Football

NFL Draft | Marcell Dareus Overcame A Lot of Hardship

Alabama defensive lineman, Marcel Dareus has had to overcome a lot of hardship in his life. His father, a native of Haiti, died when Marcell was six years old. His mother Michelle Luckey raised six boys and a girl alone.

At the age of 14 Dareus spent most of his time living with his high school football coach and godfather Lester Reasor as his house was packed with his siblings. He also lived with another coach Scott Livingston before he was killed in an auto accident.

Marcell moved in with a sponsor family in Woodlawn, Alabama where he would finish college as a football player with the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama. But even before graduation the linesman would suffer another heartache, the death of his mother, which was due to health complications.

Excellence on the Field

With all this being said Dareus still excelled on the football field. Entered into the NFL Draft on April 28, he is ESPN's project #1 pick overall . Most other sports writers are certain he will drafted top 5. It is a testament to his hard work that he has put in for his college head coach Nick Saban and the program of the Alabama Crimson Tide.

As a sophomore, Dareus was physically dominant. He only made four starts that year but collected 33 tackles, nine tackles for a loss, and six sacks. He was the leading pass rusher for Alabama and a key contributor to the defenses success.

The BCS Championship game against Texas was when Dareus really got introduced to the world. The Longhorns were unable to prevent Dareus from getting to their quarterback. He was a disturbance in the backfield all night and eventually landed the hit that knocked quarterback Colt McCoy out of the game.

The Tide rolled on to hoist the National Championship Trophy. No player on defense made a bigger impact than Dareus who went on to capture the Defensive MVP Award for his outstanding performance.

Going into his junior year, Dareus was suspended by the NCAA after an investigation revealed that he accepted $1,787.00 [USD] in inappropriate benefits from an agent. The suspension cost him two games. Dareus would return as a force to be reckoned with and opposing teams attempted to double-team him on every play.

Dareus was voted First Team All-SEC after finishing his junior campaign amassing 34 tackles, 11 tackles for a loss, and 4.5 sacks. After putting together another impressive season, Dareus opted to forgo his last year of eligibility and enter the 2011 NFL Draft. He would finish his three- year career with the Crimson Tide recording 71 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, one interception and 11 sacks.

On April 28 Marcell Dareus is expected to be a first rounder in the NFL Draft. Most analyst say he may go at number 7 to the San Francisco 49ers but no one really knows.

Related 03.25.2011: Barrett Jones Hopes to Make Haiti Trip a University Tradition
Source: Sportsrageous , The Bleacher Report