All 105 is a Nittany Sports Now series profiling each Penn State football player. Here is a profile of junior athlete Marquis Wilson.
Height: 5-foot-11
Weight: 184 pounds
Hometown: Windsor, Connecticut
Before Penn State: Wilson— who also played basketball, lacrosse and ran track in high school—lettered four years at Avon Old Farms School for Boys, helping his team get so a state championship game in 2016. In his junior season, Wilson made all-state at receiver, catching 37 balls for 765 yards and six touchdowns, and also played well defensively, finishing the season with four interceptions and 51 tackles.
Wilson’s play at Avon earned him a consensus four-star rating by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals.com, and all three sites had him as a top-five player in Connecticut from his class.
Wilson committed to Penn State in May of 2018, before his senior season.
2019: Wilson played in 10 of Penn State’s 13 games, forced three fumbles and intercepted a pass in Penn State’s Cotton Bowl win over Memphis.
2020:
Before the season, Wilson ran into trouble, being charged with two misdemeanor charges for “possession of a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.”
Wilson was able to bounce back and get on the field for the 2020 season.
In an abbreviated COVID-19 themed campaign, Wilson appeared in all nine of Penn State’s games and started two of them, his first college start coming in a win at Michigan Nov. 28. He ended the year with 13 tackles (eight solo) and broke up two passes.
Last year: Wilson played at both receiver and defensive back, ending the season with three catches for 29 yards and six tackles (three solo), one of which being a tackle for loss. Wilson also broke up a pass on defense.
Where he stands: Although Wilson is a rare athlete who has played both ways at the DI level, Penn State is deep at both defensive back and receiver.
Joey Porter Jr. and Kalen King are both expected by many to start at corner, with South Carolina transfer Johnny Dixon adding depth and experience.
Offensively, the trio of Parker Washington, Mitchell Tinsley and KeAndre Lambert-Smith could be on of college football’s best, so don’t expect to see much of Wilson at that position.
Although Wilson isn’t a favorite to start, any player with two-way ability can be valuable, and Wilson is no exception.
A quote about Wilson: “Early on in camp,” Penn State associate head coach and cornerbacks coach Terry Smith said last summer, “he spent a lot of time in the secondary, and then toward the latter part of camp, he spent a significant amount of time with the receivers, and this week we’re splitting him. He’s available to play on either side of the ball. Marquis is a tremendous athlete.”
