The returning starter has his work cut out for him this season as the second-string weakside linebacker.
Name: Marqez Hodge
Position: Outside Linebacker
Year: Senior
Height: 5′ 11″
Weight: 219
Hometown: Miami, Fla.
High School: Miami Central
2015 Stats: Marqez started all 12 games for the Syracuse Orange last season recording 41 tackles, 21 solo, and registering a team-high two fumble recoveries.
2016 Projections: Marqez is listed as the number two weakside linebacker behind junior Parris Bennett.
How’d He Get Here?: Marqez turned down offers from West Virginia, Minnesota, and a few others deciding instead to come to Syracuse.
What’d Recruiting Sites Say?: Marqez received three stars from Rivals and two from Scout.
Money Quote: When Marqez transitioned from a bench player to a starter during his sophomore year in 2014, he had this to say:
“Didn’t grow up spoiled,” he said, “so I had to earn everything. A lot of hard, labor work. It got me into a certain mindset.”
Links of Wonder: Marqez wasn’t so great at stopping big plays from happening last season, blowing coverage on 24 of the 25 times the ball was thrown to a receiver in his direction, so he’s definitely looking to improve on that front this year. He has some things to prove while backing up Parris Bennett.
Twitterfeed: Unfortunately, Marqez doesn’t have one.
What Does The Coaching Staff Think of Him?: Nothing specifically about Marqez has been said by the new staff, just that Dino Babers is thrilled that his guys seem to be hungry for improvement on all ends.
Interesting Nugget O’ Interest: Babers has instituted the Tampa-2 defense at Syracuse for this season which is very different from the blitz-heavy schemes of the previous few years under former head coach Scott Shafer. Babers said that the key to installing the Tampa-2 is getting all of the guys as many reps as possible.
Let’s Get A Good Look Atcha: Here’s to hoping we see more of this from Marqez this season: