Scouting The Draft: Darius Marshall, RB, Marshall

By David Wyatt Hupton Feb 28, 2010, 12:45pm EST

via <a href="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/si/2009/writers/cory_mccartney/12/23/marshall-ohio/darius-marshall-p1.jpg">i2.cdn.turner.com</a> — via i2.cdn.turner.com

Not the player that I am currently focusing on but a guy I wanted to get out there with the departure of Thomas Jones. Having watched nearly every Marshall game for the last two years, I really don't need to go and watch tape on him, but if you are looking for a late round back, then Marshall will probably be available in round 6-7. Maybe a little bit of bias on my part with Marshall, but he reminds me so much like another former Marshall late round RB draft pick, Ahmad Bradshaw, who was drafted in round 7 of the 2007 draft out of Marshall, and just rushed for nearly 800 yards in 2009.

There are some concerns with Darius, he missed games after being charged with possession of marijuana, and has had some nagging injuries. However he is a 1,000+ yard rusher for the previous two years. Granted Conference USA is not full of premier talent, but we are not talking about taking a flyer on a player with a high value pick. I know people have mentioned a lot of backs, and there is value there in the 3rd or 4th round, problem being we don't have any picks there, and if you can get a guy who is nearly a carbon copy of Bradshaw in the 6th or 7th round. I think you have to take a serious look at that.

CBS analyst during East Carolina/Marshall half time show:

"Well he is such a tremendous talent, one of the things he does so well is he uses his vision, and his ability to break tackles, he's a play maker every time he touches the ball"

Career Stats

2007- 123 attempts, 631 yards, average of 5.1, 3 TD, 14 receptions 119 yards, 8.5 average

2008- 224 attempts, 1099 yards, average of 4.9, 5 TD, 16 receptions, 98 yards, 6.1 average

2009- 227 attempts, 1131 yards, average of 5.0, 11 TD's, 12 receptions, 27 yards, 2.3 average

Career Achievements

2008- Conference USA 2nd Team Selection

2009- Conference USA 2nd Team Selection

2007- Conference USA All-Freshman Selecion

What does Darius Marshall do well?

Marshall is a very tough back with good vision, he spots the holes and he has a nice burst through them. Although he doesn't have great size he is an inside presence, and even though he doesn't have the best speed he can bounce it to the outside if he needs to. Not a burner but does have open field speed, and can make players miss, can pick up extra yardage after contact. This is his biggest area of strength, he keeps his legs moving, he stays low, he puts the shoulder on you, remains balanced and keeps on churning. Competent on pass blocking, and puts his body on the line. His pass catching is fine, the Herd suffered from some sloppy QB play over the last year or so, so he really has not been given chance to prove himself. With someone like Mark Sanchez who can make a quick read and get the ball in his hands quickly, he could be a viable pass catching back.

What Does Darius Marshall not do well?

His size is always going to be questioned, and that's where he draws comparison to Bradshaw. His charge on possession of marijuana could trouble people. Doesn't have elite speed, and won't blow people away in the open field. Can sometimes suffer ball security issues, but not to a great deal. Although he is competent in pass protection, he will have to work on this at the next level. Being undervalued coming from C-USA.

Final Word

I would love to see Marshall on the Jets next year. He is a great compliment back, not a guy who is going to demand 20 carries a game but a great guy to bring in to give Greene a rest. We have a space with the running backs, and this is great value in the later rounds. Would like to see how he could do with a good QB, even though a lot of teams didn't respect the passing game of Marshall last season, which allowed them to cheat up on the run, Darius still did some damage and this was with missing games. He compares very favourably to Ahmad Bradshaw, same school, same qualities, likely same draft stock.

Video Highlights