Lucky Has SEC Leader

One of the elite running backs in the West region next year will be North Hollywood's (Calif.) Marlon Lucky. Lucky, 6-0, 202 pounds attended the recent Nike Combine at USC and definitely passed the eyes ball test. He'll also be attending the Nike Camp at San Diego State in April and has a solid top three right now.

We saw Lucky a year ago at the SoCal Nike Camp and the difference in him physically from a year ago was very evident. He has put on a solid 10 pound of muscle and looked great. Lucky clocked a 4.62 in the 40, had the days fastest shuttle time of 4.00, jumped 33 inches in the vertical and did 16 reps on the bench.

On the field as a junior, Lucky put up big numbers rushing for 1,772 yards and 28 touchdowns to earn 1st team All-State Underclass honors. On film, Lucky is very impressive and unlike many player we've seen, actually plays a lot faster than his 40 time. Some players may test well and run a 4.4-40 but when you watch them on the football field, you just don't see that same kind of burst. With Lucky, not only does have a great burst, he also has very good top end speed and is constantly pulling away from defenders who have the angle on him.

Lucky also has great hands coming out of the backfield and lines up in the slot as a third receiver often in the Huskies offense. In comparing the athlete to the recent class of 2004 running backs, we would rate Lucky right there with Oakland Tech's (Calif.) Marshawn Lynch and ahead of Terrell Jackson and Patrick Fuller. On the recruiting front, Lucky makes no secret about where he wants to go to school.

"Tennessee, that's my school," Lucky said. "I'm not from here (Southern CA) so I'm not really attached to playing in the West. I do like USC a lot but Tennessee is my favorite right now followed by Washington and then the Trojans. I was actually born in Texas and moved to California before my freshman year. I've just always liked Tennessee. They have had great success at putting running backs in the league (NFL), they play in a great conference and have great fan support and tradition.

"Right now, all my favorites have offered me along with a lot of other schools, I don't even remember them all. I'm not looking to make an early decision though, I want to go through the recruiting process, take my trips and see what is all out there before I commit anywhere."

Academically, Lucky is carrying a 2.83 GPA and will take the SAT later in the year.