Ready to Prove Doubters Wrong
Feb 06, 2023 | Football, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Want to know about Marques Sigle? He's a baller. He's a mauler. He's a 6-foot, 195-pound go getter. "If you don't know my name, you will soon!!!" he tweets. First highlight clip, he's wagging his finger. Not in his house. Second clip, he intercepts a ball and returns it for a touchdown. Third clip, he plays deep center field and intercepts a pass over a wide receiver. Fourth clip, a cornerback blitz for a sack. Fifth clip, he body slams a wide receiver.
On and on the clips roll on his North Dakota State highlight film.
He plans to make many more highlights at Kansas State.
"It's definitely surreal," he says. "This has always been my dream to play at this level."
Sigle, who has three years to play two with the Wildcats, entered the transfer portal on November 21. Who offered for him to jump on board? According to 247Sports, the list included Akron, Ball State, Colorado State, Kent State and James Madison. Then Big 12 Champion K-State jumped on board, and well, Sigle says that Oregon and Washington State entered the picture. But there was K-State defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman in Sigle's living room. He was the only coach to visit Sigle. And that left an impression. And Sigle was hooked on the Wildcats. K-State is rebuilding its defensive secondary in 2023. And Sigle has a chance to be a shine on the same stage where former Bison Josh Hayes made an impact as a sixth-year free safety this past fall.
"Seeing what he did, I said, 'I can do that, too.'" Sigle says.
These days, Sigle, a native of Omaha, Nebraska, is studying clips of the K-State defensive secondary. Although he's watching the cornerbacks, he's keying in on the free safety spot vacated by Hayes. K-State utilizes three safeties and North Dakota State used two. So that's different. But Sigle says that Klanderman utilizes some similar schemes, which makes the adjustment easier.
As for the biggest adjustment?
"The intensity," Sigle says. "They focus way more on the details. Everybody has to earn his spot. It's about the amount of work you put in. I came here to work. I definitely can tell the difference. It's got me going to sleep a little bit earlier."
Opposing Big 12 offenses cannot afford to sleep on Sigle.
Sigle had 50 tackles with 10 pass breakups, three interceptions and two forced fumbles while playing in all 24 games over the previous two seasons at North Dakota State.
"If I have to cover a guy I'll go cover him, if I had to make a tackle, I'll make a tackle," he says. "My physicality stands out and so does how fast I can adjust to the game.
"At corner, you're mostly focused on the receiver and have eyes on him. At safety, you have to focus on the line of scrimmage and the quarterback and the running back and the wide receivers."
He came to K-State because he's ready for a bigger challenge.
"It feels like home here," he says. "The connection feels good. I just want to provide for the team and help the best I can. The coaches here came from the FCS. I wanted to be a part of that, too. Winning the Big 12 Championship, I'm like, 'Let's win another one.'"
It's been quite a journey for Sigle, who received offers from only FCS schools after starring at Omaha North High School. He first began playing football at age 6. He started tackle football at age 8. He was counted out in middle school because while his friends all had blossomed, he was 4-foot-9 and weighed less than 100 pounds. He was overlooked for varsity football. Then he finally played varsity. He favorite memory was his sophomore year when he led the team in tackles while helping Omaha North to the state championship.
"I've been doubted my whole life," Sigle says. "Coming here, people looked at me thinking I couldn't make it here. Now that I'm here, I have a chip on my shoulder to show I'm supposed to be here."
He's projected to be an instant-impact player for the Wildcats. And he's eager to carve out his own story.
"I've been holding off on envisioning what I'll be like to step onto the football field in front of 50,000 for the first time because I want to focus on the spring," he says. "That's in the future. I'm thinking about the present now and just learning everything."
That time will come, all right, that time will come.
But he'll forever remember where he was on January 14. It was a Saturday night. It's when he arrived at Manhattan for good. There was no anxiety. There were no nerves when he hit the pillow that first night, either.
"I was grateful," he says. "I had gratitude for all the dreams. People doubted me when I was at North Dakota State, doubting if I could be at this level, and I'm now I'm finally here. Usually when you go to a new place, it's hard to sleep just because you're not used to it.
"Me? I knew I was at home. I fell asleep right away."
