Maturity, Professionalism Help Explain Nick Marsh's Success

"I talked to the entire (wide receivers) room about it," Hawkins said about professionalism. "That's part of the experience. That's the road I went down. And just understanding the importance of being a professional and studying, being prepared, those are all things that you kind of get from me as a receiver coach."

What professionalism looks like

Based upon the words of his teammates and his own, the emotional maturity for Marsh goes a heck of a lot further than not complaining about a lack of targets. He's also a guy that actively wants to see his teammates succeed, too.

Fellow wideout Rodney Bullard Jr. said that Marsh is the best run blocker in the WR room. That's a skill that's a lot more about effort and has nothing to do with hands or the ability to separate from a defensive back on a route.

"He has such a leadership role in the room," Bullard said. "We forget that he's 18. When we think of him, we call him, like, a man-child at times, because he's 18 years old, but he doesn't seem like it at all."

He's also perfectly fine serving other roles where he can. Marsh knows defenses have and will focus a lot on him, which can open up opportunities for other members of the offense.

"Taking the role of decoy sometimes (can help)," Marsh said Monday about how he handles the pressures of being a WR1. "Just helping out the offense the best way I can to win games. If I've got to go clear it out for somebody else to get open, or if I've got to go get somebody else open, that's my job as a receiver. We're not selfish like that."

How Marsh showed it in the past

This also isn't something that is new for Marsh, and it certainly helps that it is clear that he wants to be a Spartan. He stuck with his commitment to MSU through the Mel Tucker scandal and coaching change and almost certainly refused attempts from other programs to get him to enter the transfer portal this past offseason.

"It's home," Marsh said simply about why he's chosen Michigan State several times. "I could have been anywhere else, but I don't think it would've planned out like this. I was just having a conversation with a few other guys getting recruited by a few other schools.

"I may be overlooked or underrated, but I think that was God giving me the signal to come home. I'm grateful for that."

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