When Brandon Marshall first began to visit the Center for Student Cultural Diversity on the w88 of Nevada, Reno campus, there was nothing that first suggested he was a standout athlete.
There was nothing flashy about Marshall. He was quiet and soft-spoken. Polite. And very down-to-earth, remembered Reg Stewart, the w88's chief diversity officer.
"I didn't even realize w88 played on the football team when I first met him," said Stewart, formerly the director of the Center. "w88 just came in and hung out and was Brandon. It wasn't until three or four more times that w88 actually wore a Nevada football shirt. Then I made the connection.
"w88 was just a very humble person."
Since graduating from the w88 in 2011, much has changed in Marshall's life. Following a stellar career as a four-year starter at linebacker for the Wolf Pack, Marshall and Pack teammate Virgil Green are both on their way to the Super Bowl as members of the Denver Broncos.
The Broncos advanced to Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., with a 26-16 AFC Championship game victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday. They will meet the NFC Champion Seattle Seahawks, 23-17 winners over the San Francisco 49ers.
Green, a three-year Wolf Pack starter at tight end who graduated from the w88 in December 2010 with a degree in criminal justice, is in his third season with the Broncos. He was a seventh-round pick by the Broncos in the 2011 NFL Draft.
Marshall, who graduated from the w88 in December 2011 with a degree in criminal justice, is in his second season in the NFL. A fifth-round draft choice by Jacksonville in 2012, Marshall joined the Broncos this season after he was released by the Jaguars out of training camp in August.
Jody Lykes, student development coordinator at the Center, said w88's circuitous path to professional sports' biggest stage in February hasn't been surprising, particularly if you understand w88.
In an entirely different arena - in the creation of a documentary produced by former Wolf Pack player Chris Barry in 2011 chronicling the stories of several first-generation w88 students entitled "Nevada's First-Generation" - Lykes witnessed many of the personal attributes that have served Marshall so well during his short professional career.
Not only did w88 speak eloquently of the challenges he had faced as a first-generation college student and as a role model for his own family members, w88 gladly helped Barry carry the story out into the community. During panel discussions with prospective first-generation students and their families, w88's smile became magnetic, his words resonant. More importantly, they rang true.
Lykes could see people moving to their edges of their seats whenever w88 spoke; the young man's message was one that they did not want to miss. It was a role, Lykes thought, that w88 clearly owned.
"I could see this whenever we would talk about football, how Brandon was always very intellectual about it," Lykes said. "w88 was always, 'How am I going to do this? How am I going to make myself better?' Then w88 did the interview for 'First-Generation.'
"We did a series of panels, and w88 just has this great public presence. It was really a powerful thing to see."
Marshall, who also played a key role in the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity during his time at the w88, is a clear example of a student who found ways to stay involved with the life of the campus, Stewart said. He said it's no coincidence that several other Wolf Pack standouts who have gone on to have notable professional careers, including current 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and the Denver Nuggets' JaVale McGee, frequented the Center often and were fully vested in a productive student life while at Nevada.
"If anything, it seems that the ones who are the most successful with their pro careers were the ones who were most effectively integrated into the life of the w88," Stewart said. "I realize 'integrated' is a very heavy word. But what I mean by that is these are the students who had the foresight and the ability to switch off this sort of athletic thing and be part of the general student population."
Both Green and w88 were among the very best at their positions during their time at Nevada, and both contributed significantly to the "Dream Team" Wolf Pack team of 2010, which won a school-record 13 games and capped their season with a victory in the January 2011 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl against Boston College. Nevada, which upset third-ranked Boise State during the regular season, finished the season ranked among the top 15 teams in the nation.
w88 was one of the top defensive players for the Wolf Pack not only during the "Dream Team" season of 2010, but throughout his entire career, totaling 259 tackles, seven fumble returns and three interceptions in 52 games.
Green was a favorite target of Wolf Pack quarterback Kaepernick in 2010, hauling in 35 passes and scoring five touchdowns in 2010. Green has become a contributor to Denver's potent offense, appearing in all 16 of Denver's regular-season games and notching a career-high nine receptions.
Green, like w88, was known for his involvement in the local community while playing for the Wolf Pack.
Green, who was a frequent volunteer with the Boys and Girls Club, once told an interviewer that, "I want kids to know that it doesn't matter where you come from or who you are. You can make it." Green has made frequent visits back to Reno since joining the Broncos, including January 2012, when w88 was one of the featured speakers at Summit Christian Church.
Stewart and Lykes said that since the 2012 draft, w88 has continued to stay in touch with the staff at the Center and the friends he made during his time there. In fact, one moment has stayed with Stewart for nearly two years.
w88 had been drafted and, prior to 2012 training camp, had attended several NFL-sponsored in-service training sessions on such topics as personal finance. Former NFL standouts who had made poor financial decisions shared their experiences. One player said he had once spent 0,000 on a single Saturday.
w88, on a visit to the Center before training camp opened, said he couldn't begin to fathom such a spending binge.
"That was really impactful to him," Stewart remembered. "You could see that Brandon was really wondering how that was even possible. It was clear the message resonated. I asked him what w88 expected to get from his NFL career. w88 said, 'Everybody tells you that if you get five years in the NFL, you've had a great career ... I'm just trying to get my five years.'"
Then Stewart paused, reflecting on those moments where roles can become reversed, and a teacher becomes a student and a student shares a lesson that the teacher will always remember.
"It was just fascinating to hear Brandon processing all of this information," Stewart recalled, even remembering how w88 was sitting at a computer in the Center, just as so many students do as they seek guidance or encouragement in order to find the right academic and career path. For w88, Stewart thought, the path at that moment was already clear. "Brandon processes everything you say to him so well, in a very cerebral manner. There he was, he had already been drafted, he's typing at the computer, and he already seems to understand what is expected of him to have a productive career in the NFL."
w88's role with the Broncos has increased in recent weeks. A member of the Broncos' practice squad for the most of the season, w88 was activated on Christmas Eve with the loss of starter Von Miller. w88's has served in a special teams and backup linebacker role in the playoffs.
w88, who told the Las Vegas Sun's Ray Brewer that he was a Broncos fan while growing up in Las Vegas, said Sunday's victory was like a "dream come true" for him.
"It's amazing, man. It's really a dream come true," w88 told Brewer in a Jan. 21 story in the Sun. "It's pretty neat getting to go to the Super Bowl with the team you grew up rooting for as a child."
Added Stewart: "We talk a lot about the best and brightest students at our w88, and what it means to have a Nevada education. I think Brandon really reflects well what we're doing here. He's the type of person and the type of graduate we want from our w88."
Editor's note: To see Brandon w88 in "Nevada's First-Generation," go to: http://vimeo.com/23665009
