Mike Boynton and his staff took another step toward completing Oklahoma State’s 2023-24 hoops roster last week with the addition of Jacksonville transfer center Mike Marsh.
Marsh started his career at junior college USC-Salkehatchie before transferring to Dodge City Community College and then spending the past two years in Jacksonville. Marsh spoke with PFB this weekend about his journey to Stillwater and committing to OSU.
PFB: Why Oklahoma State?
Marsh: “I chose Oklahoma State because more of the tradition of how they play. I chose Oklahoma State because of the relationship that I have built with the coaches over time.”
PFB: It kind of happened quietly. Can you take us through the process? How did OSU et in contact with you?
Marsh: “The way I got a contract with OSU was me and my mom, we decided what will be the ultimate best idea for us to do instead of going back to Jacksonville. We were just like, I need to go somewhere where I can play and that they play like my playstyle. I’ve was talking to them just a little bit just because my assistant [Trevor Deloach] at Jacksonville, he knows them. I was talking with them a little bit and then every day, I just began to build a stronger relationship. Coach Mike Boynton, he was calling me every day and stuff like that. I felt cared about, and I just said I think this is it.”
PFB: Who were some of the other teams you were considering before picking OSU?
Marsh: “Clemson, Ole Miss, Milwaukee, Tulsa – that’s all I can name off the top of my head.”
PFB: You’ve had a unique journey. Can you take us through it? How did you end up at USC-Salkehatchie?
Marsh: “I was at Salkehatchie. That was probably one of the worst JUCOs in America. I was at Salkehatchie. We actually won the conference there. And my coach, Coach Jake Williams, he got a better job in the Jayhawk Conference. I decided it would be best for me to just go with him. I had a pretty good year there or whatever. When I was at USC-Salke I was actually 310 pounds.”
PFB: That was actually on my list of questions. I saw some highlights from your time at Salkehatchie and you looked thicker. Where did that change come from?
Marsh: “It happened during quarantine. There was really not too much that you could do because there were no gyms and stuff. I just decided that would be a good time to get in shape, trim down because everybody was just at home and just chilling. Nobody was really doing nothing because the gym was closed. So, I just used that time to lock into what really matters. And you know, it just came about for me.”
PFB: What were you doing to lose the weight?
Marsh: “I actually left fast food alone, and I actually started running 100-yard wind sprints, and little things like that. Drinking a gallon of water a day, and just leaving that fast food alone, man. That’s what helped me.”
PFB: Where were you running the sprints?
Marsh: “I live like about 10 minutes away from Airport High School. I was using their football field, the bleachers, the track at least twice a day.”
PFB: Was it a culture shock leaving South Carolina for Dodge City, Kansas?
Marsh: “It was a big challenge mentally, but I actually knew I had no choice to go there. Like, I really had no choice. I just thought about my future, man, and I just did what I had to do. I had to take care of business, but I didn’t have a choice.”
PFB: Have you seen ‘Last Chance U,’ the basketball one? Was that what it was like?
Marsh: “USC-Salke was worse than that. It’s what it’s like, man, but I’m not gonna lie, it’s worse, man. The court is rubber. It was a rubber court. No cafeteria, no trainers, the living was horrible. But you know, man, I just took all that in and just used it and I embraced it.”
PFB: At what point did you realize you could go Division-I?
Marsh: “Probably when I picked up a basketball. When I first picked up a basketball was my 11th-grade year. That’s when I said I feel like I can really go somewhere. I actually played football before I played basketball. I played defensive end. I was a football guy before I really got into basketball. But when I first picked up a basketball probably was my 11th-grade year. I was getting good quicker than what I thought I would be. I said, yeah, I could really go D-I.”
PFB: How does someone who is 6-foot-11 not play basketball until the 11th grade? I imagine high school coaches were knocking your door down.
Marsh: “Every day. It was aggravating at one point. It all started off in middle school. When I was in sixth grade, they were trying to get you to play basketball that next year, but I was like, ‘No, I’m not a basketball guy.’ I was huge, man. In seventh grade, I was like, 6-7, freaking like 290 [pounds]. So I was like, ‘Nah, I’m not in basketball shape.’ So I just didn’t play my seventh-grade year, eighth-grade year. The high school coaches, they wanted me to give it a shot my ninth-grade year because of how fast I was growing. So, I actually began to try it out. I didn’t really like it my ninth-grade year. My 10th-grade year, I gave it another shot and really just still didn’t like it. And then when I went back to football, and I ended getting hurt. I got hurt, and I just said you know what, maybe it’s time for me to move on to another sport because I was growing really, really fast. When you’re so tall in football, man, they aim straight for your legs.”
PFB: So then you do go D-I, what was the transition like from Dodge City to Jacksonville?
Marsh: “It was pretty quick, actually. At Kansas, because it was COVID, a lot of coaches weren’t really trying to recruit me because it was just only film. They weren’t able to go to our games because of COVID or whatever. But Trevor Deloach, I’ve known him since a very long time, like probably like my freshman year in high school. He was the one that influenced me to play basketball and stuff because I started playing AAU. But Trevor Deloach, I had a strong relationship with him. He was at Nicholls State. He got a job at Jacksonville University as an assistant. He said that would be a good fit for me. It was either them or Murray State. I just didn’t want to be in the middle of nowhere and be on a team where I knew absolutely no one. So I was just like, why not? I know Trevor Deloach. I trust him, and that was that.”
PFB: Did you take a visit to Oklahoma State?
Marsh: “No, sir. I haven’t been out there yet.”
PFB: What is that like signing with a program that you haven’t been to yet?
Marsh: “I’m pretty sure what I’m getting into. I did the same thing coming from Dodge City to Jacksonville, not being able to take a visit, just trusting it. One thing about me, I watch a ton of film before I actually go to a school, so I’ve actually been watching a ton of film on OSU way before Cade [Cunningham] was there. Just getting the touch of bases of how things are, how things will be. I actually saw Coach [Boynton], sometimes he played two bigs at once. I was like, ‘Oh, yeah. That’s a school that I would definitely want to go to.’”
PFB: You mentioned OSU fitting your playstyle, in what ways?
Marsh: “Shoot, OSU throws the ball inside. They throw it in a good bit of time.”
PFB: It’s going to be a new-look team this year. What has Boynton’s message been to you coming in?
Marsh: “One thing he mentioned to me, he was like, ‘Just be prepared to work. Be prepared to get out of your comfort zone.’ He always told me it’s all mental. Like 90% of the things that they do in practice, it’s all mental. So, I was able to just take from that and was able to try to get a feel for how next year is gonna be.”
PFB: Are you going to take a visit or will you just come out here when you move here?
Marsh: “I’m gonna come on a visit. I’m looking forward to come on a visit [this week]. I actually probably can’t come right now because I’m having a shoulder injury.”
PFB: What has the reception from the fanbase been like for you?
Marsh: “It’s been terrific. A lot of fans, a lot of people saying I was a great pickup, a good fit for OSU. I’m just very proud of what they look forward to what I can bring to impact winning. That was a great experience. I really, really love that.”
PFB: Have you talked with any of your future teammates yet?
Marsh: “I talked to Eric Dailey and Connor [Dow]. Those guys are really, really good guys, man. Eric Dailey, he’s a top guy in the country. It was really good just to have that type of guy to reach out to me.”