Nick Marshall has Gotta brush up on his Saskatchewan Roughriders history.
On Sunday, Marshall became the first Roughrider to score an offensive touchdown and a defensive major in the same game since Jack Gotta did so on Aug. 23, 1963.
Gotta scored touchdowns on a 21-yard reception and on a 34-yard interception return in a 17-16 loss to the Calgary Stampeders 55 years ago. Marshall scored on a 67-yard pick-six and on a three-yard run during Saskatchewan’s 40-27 victory over Calgary on Sunday at Mosaic Stadium.
Asked if he’d be looking in the record book to see if the feat had been accomplished before in franchise history, the first-year CFLer replied: “I don’t too much worry about that. I’m just here to do my job and help my team get a victory.”
Marshall has played a huge role in two of Saskatchewan’s four wins this season.
“He just knows how to find the end zone.”
On June 15, he had a 66-yard interception return for a touchdown in the Roughriders’ 27-19 victory over the Toronto Argonauts. Then came Sunday’s two-way performance.
“I can put him just about anywhere,” Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones said of Marshall who, having missed five games with a broken bone in his left wrist, 
was playing in just his third game of the season Sunday.
“You can put him at running back, you can put him at quarterback, you can put him at receiver (and) you can put him at any of our defensive back spots. He just knows how to play football.
“Prior to the season starting, I told his high school coach that we were planning on playing (Marshall) at defensive back and (the coach) was just begging me, ‘Man, that guy is dynamic with the ball in his hands (on offence).’ That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Jones, who has been a coach in the CFL since 2002, couldn’t remember any other instances of a player scoring on offence and defence in the same game. But he wasn’t overly shocked that Marshall managed to do it.
“He just knows how to find the end zone,” Jones said.
Marshall started his college career as a cornerback at the University of Georgia, but moved to quarterback after transferring to Garden City Community College. He then stayed at QB after transferring to Auburn University.
When it came time to turn pro, Marshall voluntarily moved to defensive back, thinking it gave him a better chance of finding employment in the NFL. He had stints as a DB with the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets before being released early in 2017.
He signed with Saskatchewan this spring and, during training camp, was deployed as a QB in the Wildcat formation. He hadn’t played quarterback in a CFL game until Sunday, when he got the call for one play in the third quarter.
“I can remember watching him play in college,” quarterback Zach Collaros said. “Everybody in the stadium knew he was going to run the football in that Wildcat thing that they did at Auburn and he would still figure out ways to get yards and make big plays.
“He’s just an unbelievable talent. If we wanted to line him up at receiver, I’m sure he’d go do that as well.”
Marshall likely will get more chances on offence this season, too; Jones said Marshall will be the short-yardage QB for the Roughriders, who have struggled to convert quarterback sneaks.
“Over the break, he called me and he told me, ‘You put me in there and I’ll get a yard,’ ” Jones said. “That’s why we did it (Sunday).”
Marshall’s only carry against the Stampeders produced the lone touchdown scored by Saskatchewan’s offence in the game — the unit’s ninth major of the season. His pick-six was the fifth TD of the season for Saskatchewan’s defence.
In addition to Marshall’s two majors, Tobi Antigha and Duron Carter have scored on interception returns and Charleston Hughes has scored on a fumble return.
Marshall already has tied the franchise’s single-season record for pick-sixes, joining Chris McKenzie (2011), Jackie Mitchell (2003), LaDouphyous McCalla (2000), Bryce Bevill (1996) and Glen Suitor (1987) in the team’s record book.
Marshall’s theft Sunday was the result of seeing the same route earlier in the game. DaVaris Daniels ran an out on Marshall, but the DB undercut the receiver, snared the ball and took off to the end zone.
“That comes from me playing quarterback,” said Marshall, a 26-year-old product of Pineview, Ga. “By recognizing the routes and how the receivers line up, it just gives me better anticipation on the ball.”
That said, Marshall also had his down moments. On Calgary’s first possession after the pick-six, for example, Daniels got behind Marshall for a 45-yard touchdown catch.
“You’re going to get beat playing this game,” Marshall said. “You’ve got to have a short-term memory playing defensive back. That’s what I did.”
Defensive back Ed Gainey noted that Marshall has done a good job of winning his one-on-one battles in Saskatchewan’s matchup defence. That was the case Aug. 2 in Edmonton, where Marshall held Eskimos receiver Duke Williams in check during Saskatchewan’s 26-19 loss.
Gainey pointed to Marshall’s ability to read receivers’ hips and to break on footballs when they’re thrown — skills that have led to his two return TDs. His score on offence Sunday was a reflection of his talents as a quarterback.
“He’s got a lot on his plate,” Gainey said. “They’re calling his number and when they do call his number, he’s showing up. Good for him and good for our team.”
