Sept. 28, 2016
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
On campus in Nashville – When Nathan Marcus returned to the locker room following Vanderbilt’s 31-30 overtime win at Western Kentucky last Saturday, he grabbed phone and opened his Twitter app. To the Commodore tight end’s surprise, his mentions were blowing up.
Marcus understood at least part of the excitement. Moments earlier the redshirt junior had hauled in a five-yard touchdown catch against the Hilltoppers in overtime, which marked the game-winning score for Vanderbilt. But the tweets themselves left Marcus a bit perplexed.
“It didn’t really hit me until after the game,” Marcus said. “I was getting a lot of tweets from people saying, ‘Redemption! It feel so good!’ I was like, what are they talking about?
“Then, it hit me. I was like, ‘Oh wow.'”
Marcus’ touchdown helped Vanderbilt exorcise lingering demons. Last year the ‘Dores lost a heartbreaker at home to Western Kentucky, 14-12. But that loss was particularly deflating to Marcus; he’d been stopped one yard short of the goal line on a two-point conversion attempt with 33 seconds left. Had Marcus reached the end zone, the ‘Dores would have forced overtime.
But on Saturday, as the Commodores celebrated in the visitors’ locker room of Houchens-Smith Stadium, Marcus realized he’d extinguished that painful memory.
“Coming back and winning at their place, it was pretty cool,” Marcus said.
Entering last weekend, Marcus had yet to emerge as a game-changing pass-catcher in Vanderbilt’s offense. He had just three catches on the year — none for touchdowns – and hadn’t caught a pass in the end zone since 2014.
But offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig still called Marcus’ number on at least two key moments against the Hilltoppers. The first came at the end of regulation, with Vanderbilt facing a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line, trailing 24-17 with three seconds to play. But after a pair of timeouts, the ‘Dores changed calls and handed off to running back Ralph Webb, who leaped into the end zone as the clock hit zero.
Vanderbilt ran five plays on the first possession of overtime before facing a third-and-goal at the 5-yard line. Ludwig said Vanderbilt uses a “small menu” of goal-line plays, including the route he called for Marcus, whose only catch of the game went for the game-winning score. “It had worked out during the week [at practice], and Nate did a good job of executing it,” Ludwig said.
That catch was a long time coming for Marcus, a native of Glen Ellyn, Ill., a suburb just west of Chicago. He played in 22 games – earning seven starts — in the past two seasons as a backup for tight end Steven Scheu. But this offseason Marcus honed his blocking and route-running following Scheu’s departure, knowing it was only a matter of time before his opportunity emerged.
This season Marcus, sophomore Sam Dobbs and redshirt freshman Jared Pinkney have served as the ‘Dores primary options in multiple-tight end sets. But after Saturday, Marcus is the only Vanderbilt tight end with a touchdown catch – and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
“With Nathan, it started in camp,” Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason said. “He was a young guy just trying to find his way, and when you’re trying to make things happen, sometimes things don’t necessarily go your way. Now slowly but surely, you’ve seen Nathan make plays. And it’s starting to be more consistent.”
Now Mason describes Marcus as a veteran piece of the program’s foundation. “There are guys who can be bricks,” Mason said, “and I believe he’s a brick. The younger guys are really the mortar. As stuff starts to gel, the foundation starts to harden, and you become better overall.”
Mason hopes a redeemed Marcus become a bigger part of the offense this fall. But the redshirt junior’s versatility in blocking and play-action situations is already invaluable for the Commodores.
“He’s a real asset to the unit because he can play as both a line-of-scrimmage tight end and a move tight end,” Ludwig said. “The other guys in the program kind of fit as one or the other. But Nate brings that versatility and handles the workload really well.”
Today Marcus smiles when comparing his last two games against Western Kentucky. One ended in heartbreak, but another ended in redemption. That’s no coincidence, he says; in fact, it’s testament to Marcus’ own growth and maturation at Vanderbilt.
“Back then, I was much more nervous,” Marcus said. “Now, I’m a year older.”
He’s also a year better.
