Marcel Spears Jr.
No. 52 – Cincinnati Bengals | |
---|---|
Position: | Linebacker |
Personal information | |
Born: | Olathe, Kansas | May 29, 1997
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) |
Career information | |
High school: | Olathe North |
College: | Iowa State |
Undrafted: | 2020 |
Career history | |
| |
Roster status: | Active |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Marcel Spears Jr. (born May 29, 1997)[1] is an American football linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). 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 name 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]
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:![]() ![]() ![]() | ||||||
Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 1,117, 10 (KS), 66(OLB) ESPN: 11 (KS), 108 (OLB) | ||||||
Sources:
|
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]
References
- ^ "Iowa State Athletics". www.cyclones.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ @BrianMozey, Brian Mozey, brian.mozey@iowastatedaily.com. "Iowa State football showcases 20 players in Big 12 awards". Iowa State Daily. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Iowa State linebacker Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week after crucial interception against Texas Tech". Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Iowa State's Marcel Spears Jr. named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Marcel Spears". Athletic.net. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "All-Sunflower League football team". kansascity. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "2014 Player Spotlights: Marcel Spears". www.sunflowerfootball.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Marcel Spears' High School Timeline". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Marcel Spears - Football Recruiting - Player Profiles - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Spears Picks Iowa State". Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "2017 Iowa State Cyclones Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "2017 Big 12 Conference Leaders | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Iowa vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - September 9, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Texas vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - September 28, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Iowa State vs. Texas Tech - Game Summary - October 21, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "TCU vs. Iowa State - Game Summary - October 28, 2017 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ dmontz@amestrib.com, Dylan Montz Staff Writer. "Football: ISU's Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week". The Ames Tribune. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ Ruiz, Nathan. "Iowa State LB Marcel Spears named Big 12 Defensive Player of Week". ajc. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ http://www.big12sports.com/pdf9/5463097.pdf
- ^ "Marcel Spears Jr. College Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
- ^ "Bengals Reach Agreements With 10 College Free Agents". Bengals.com. April 28, 2020.