Marcel Spears Jr.
Personal information
Born: (1997-05-29) May 29, 1997 (age 26)
Olathe, Kansas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:Olathe North
College:Iowa State
Position:Linebacker
Undrafted:2020
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com

Marcel Spears Jr. (born May 29, 1997)[1] is an American football linebacker. He played college football at Iowa State. At the conclusion of the 2017 season, Spears was named to the honorable mention All-Big 12 team.[2] During the 2017 football season he was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week twice, in back-to-back weeks.[3][4]

High school career

At Olathe North, Spears was a three-sport athlete. He wrestled and competed in track & field[5] in addition to starring on the football field. His first year starting, as a sophomore, Spears began to bloom with 132 tackles including 10 for a loss. As a junior he recorded 119 tackles, forced three fumbles, recovered two fumbles, intercepted two passes and blocked two kicks. His senior season he made 86 tackles, seven for a loss, made two sacks, two interceptions and forced a fumble. He was named All-Sunflower League twice[6][7] and received second-team all-state honors by the Wichita Eagle his senior season. He ended his impressive prep career with 227 tackles, 21 for a loss, seven sacks, and four interceptions.[8]

Recruiting

A three star recruit, Spear's only offers were Iowa State, Missouri, Kansas, Idaho, and Wyoming.[9] On July 28, 2014 he committed to the Cyclones.[10]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Marcel Spears Jr.
OLB 		Olathe, Kansas Olathe North 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jul 28, 2014 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: 74
Overall recruiting rankings:   247Sports: 1,117, 10 (KS), 66(OLB)  ESPN: 11 (KS), 108 (OLB)
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2015 Iowa State Football Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  • "2015 Iowa State Football Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  • "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.

College career

2017 season

After redshirting the 2015 season and only playing on special teams in 2016, Spears had his breakout season in 2017. He was second on the team in tackles with 96 as well as second on the team in interceptions with two.[11] His 96 tackles were good for sixth in the Big 12 and his 48 assisted tackles were second in the Big 12, only behind Joel Lanning.[12] Against Iowa, Spears made 17 tackles with 1.5 of them for a loss[13] and two weeks later he totaled 14 tackles against Texas.[14] His best two games were against Texas Tech and TCU. Against the Red Raiders Marcel made seven tackles, defended a pass, and made a pick 6 to seal the game.[15] The following week he made nine tackles, one for a loss, and an interception for the second consecutive week.[16] Spears received the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week award for his performances in both the Texas Tech[17] and TCU games.[18]

At the conclusion of the season he was named Honorable mention All-Big 12 by the Big 12 coaches.[19]

College statistics

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
G GS Comb Solo Ast TFL PD Int Yds Avg TD FF FR
2016 Iowa State 11 0 4 4 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0
2017 Iowa State 13 13 107 56 51 8.5 3 2 61 30.5 1 1 0
College Totals 24 13 111 60 51 8.5 3 2 61 30.5 1 1 0
Reference:[20]

Professional career

Spears signed with the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent on April 28, 2020.[21] He was waived on September 5, 2020.[22]

Houston Gamblers

Spears Jr. signed with the Houston Gamblers of the USFL on March 23, 2023.[23]

Spears and all other Houston Gamblers players and coaches were all transferred to the Houston Roughnecks after it was announced that the Gamblers took on the identity of their XFL counterpart, the Roughnecks.[24] He was not part of the roster after the 2024 UFL dispersal draft on January 15, 2024.[25]

References

  1. ^ "Iowa State Athletics". www.cyclones.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  2. ^ @BrianMozey, Brian Mozey, brian.mozey@iowastatedaily.com. "Iowa State football showcases 20 players in Big 12 awards". Iowa State Daily. Archived from the original on 2017-12-12. Retrieved 2017-12-13.((cite news)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ "Iowa State linebacker Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week after crucial interception against Texas Tech". Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  4. ^ "Iowa State's Marcel Spears Jr. named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  5. ^ "Marcel Spears". Athletic.net. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  6. ^ "All-Sunflower League football team". kansascity. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  7. ^ "2014 Player Spotlights: Marcel Spears". www.sunflowerfootball.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  8. ^ "Marcel Spears' High School Timeline". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  9. ^ "Marcel Spears - Football Recruiting - Player Profiles - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  10. ^ "Spears Picks Iowa State". Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  11. ^ "2017 Iowa State Cyclones Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  12. ^ "2017 Big 12 Conference Leaders | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  13. ^ "Iowa vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - September 9, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  14. ^ "Texas vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - September 28, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  15. ^ "Iowa State vs. Texas Tech - Game Summary - October 21, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  16. ^ "TCU vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - October 28, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  17. ^ Montz, Dylan. "Football: ISU's Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week". The Ames Tribune. Archived from the original on 2017-12-14. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  18. ^ Ruiz, Nathan. "Iowa State LB Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of Week". ajc. Archived from the original on 2017-12-14. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  19. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-12-22. Retrieved 2017-12-13.((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. ^ "Marcel Spears Jr. College Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  21. ^ "Bengals Reach Agreements With 10 College Free Agents". Bengals.com. April 28, 2020.
  22. ^ "Bengals Reduce 2020 Roster To 53 Players". Bengals.com. September 5, 2020.
  23. ^ @USFLGamblers (March 24, 2023). "Free Agent Signing" (Tweet). Retrieved March 27, 2023 – via Twitter.
  24. ^ "United Football League Reveals Team Markets and Head Coaches for 2024 Season". www.xfl.com. Retrieved 2024-01-01.
  25. ^ "2024 UFL Team Rosters". TheUFL.com. Retrieved January 20, 2024.

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