Performance: River Rouge's Mareyohn Hrabowski
December 6, 2019
Mareyohn Hrabowski
River Rouge junior – Football
The Panthers’ multi-talented quarterback has become the state’s most-discussed emerging star from last weekend’s MHSAA 11-Player Football Finals after leading River Rouge to an arguably unexpected 30-7 win over Muskegon in the Division 3 championship game. Hrabowski ran 15 times for 175 yards and three touchdowns and completed 6-of-12 passes for 45 yards more in leading the Panthers to their first Finals title in the sport, earning the MHSAA “Performance of the Week.”
For the season, Hrabowski ran 115 times for 1,175 yards (10.2 per carry) and 14 touchdowns and completed 78 of 108 passes for 1,045 yards and 11 scores with only two interceptions. In making its second trip to the Finals, River Rouge set a program wins record finishing 13-1 with its only loss in Week 1, by three, to eventual Division 4 champion Grand Rapids Catholic Central. The Panthers also outscored their five playoff opponents by an average score of 37-7. But the crowning achievement certainly was defeating Muskegon – the Big Reds were last season’s Division 3 runners-up and the top-ranked team entering this fall’s playoffs, and had received national recognition this fall while quarterbacked by Ohio State recruit Cameron Martinez. After the Big Reds took a 7-0 lead with a score during the final minute of the first quarter Saturday, Hrabowski scored on runs of 1, 40 and 35 yards to put the Panthers up 21-7 less than a minute into the third quarter.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound signal caller had showed his skills well all fall, but the attention likely will grow substantially after his Ford Field performance. He announced earlier this week he’d received a scholarship offer from Bowling Green, and he’ll surely be one of the most anticipated players to watch heading into next fall. Hrabowski also will play basketball for River Rouge, last season’s Division 2 runner-up in that sport, and run track next spring. He carries a 3.5 grade-point average with algebra and environmental science his favorite classes, and he enjoys building and fixing things – mechanical engineering is a field of study he’s considering after high school.
Coach Corey Parker said: “Mareyohn is a great kid, he plays the game hard, he plays the game smart, he plays the game the right way, he’s always focused and is very coachable. He’s a great leader and works hard to get the most out of his teammates. He’s hard on his offensive line on the field, yet maintains a great relationship with all of them off the field – that speaks to his character. … We were not shocked by his state championship performance at all; we knew he had a chance of having a big game if he could get through the emotional roller coaster the state championship throws at you. Mareyohn was your prototype dual threat QB at Ford Field Saturday. He ran the ball exceptionally well and completed several passes for first downs during crucial points in the game. I’m very proud of him and our QB coach, Larry Johnson. (Mareyohn) developed as the season went on and peaked at the right time.”
Performance Point: “After the game, just enjoying the moment after beating the No. 1 team in the state, and letting it soak in – the crowd, everybody was really happy. We won our first state championship in school history, so it was really big for the city, and it means a lot for everyone. It was a really big night for us, the whole team and the city.”
Taking the spotlight: “Before the game a lot of people were talking about Muskegon. A lot of people thought they were going to win. When we won the game, people started talking about River Rouge, and it put us on the map. We were looking forward to playing a game like that. We knew that the championship, that it was going to be a good team. We like playing against competition. Those big games get us hype.”
Finals formula: “To make it this far, it definitely takes teamwork, and trust, and believing in your coaches. And never giving up. It’s not easy making it to the state championship. It takes a lot of hard work. You’ve got to be consistent. Team bonding in camps, and getting to know each other and hanging out together really builds a lot of trust and believing in each other.”
Big plays, big-time player: “I was really looking forward to the opportunity. I like playing against competition. I worked as hard as I could to get to this point, and I knew I wasn’t going to give up. … I think every time I ran the ball, passed the ball, I did it like it was going to be my last. Every touchdown that I ran, I ran as hard as I could. And playing against Muskegon, it built my confidence every single time we got a big play – and that played a big role in how I played the game that night.”
More to come: “I watch (Baltimore Ravens’ QB) Lamar Jackson a lot. I like some of my game being like his a little bit. (I’m planning on) getting a little bit faster in the offseason and getting more tools for my box for next season. ... I want to show that I can pass the ball, not only run the ball, and hopefully next year will be fortunate enough to make the state championship again and win. And just keep on showing people I’m one of the best quarterbacks in Michigan.”
– Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Past honorees
Nov. 28: Kathryn Ackerman, Grand Haven swimming - Report
Nov. 21: Emily Van Dyke, Southfield Christian volleyball - Report
Nov. 14: Taylor Wegener, Ida volleyball - Report
Nov. 7: Carter Solomon, Plymouth cross country - Report
Oct. 31: Jameson Goorman, Muskegon Western Michigan Christian soccer - Report
Oct. 24: Austin Plotkin, Brimley cross country - Report
Oct. 17: Jack Spamer, Brighton cross country - Report
Oct. 10: Kaylee Maat, Hudsonville volleyball - Report
Oct. 3: Emily Paupore, Negaunee cross country - Report
Sept. 26: Josh Mason, South Lyon soccer - Report
Sept. 19: Ariel Chang, Utica Eisenhower golf - Report
Sept. 12: Jordyn Shipps, DeWitt swimming - Report
PHOTOS: (Top) River Rouge's Mareyohn Hrabowski (5) breaks away for one of his three touchdown runs Saturday while his teammates cheer him on. (Middle) Hrabowski works to evade a defender.
Southfield's Marshall Has More History-Making in Mind as Senior Season Revs Up
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
August 31, 2023
SOUTHFIELD – No matter what Southfield Arts & Technology senior quarterback Isaiah Marshall accomplishes from here on out in football, he can claim one distinction not even many all-time greats have achieved.
When Marshall was in seventh grade, he got a college scholarship offer from a Power 5 college program.
Yes, you read that correctly. He was in seventh grade.
While University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh was at the school to scout another player from Southfield A&T at the time, Marshall’s father Brian and uncle Aaron gave Harbaugh a tape of Isaiah’s highlights up through his seventh-grade year.
That was good enough for Harbaugh, who offered Marshall a scholarship then despite his youth.
“I was surprised because getting an offer wasn’t on my mind when I was in seventh grade,” Marshall said.
So, that was the beginning point of Marshall’s courtship to play college football. It hasn’t stopped since, and now the question is whether it will continue all the way up to signing day in December.
Starting his last year of high school, Marshall – also known as “Zeke” – has established himself as arguably the best quarterback in the history of any Southfield program, and certainly one of the best dual-threat signal callers in the state.
Marshall might be committed to Kansas and plans to enroll in January after this Southfield A&T semester is done, but odds are good that won’t stop other programs from continuing to pursue him, especially if he has the big senior season many expect.
“There are still some coaches that talk to the head coach of my school,” he said. “But I personally haven’t talked to any.”
Last year as a junior, Marshall threw for 2,571 yards and 27 touchdowns and ran for 1,065 yards and 18 scores as Southfield A&T finished 8-3 and won the Oakland Activities Association White championship.
Marshall’s coach is his uncle, Aaron Marshall, who obviously could see seeds of greatness being planted in his nephew from a young age.
“As he grew up and grew older and training him, he really kind of embraced everything,” Aaron Marshall said. “He was always a really good listener. He was always mild-mannered (and) had signs of someone who wanted to do something, not really being forced to do it. As a kid, you definitely saw some foreshadowing that he had something special because of his focus and attention at such a young age.”
His senior year got off to a great start Saturday, when he went 15 of 25 for 210 yards and three touchdowns passing and rushed for 80 yards and the game-winning score in a 29-27 Southfield A&T win over Detroit Cass Tech.
Marshall rushed for the clinching touchdown with 54 seconds remaining, a 16-yard scamper to the end zone on a 4th-and-5 play.
“If I have a hole, I’m going to take it,” Isaiah Marshall said. “Just like that last play when I scored, I told myself that if I had a hole, I was going to take it.”
While he is a major problem for defenses when he runs, Marshall is actually trying to improve his ability as a pocket passer this year as he prepares for college.
“Just staying in the pocket more, staying balanced, staying consistent and making great reads,” he said. “I’ve tried to do less (running) and try to get the ball to my receivers more. But at the end of the day, I’m going to try and do what I have to in order to help my team win.”
Marshall, the son of past Northwestern University player and Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice standout Brian Marshall, has grown up around Southfield A&T football – Brian is among Aaron Marshall's assistants – and has seen many good teams and future college players come through the program.
But the Warriors have never advanced to a state championship game, and making program history is obviously a major motivation.
“We have 29 seniors, so I think that’s a big part of what we can do this year,” he said.
Given how he’s watched Isaiah grow up physically and in the game, Aaron Marshall knows if anyone can lead the Warriors to history, it’s his nephew.
“He’s even more vocal now as a senior,” he said. “Kids really latch on to him because of his work ethic. He wants the best for everybody, and he’s such a team guy. When he speaks, they really pay attention.”
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties
PHOTOS (Top) Isaiah Marshall (red jersey) is off to another fast start as a senior this fall for Southfield A&T. (Middle) Marshall (97) works with his offense during a practice earlier this month. (Photos by Ricardo Thornton/RT Studios.)