Owen Marecic (/məˈriːsɪk/ mə-REE-sik; born October 4, 1988) is an American former professional football player who was a fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Stanford Cardinal. As a senior in 2010, he played as both a fullback and a linebacker, earning first-team All-American honors as an all-purpose player. Marecic was selected by Cleveland in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL draft.
Marecic with the Cleveland Browns in 2012 | |||||||||
No. 48 | |||||||||
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Position: | Fullback | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Agoura Hills, California, U.S. | October 4, 1988||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 248 lb (112 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Jesuit (Beaverton, Oregon) | ||||||||
College: | Stanford | ||||||||
NFL draft: | 2011 / Round: 4 / Pick: 124 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early life
editMarecic moved with his family around the United States following his father's career as an IT executive.[1] After New Jersey and Boston, where he played Pop Warner for the Westford/Littleton Lions, the Marecics moved to the Los Angeles area, where Owen played quarterback for a Pop Warner football team in Agoura Hills coached by former NFL player Clay Matthews.[2] One of his Pop Warner teammates was the coach's son, former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Casey Matthews.[2] The Marecics moved to Tigard, Oregon, when Owen was a sophomore in high school where he enrolled at Jesuit High School.[3] Marecic played fullback and linebacker for Jesuit, helping the team to Oregon state football titles his junior and senior years.[3]
College career
editMarecic was recruited to Army, Yale, and Stanford, eventually opting to attend Stanford.[3] In his first three seasons with the Cardinal, Marecic was used primarily as a fullback, blocking for Toby Gerhart. He was an excellent blocking fullback, and seldom carried the ball. In his junior year Marecic was brought in as an inside linebacker in short yardage situations.[1] In his senior season of 2010, Marecic's part-time linebacker assignment became full-time, a decision the coaching staff made reluctantly out of necessity. They later praised his conditioning for the challenge of participating in so many full-contact plays—including over 100 in a single game—through yoga, stretching, meditation before switching positions, and a thorough academic understanding of the difficulties as a human biology major.[4] He was the only player in the Football Bowl Subdivision to start on both offense (at fullback) and defense (at inside linebacker).[2] In the fourth game of the season against Notre Dame, Marecic scored a pair of touchdowns within 13 seconds of one another, first as a fullback on a short dive play, then 13 seconds later making an interception from his inside linebacker position, running it back for a score. In doing so he became the first player to score touchdowns on both offense and defense in the same game since Eric Weddle in 2006.[3][5][6]
On January 10, 2011, he was named the inaugural winner of the Paul Hornung Award as the most versatile player in college football.[7] Marecic also finished in 10th place for the 2010 Heisman Trophy, receiving 3 first place votes.
College statistics
editSource:[1] | Tackles | Interceptions | Rushing | Receiving | Scrimmage | |||||||||||||||||
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Year | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Plays | Yds | Avg | TD |
2007 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 1.2 | 0 | 4 | 26 | 6.5 | 0 | 9 | 32 | 3.6 | 0 |
2008 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 25 | 6.3 | 0 | 4 | 25 | 6.3 | 0 |
2009 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 15 | 1.9 | 4 | 8 | 132 | 16.5 | 1 | 16 | 147 | 9.2 | 5 |
2010 | 13 | 30 | 21 | 51 | 5.5 | 2 | 2 | 39 | 19.5 | 1 | 23 | 46 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 75 | 8.3 | 0 | 32 | 121 | 3.8 | 5 |
Career | 0 | 32 | 23 | 55 | 5.5 | 2 | 2 | 39 | 19.5 | 1 | 36 | 67 | 1.9 | 9 | 25 | 258 | 10.3 | 1 | 61 | 325 | 5.3 | 10 |
Professional career
editHeight | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 0+1⁄2 in (1.84 m) |
248 lb (112 kg) |
32+5⁄8 in (0.83 m) |
9+1⁄8 in (0.23 m) |
4.73 s | 1.68 s | 2.65 s | 4.50 s | 7.10 s | 32 in (0.81 m) |
8 ft 11 in (2.72 m) |
22 reps | |
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[8][9] |
Cleveland Browns
editOn April 30, 2011, Marecic was selected in the 4th round by the Cleveland Browns with the 124th pick in the 2011 NFL draft.[10] This was one of four picks the Browns acquired by trading their own first round pick to the Atlanta Falcons; the Falcons drafted future pro-bowler Julio Jones, while the Browns drafted Phil Taylor (DT), Greg Little (WR), Marecic, and Brandon Weeden (QB) and have since been widely criticized.[11] He was projected to play at fullback rather than linebacker. The Browns were reportedly impressed with his work ethic and approach to the game.[12]
Marecic made the Browns roster, contributing in 2011 primarily as a blocking back for running backs Peyton Hillis and Montario Hardesty. He was cut by the Browns on August 27, 2013.[13]
San Francisco 49ers
editOn September 17, 2013, the 49ers signed Marecic to a one-year contract. Marecic had played at Stanford under then-49ers coach Jim Harbaugh.[14] He was released on October 1, 2013, without playing in a game for the 49ers.[15]
Post-football career
editAfter leaving football, Marecic re-enrolled at San Francisco State University to finish pre-med requirements and worked at a medical research lab at Stanford, in preparation for medical school.[16] As a researcher, he has contributed to two published articles in the Journal of Visualized Experiments.[17] Marecic is currently a MD candidate at Stanford School of Medicine.
References
edit- ^ a b Anderson, Kelli (September 27, 2010). "The perfect player". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ a b c Hunt, John (September 29, 2010). "Oregon football: Stanford's Owen Marecic and his former teammate, Casey Matthews". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Bellamy, Ron (September 30, 2010). "College football: Stanford's true warrior". The Register-Guard. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ Auerbach, Nicole (August 22, 2014). "Two-way players, like Owen Marecic, rare, special, Stanford's David Shaw says". USA TODAY.
- ^ "Owen Marecic achieves rare feat in Stanford's win". Portland Tribune. September 26, 2010. Retrieved October 4, 2010.
- ^ "Stanford Cardinal vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish – Box Score – September 25, 2010". ESPN.com. September 25, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
- ^ "Stanford fullback/linebacker Owen Marecic wins first Paul Hornung Award". The Courier-Journal. January 10, 2011.
- ^ "Owen Marecic Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
- ^ "2011 NFL Draft Scout Owen Marecic College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
- ^ "2011 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
- ^ Ridenour, Marla (February 4, 2017). "Falcons' path to Super Bowl LI aided by gaffes of four Browns regimes". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
- ^ Murtaugh, Brian (July 3, 2011). "Is Owen Marecic Ready to Replace Lawrence Vickers in 2011". Bleacher Report.
- ^ Schudel, Jeff. "Owen Marecic among Cleveland Browns cuts, Montario Hardesty sent to IR". The Morning Journal. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Maiocco, Matt (September 17, 2013). "49ers sign Marecic". CSN Bay Area. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
- ^ Branch, Eric (December 21, 2013). "From two-way to no way: FB Marecic didn't want to play". Niner Insider. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "What Happens when the Cheering Stops: A Interview with Retired NFL Player Owen Marecic | PTC". Archived from the original on February 27, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- ^ "Protocols and Video Articles Authored by Owen Marecic". www.jove.com. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
External links
edit- Stanford Cardinal bio
- Media related to Owen Marecic at Wikimedia Commons