Marquel Blackwell enters his second season as running backs coach with the Toledo Rockets following a stellar debut in 2016.
Under Blackwell’s direction, senior Terry Swanson earned first team All-MAC honors in 2017. Swanson has rushed for 1,319 yards and 14 touchdowns, averaging 109.9 yards per game. Swanson’s total rushing yards are most in the MAC and his 14 TDs are second in the league. The rushing offense as a whole has averaged 218.0 yards per game, third-best in the MAC.
Blackwell has also overseen freshman Shakif Seymour’s excellent 2017 campaign. Seymour has rushed for 704 yards, second-most on the team, and has 12 rushing touchdowns, third in the MAC and fourth among all freshmen in FBS. Against Bowling Green, Seymour tied a school record with five rushing touchdowns.
In his first year with the program, Blackwell helped coach senior running back Kareem Hunt to a record-breaking season. Hunt led the MAC and was 15th in the nation with 1,475 yards rushing. He rushed for at least 100 yards on eight occasions and continued his streak of 742 chances without a fumble. It was his 28th collegiate game with 100 rushing yards, breaking former NFL running back Chester Taylor for the most such performances by a Rocket. Hunt also became Toledo’s all-time leader in career rushing with 4,945 yards, which ranks third in MAC history. The 2016 first-team All-MAC selection was invited to play in the Senior Bowl where he won North Outstanding Player. Hunt was selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Blackwell’s running backs pride themselves on taking care of the football. Since losing a fumble in the first half of the 2016 season opener, Toledo’s running backs did not lose another fumble, giving them a streak of 12 consecutive games without a lost fumble.
Under Blackwell’s guidance, Toledo ranked fourth in the MAC in rushing offense (195.0 ypg) in 2016. He helped four running backs to gain 200 yards or more rushing during the season. Junior running back Terry Swanson was second on the team with 600 rushing yards.
Prior to his post at Toledo, Blackwell has coached 20 high school players who have gone on to earn Division I scholarships, as well as three college players who became first-round NFL draft picks.
A native of St. Petersburg, Fla., Blackwell prepped at Dixie Hollins High School before attending the University of South Florida, where he played quarterback for the Bulls from 1999-2002. He was a three-year captain and led the Bulls to a 9-2 record in his senior season. In his career, Blackwell threw for 9,108 yards and 57 touchdowns, and had 1,235 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. He had a brief stint in the NFL with the New York Jets before beginning his coaching career.
Blackwell’s first coaching positions came at Freedom High School in New Tampa, Fla., first as the offensive coordinator in 2006, then as the head coach from 2007-08. He returned to his alma mater to become a quality control coach at South Florida from 2009-11.
Following a year as the running backs coach at Western Kentucky in 2012, Blackwell once again returned to South Florida, assuming the post of director of player development in 2013. He returned to the high school ranks in 2014, assuming the post of offensive coordinator at Lakewood High School in his home town of St. Petersburg. In 2015, he was a quality control specialist at Florida, working primarily with the Gator quarterbacks.
Blackwell earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from South Florida in 2002. He and his wife Sharvettye have two daughters, LeQuay (3) and Shaye (1).
Marquel Blackwell’s Coaching Experience
2016-17 Toledo – Running Backs
2015 Florida – Quality Control Specialist
2014 Lakewood (FL) High School – Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator
2013 South Florida – Director of Player Development
2012 Western Kentucky – Running Backs
2009-11 South Florida – Quality Control
2007-08 Freedom (FL) High School – Head Coach
2006 Freedom (FL) High School – Offensive Coordinator