Want to know about Marques Sigle? He's a baller. He's a mauler. He's a 6-foot, 195-pound go getter. "If you don't know my name, you will soon!!!" he tweets. First highlight clip, he's wagging his finger. Not in his house. Second clip, he intercepts a ball and returns it for a touchdown. Third clip, he plays deep center field and intercepts a pass over a wide receiver. Fourth clip, a cornerback blitz for a sack. Fifth clip, he body slams a wide receiver.
On and on the clips roll on his North Dakota State highlight film.
He plans to make many more highlights at Kansas State.
"It's definitely surreal," he says. "This has always been my dream to play at this level."
Sigle, who has three years to play two with the Wildcats, entered the transfer portal on November 21. Who offered for him to jump on board? According to 247Sports, the list included Akron, Ball State, Colorado State, Kent State and James Madison. Then Big 12 Champion K-State jumped on board, and well, Sigle says that Oregon and Washington State entered the picture. But there was K-State defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman in Sigle's living room. He was the only coach to visit Sigle. And that left an impression. And Sigle was hooked on the Wildcats. K-State is rebuilding its defensive secondary in 2023. And Sigle has a chance to be a shine on the same stage where former Bison Josh Hayes made an impact as a sixth-year free safety this past fall.
"Seeing what he did, I said, 'I can do that, too.'" Sigle says.
These days, Sigle, a native of Omaha, Nebraska, is studying clips of the K-State defensive secondary. Although he's watching the cornerbacks, he's keying in on the free safety spot vacated by Hayes. K-State utilizes three safeties and North Dakota State used two. So that's different. But Sigle says that Klanderman utilizes some similar schemes, which makes the adjustment easier.
As for the biggest adjustment?
"The intensity," Sigle says. "They focus way more on the details. Everybody has to earn his spot. It's about the amount of work you put in. I came here to work. I definitely can tell the difference. It's got me going to sleep a little bit earlier."
Opposing Big 12 offenses cannot afford to sleep on Sigle.
Sigle had 50 tackles with 10 pass breakups, three interceptions and two forced fumbles while playing in all 24 games over the previous two seasons at North Dakota State.
"If I have to cover a guy I'll go cover him, if I had to make a tackle, I'll make a tackle," he says. "My physicality stands out and so does how fast I can adjust to the game.
"At corner, you're mostly focused on the receiver and have eyes on him. At safety, you have to focus on the line of scrimmage and the quarterback and the running back and the wide receivers."
He came to K-State because he's ready for a bigger challenge.
"It feels like home here," he says. "The connection feels good. I just want to provide for the team and help the best I can. The coaches here came from the FCS. I wanted to be a part of that, too. Winning the Big 12 Championship, I'm like, 'Let's win another one.'"
It's been quite a journey for Sigle, who received offers from only FCS schools after starring at Omaha North High School. He first began playing football at age 6. He started tackle football at age 8. He was counted out in middle school because while his friends all had blossomed, he was 4-foot-9 and weighed less than 100 pounds. He was overlooked for varsity football. Then he finally played varsity. He favorite memory was his sophomore year when he led the team in tackles while helping Omaha North to the state championship.
"I've been doubted my whole life," Sigle says. "Coming here, people looked at me thinking I couldn't make it here. Now that I'm here, I have a chip on my shoulder to show I'm supposed to be here."
He's projected to be an instant-impact player for the Wildcats. And he's eager to carve out his own story.
"I've been holding off on envisioning what I'll be like to step onto the football field in front of 50,000 for the first time because I want to focus on the spring," he says. "That's in the future. I'm thinking about the present now and just learning everything."
That time will come, all right, that time will come.
But he'll forever remember where he was on January 14. It was a Saturday night. It's when he arrived at Manhattan for good. There was no anxiety. There were no nerves when he hit the pillow that first night, either.
"I was grateful," he says. "I had gratitude for all the dreams. People doubted me when I was at North Dakota State, doubting if I could be at this level, and I'm now I'm finally here. Usually when you go to a new place, it's hard to sleep just because you're not used to it.
"Me? I knew I was at home. I fell asleep right away."
Players Mentioned
S
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