MOBILE, Ala. — Just because he didn't have anything close to the college experience that 90 percent of the players who are at the Senior Bowl doesn't mean that Hobart College's Ali Marpet doesn't belong.
Many of the players attended college football factories and big-five conference behemoths. Marpet went to a school with an enrollment around 2,200.
A fair number of the Senior Bowl players played at what can be called "football schools." At Hobart, the top draw is lacrosse. Far and away.
Nearly all of the players showcasing their skills for NFL scouts had full-ride scholarships. Marpet chose to attend the small liberal arts Division-III school and pay the majority of its — ahem — $57,000 annual tuition.
"Well, I did get merit-based academic assistance," Marpet explains. "But I had a to pay a little bit to go there, yeah. Student loans ... yeah, I've got them."
So how exactly did a player from this school get to this hotbed of pro-caliber talent? He took the long road.
"My high school, every other year we'll send one guy to a Division-III college," Marpet said. "I felt like I had a good highlight tape and all of that. But I wasn't really heavily recruited. This biggest schools that recruited me were probably Fordham and Holy Cross. That was about it. That and most of the academic schools around New York."
Marpet landed at Hobart and worked his way into the starting lineup as a sophomore. As a junior he first started getting the attention of Blesto scouts, who scour the nation for NFL talent, after running a 4.92 40-yard dash and standing out for the Statesmen (yes, that's the school nickname) on the field with some dominant performances. As a senior, the 6-3, 307-pound Marpet was named a D-III All-American and helped pave the way for an offense that averaged more 202.8 yards rushing per game and allowed only 9 sacks (one per 20 dropbacks) all season.
If this is a massive step up in competition, Marpet isn't looking out of place. After spending Tuesday's practice at left tackle — his college position — he moved inside to left guard, his likely pro position. In both spots, Marpet held strong. One of the highlights from his Wednesday practice was sustaining a block on a draw play on Washington DT Danny Shelton, who has proven to be one of the tougher players to block this week.
"He made a good play," Shelton said. "He looks like a good player."
From his body of work, and with an endorsement from a possible top-10 player, Marpet looks like he belongs. Still, it's Hobart College. How far off the NFL radar exactly is the school?
Hobart never has produced an NFL draft pick, and you have to go back about a decade since the school produced a player (Alex Bell in 2005) to even attend an NFL training camp.
The last NFL player from Hobart to play in the NFL? Per Pro Football Reference, it's former halfback Fred King, who appeared in one game for the Brooklyn Dodgers (yes, that was a football team once) back in 1937. For more perspective, King died in 1987 — more than five years before Marpet was born.
There have been 17 D-III players drafted by NFL teams since 1991 — including Mount Union standouts Pierre Garcon and Cecil Shorts — but none since 2012. Marpet could end that streak that the way his week is going.
The biggest direct connection to Hobart appears to Ravens senior personnel assistant George Kokinis, who got a degree from the school. But if NFL teams see a player, they'll nab him. Another strong day of practice and Marpet will have opened enough eyes to throw out any pre-conceived notions about football factories and all of that.
As for Marpet, he's just enjoying the ride. He has been welcomed openly by his Senior Bowl teammates and has stood toe to toe in individual and team drills, making the Senior Bowl committee look smart for giving him a roster spot.
If football doesn't work out, his economics major — he hopes to go into finance one day — at one of the best schools in the country won't hurt. (His minors, interestingly, were in philosophy and public policy.) And it doesn't hurt that that there is an army of Hobart grads working at some of the best financial houses in and around New York City. He also wants to get his master's degree in physical education — overachiever alert — so that he can teach econ and maybe coach a little, too.
But that's the proverbial "one day" plan. Right now, he's got this little NFL thing in front of him.
Marpet has no thoughts about where, or if, he'll get drafted. Right now, Mobile has been kind to him and he's loving every minute of his experience.
"I've gotten a lot more free stuff than I ever have in my entire life," Marpet said of his week. "I'm just having a blast."
Showing up the bigger-school competition has its perks.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm
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