Former Parkway and LSU star receiver Terrace Marshall Jr. turned in an impressive performance at LSU’s Pro Day on Wednesday in Baton Rouge.
Marshall was one of nine former Tigers who participated in the event held in the Carl Maddox Field House. Representatives of all 32 NFL teams were in attendance.
College teams have Pro Days every year. But this year they have taken on greater importance in the pre-draft evaluation process because the traditional NFL Combine is not being held, except for medical evaluations, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Marshall ran a time of 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash, matching fellow receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who is expected to be a top-five pick in the NFL Draft.
Marshall had 19 reps in the 250-pound bench press, a standing broad jump of 10 feet, 5 inches and a vertical leap of 39 inches. Reportedly nursing a hamstring injury, he did not participate in the 3-cone and 20 shuttle drills.
Chase, who opted out of his junior season after winning the Biletnikof Award in 2019, had a broad jump of 11-0 and a vertical of 41.
Marshall caught 48 passes for 731 yards and 10 touchdowns in seven games last season before opting out of the rest of his junior season.
In LSU’s 15-0 national championship season in 2019, he caught 46 passes for 671 yards and 13 touchdowns in 12 games.
Marshall is expected to be a late first-round or early second-round pick in the draft, which begins with the first round on April 29.
In his post-Pro Day press conference, he said he’s happy with how things have gone in the pre-draft process so far and isn’t worried about what the future holds.
“Everything played out like it was supposed to be,” he said. “I look at it as everything happens for a reason. Whatever position I was in that’s the position God wanted me to be in. Now it’s time to go to the next level and take advantage of every opportunity that I get.”
He said he prepared for the Pro Day first in Miami before going to the Michael Johnson Performance center in McKinney, Texas.
While he often talks to former teammates in the NFL like receiver Justin Jefferson, who had an outstanding rookie season with the Minnesota Vikings last year, Marshall said the conversations generally aren’t about how to handle the draft process.
“I’ve just kind of been experiencing everything myself,” he said. “Of course me, JJ, all of us, we talk all the time but everybody’s got their own experience, so I’ve just kind of been getting the feel of the thing myself, just going through everything taking it one day at a time, just keeping my eyes open for anything that will come.”
If he’s learned one thing since his last college game against Texas A&M on Nov. 28, it’s that the NFL is a business.
“As soon as you get out of college you instantly have to start handling business whether it’s getting your money right with taxes or just In the real world getting everything right,” he said. “So it’s just teaching me you’ve got to grow up fast, just stay on your Ps and Qs. It’s the real world so you’ve got to get yourself ready for it.”
Marshall only has one thing he wants from a team looking to draft him.
“I just want to go to an offense that throws the ball,” he said “And a QB that can get me to the next level. I’m sure no team would have a quarterback out there that couldn’t throw. I’m just looking forward to going on a team no matter which team it is and just contribute to their offense.”
He also said it doesn’t matter if the team uses him as an inside slot receiver or on the outside.
“Whatever team I go to they’re going to use me to my advantage,” he said. “I’m versatile so I’m comfortable inside and out. It doesn’t really matter to me. The ball comes to me, the ball is still going to be coming the same way so I’ve got to make the play. It’s just whatever the team wants to do.”
Marshall mentioned versatility when asked what separates him from Chase and other talented receivers available in this year’s draft.
“What separates me from everybody is just that versatility on the field, that versatility to play both inside and out, to be able to produce the same amount of numbers and score the same amount of touchdowns,” he said.
“You’re just going to be getting a great teammate overall. You’re going to be getting a hard worker, if not the hardest in the room, one of the hardest workers in the receiving room. You’re just going to get that dog, somebody that’s taking advantage of the opportunities that have been given him and don’t it take it for granted. Just overall a great person, great leadership. I’m going to make everybody around me better.”
While he acknowledged the NFL is a business, it’s also still a game, one he’s been playing most of his life.
“NFL at the end of the day is still the game of football, the thing I’ve been doing my whole life, second nature to me. So I feel like everything I did in college I’ll be able to carry on into the NFL … I just feel it will all translate there, my hard work. I feel like it will all pay off.”
His love of the game is one reason he decided to play last season instead of opting out like Chase and some other LSU players.
“I just felt like I had more to prove,” he said. “I feel like I did everything that I needed to do to prove myself so I just want to go out there and play, compete. I love the game of football. I went out there and just competed.”
— Featured photo by Robert Summerlin
