Marshman was named to the All-IFL First Team Offense as one of two offensive linemen, the other being John Mobley of the Wichita (Kan.) Wild.
“Anytime you get named first-team anything, it’s always an honor,” Marshman, a 25-year-old Virginia native, said. “The title shows that you played well and that the coaches respect how you play. That’s a big honor.”
Marshman graduated from Turner Ashby High School in Bridgewater, Va., after the fall semester in 2002. In the preseason of his senior year, Marshman was picked as the No. 14 football player in the state by SuperPrep Magazine.
After high school, Marshman went to Virginia Tech and played for the Hokies as an offensive tackle. He redshirted in 2004, his freshman year, to get stronger.
By his senior season in 2008, Marshman had become a fixture at both the guard and right tackle spots, receiving Honorable Mention All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors. At the end of his senior season, CBSSports.com listed Marshman as a player who was “smart with good size and good movement when leading.”
Marshman’s next stop was Fairbanks.
“Coming out here, I didn’t know what to expect,” Marshman said. “I didn’t know what to expect from arena football.”
Marshman discovered that playing indoor football required a lot of “learning on the fly.” He said that as long as he remembered to stick with it and hit the gym, he simply learned as he went along.
“I have to give a lot of credit to coach Flanagan (Ed Flanagan, Grizzlies’ lineman coach) and coach Ponder (Grizzlies’ head coach Sean Ponder),” Marshman said. “They worked with me and helped me correct the problems I had coming out of college. Getting to come up here and play for this organization definitely helped me, especially with those two and who they know to get my film ready to send out to bigger places.”
One of the most valuable things Marshman has taken away from his first season in the IFL and his first trip to Fairbanks is that success stems from hard work and dedication.
“Kids up in here in Fairbanks can look at the guys on the Grizzlies and know it’s not all about the big money,” he said. “You’ve got to work. Success doesn’t just come to you; you’ve got to work for it.”
Maybe the IFL wasn’t Marshman’s dream coming out of college, but he’s realized the benefits of the experience on both his game and his attitude.
“You’re not always going to get to take the glory road. Sometimes you’ve got to go off the path you had thought up in your mind,” he said, “but if you work hard and do what you’re supposed to be doing, you’ll succeed. You’ll succeed just like the rest of them.”
In anticipation for Monday night’s playoff game against the Stampede Express of San Angelo, Marshman said he’s confident and unfazed by the pressure and excitement that might be accompanying his first IFL postseason.
“I feel pretty good,” he said. “I feel good about the team. We got time to look at stuff we didn’t do right in the last games. We worked hard this week, and everybody got to take some time for mental relaxation.”
Hoping to advance further into the postseason after Monday’s game, Marshman said the Grizzlies are ready for the Stampede Express.
“The team’s ready,” he said. “We’re going down there and playing our game. We’re going to play how we play.”
Also, Grizzlies defensive back Johnell Brown was named to the All-IFL second team.
Contact staff writer Renee Thony at 459-7583.
Knock 'em dead in San Angelo.