Emerson resident Mason Marck is hard to miss. The football phenom stands 5’11” towers over people and makes his presence felt. Marck works hard every day to make his dream of going to the NFL come true. The interesting thing about the Bergen Catholic prodigy is his passion and drive to win. He bench presses 300 lbs, squats 500 lbs, and deadlifts 450 lbs at 225 lbs at 16 years old.
At a young age, when Marck was asked what he wanted to be when you grew up”. People laughed and thought he was crazy when he said he wanted to go to the NFL. Fast forward to today, Marck is being recruited by many collegiate Division 1 football programs. His dream ever since he touched a football was to go to the NFL. That has always been the goal and his work ethic shows how determined he is to get to this goal. He has already helped one of the winningest New Jersey football teams, Bergen Catholic win a state championship this year. He has made a statement at the middle linebacker position as an underclassman with 46 tackles in just 12 games. He is eyeing a big junior season as Marck consistently works out and trains hard to become better each day.
Q: What motivates you the most?
A: “My family motivates me and inspires me the most. They provided me with good academics and athletics in order to become the successful man I always wanted to be. Another thing that makes me take pride in being successful in football is my love for the game. Through my good and bad times, football has always been there for me.”
Q: What does it take to be recruited/get offers?
A: “The recipe is dedication and discipline. Not giving up on yourself and believing in yourself is important. You have to be around a good crowd and not get distracted. Don’t go down a bad path and it’s better to not follow the crowd sometimes. You have to make sacrifices to be great.”
Q: How do you mentally prepare yourself for games?
A: I stretch and meditate every night regardless if it’s off-season or in-season. During game time, I listen to soft music as it calms my emotions and dosen’t get me nervous. I’m calm before the storm and I think “hype-up” music gets me too psyched out. I don’t look at any social media before the games. I don’t think I need much more than that”.
Q: What is the biggest obstacle or time when you faced the most adversity?
A: “I have dealt with a torn labrum during wrestling season in 8th grade. I popped my shoulder out during wrestling season in 8th grade but thought nothing of it. It popped out from physical contact easily until it got much more serious during my freshman year. I got taken out of the game on a medical cart and went to the hospital. I wanted to get my injury over with and decided to get surgery. I didn’t want this injury to affect me later in my high school career as it would prevent me from playing to the best ability. I had to build up my strength in my left shoulder. This made me motivated to be the best I have ever been before and I feel like I am in the best shape I have ever been. I just have to keep working hard and get stronger each day.
