Wednesday, March 15, 2000
St. X star leads Butler back to NCAAs
BY JOHN FAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Mike Marshall has no regrets. Three trips to the NCAA Tournament in four years have a way of doing that.
Marshall, aSt. Xavier High School graduate, turned down big-time football offers to play basketball at Butler University. Butler isn't what you'd call a big-time program, but the Bulldogs are in the Big Dance again.
“It couldn't have worked out any better for me,” Marshall said. “To go three out of four years is really exciting.”
Marshall would have gone to Michigan if he opted to play football. He didn't have any basketball offers from schools of that caliber.
For Marshall, that choice four years ago came down to which sport he liked best.
“I really loved playing football,” he said. “But I didn't like all the things that went with it. With basketball, I've just always loved to play the game. I never get tired of it. Even now, I never get tired of it.”
Marshall, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound forward, has maintained his football build and style of play.
He averages 8.7 points a game, and his forte is inside play. He leads the Bulldogs in rebounding (6.9 a game) and field goal percentage (.584).
“My numbers are down a little bit,” he said. “But that's OK because the team is better.”
Butler (23-7) enters the tournament on a 15-game winning streak. The Bulldogs, 12th seed in the East Regional, open against No. 5 seed Florida on Friday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Butler lost in the first round in 1997 and again last year.
“We've been there twice,” Marshall said. “This year, we want make some noise.”
After the NCAAs, Marshall hasn't ruled out a return to football. The NFL can always use a few more 6-4, 235-pound athletes. It's not beyond reach that Marshall could be invited to an NFL camp.
“I've heard a lot about it,” he said. “I've gotten some phone calls. But I've got no idea if it will happen. It's definitely something I would consider. ... My options are wide open.”
Marshall graduates May 13 with a marketing degree. Whether he pursues football or not, he has his future planned.
He plans to work three or four years for a marketing firm either in Indianapolis or Cincinnati. Then he'll return to school to get a teaching certificate. Then it's back to St. X.
“I want to teach and coach basketball there,” he said. “It's the kind of place that has such an effect on you that you want to go back and help others have the same kind of experience you had.”
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