!

Marquis Black, 6-4 280lb three star defensive lineman from McDonough, Georgia has committed to the Nebraska Cornhuskers! Marquis was one of the official visitors during the monster visit weekend of the Ohio State game. Although the results of the game were unfortunate, the visit weekend received top marks from all the official visitors present. An official visit was made to Arizona this summer as well, as well as an unofficial to UCF. Kentucky, Virginia Tech, and Arizona were the other top contenders for his services. The solid presentation by the recruiting staff, as well as the incredible gametime atmosphere, made the opportunity in lincoln impossible to pass up. This coaching staff has really opened up the state of Georgia for recruiting, which is exciting. There are many many more blue-chip recruits in Georgia than in St. Louis, where the Huskers can’t seem to get traction anyhow.

Defensive tackle highlight films are the most fun of any highlight films to watch. Nothing but monster dudes making quarterbacks pee their pants instead of throwing passes, I love it! Marquis’ film does not disappoint. He show skill at both penetrating the pocket in passing downs, and standing up his lineman when playing gap control. He looks faster than his listed 5.7 40. That must be a misprint. He is quite effective at staying sideline to sideline, running down scrambling quarterbacks or the odd running back trying to bounce it outside. He plays pretty low, although he does creep up a bit when facing inferior competition. There’s one thing I’d like to see changed this season: He stands up from his stance before stepping forward. He needs to step forward out of his stance and explode into the offensive line, even when playing a two-gap responsibility. Once he’s moving, he’s fast and never stops fighting to the ball carrier. And to answer the biggest question, one highlight is him forcing a fumble in the backfield that got scooped up by the blitzing linebacker. He immediately started downfield blocking, turning it into a scoop ‘n score. So yes, he Can Play Oline! Not only that, he has lots of “football IQ”, adapting readily to dynamic scenarios. His frame and style of play project to a defensive end for the Cornhuskers.

The addition of Marquis Black to the 2020 recruiting class brings it to 14, with a projected final size of about 22. The ranking in the high twenties is a good position going into the tail end of the recruiting season. Welcome to the Husker family, Marquis! GBR!