20 most hyped college football recruits of all-time
By Dustin Hull
16. Dan Marino
Everyone knew Dan Marino had what it took to be an All-Pro quarterback. He was admired in his prep career for having one of the most naturally gifted arms to be witnessed, an arm the quarterback was using for 50-yard throws when he had just started high school.
It not only brought him hype on the gridiron, where he made the Parade All-American team his senior year, but also on the diamond, where he was 23-0 as a starting pitcher. But though he’d go on to accomplish impressive feats at quarterback in the NFL, much of his athleticism was taken from him by then.
Marino had several knee issues in college and the pros, so if you can imagine a man of Marino’s stature at 6’4” running a 4.6 40-yard dash in the NFL as he did in high school, you might come to the conclusion that he could’ve been himself and John Elway rolled all in one.
And many thought he was better than Elway when they came out the same year though Elway was likely the majority pick for best high school player in 1978.
All of Pennsylvania waited to see what Marino would do, football or baseball. And at the chance he chose to throw pigskins over pearls, would he play in his backyard at Pitt? Luckily, they got the answer they wanted.
The Kansas City Royals picked Marino in the fourth round of that year’s draft, but he chose to play for the Panthers instead, building the hype further for his arrival. He’d have two top-10 finishes in the Heisman before going on to become a Hall of Fame quarterback down in Miami.
Next: Herschel Walker