Marvin Powell

Bio

There are many ways to describe him: Marvin Powell the athlete, Marvin Powell the scholar, Marvin Powell the writer, Marvin Powell the lawyer. He is all of these. He stood 6-5, weighed 270, and played offensive tackle for Southern California. As a sophomore in 1974, he helped his team win the national championship. He starred in a famous game against Notre Dame. Southern Cal trailed at the half 24-6, then scored 49 consecutive points and won 55-24. He was all-conference three years and first-team all-America two, and he graduated in 1977 with a degree in political science and speech. Powell played professionally 1977-88 with the New York Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. For part of this time he wrote a newspaper column. He was elected president of the players' union. He worked as an intern at the New York Stock Exchange and spent six off-seasons getting a law degree. In an interview for a Southern California alumni publication, Powell talked about personal goals: "I was never afraid to set a lofty goal and then go for it. I didn't care what anybody thought. My father always encouraged me to shoot for everything. The key is striving to achieve a goal. If you fall short, so what? At least you went for it. As long as you want it and are willing to sacrifice for it, it doesn't matter whether you get there."

Career Highlights

• 1976 All-Conference
• 1976 First Team All-America
• 1975 All-Conference
• 1975 First Team All-America
• 1974 All-Conference