As the sunrise began illuminating the sky behind him and the waves lapped at his feet, Marcus Mariota jogged along Oahu’s south shore Thursday, something he’d done hundreds of times previously.
Only this early morning at Sandy Beach, his home away from home since intermediate school days, was different.
No longer the Saint Louis School or University of Oregon student luxuriating in a laid-back summer vacation, this was business for the Tennessee Titans’ quarterback.
For the first time since becoming the second overall pick of the NFL Draft in April, Mariota’s time at Sandy’s would be well scripted ("5:50 a.m …. Marcus stops to watch the sunrise … 6:25 a.m. close-up of Marcus’ face as he runs.") and his opportunities to get in the water almost nonexistent.
Whether running, throwing a football or doing shuttle drills around rocks arranged on the sand, it was choreographed by a director who, barely audible above the pounding surf and whistling wind, shouted, "Action, Marcus!"
As Mariota responded, he was shadowed by a drone that whirled above, one of several cameras employed for an upcoming commercial for Island Insurance, his sixth and latest endorsement deal.
All while Mariota was attired in a succession of items from Nike, another sponsor, as his New York-based agent, Alan Zucker, looked on.
Zucker said plans are taking shape for Mariota to share some of that good fortune through a charitable foundation, for which the paperwork has already begun.
No matter how inviting the waves or how many arriving surfers beckoned him to join them, exchanging "shakas" on the way to the water, Mariota’s boogie board remained at home and he would not be able to venture into the surf at much beyond ankle height.
"Oh, man, the conditions are good today, too," Mariota sighed.
"He’ll probably sneak back out later this afternoon, if he gets half the chance" his mother, Alana Deppe-Mariota, said knowingly.
And there would be a stop at Zippy’s he said. "Have to," he said.
To be sure, the hours between returning home Tuesday night and his scheduled Sunday departure for Nashville to work out in preparation for the July 30 opening of preseason camp have become precious for Mariota.
"It is a great blessing to come home and just hang out with my parents and take these few days and enjoy it," Mariota said. "I think this break has really allowed me to to kind of relax, focus again and get ready for camp."
Mariota and his agents have declined to address his contract negotiations but the fact he is said to have purchased an upscale condo in Nashville suggests a resolution might not be far off.
Meanwhile, the respite here has permitted him to flash back on the whirlwind that has been the past eight months. In that span he’s graduated from Oregon, played in the Pac-12 title game, the Rose Bowl, the national championship game, prepped for the NFL Combine and Draft and attended rookie camp, OTAs and minicamp. "It has been unbelievable, I’m very thankful for all the experiences," Mariota said.
Left to his own thoughts while staring out at sea during a break in the shooting, Mariota said, "It has been good for me to just kind of unwind and reflect a little bit on what has happened the past year. I can reflect on just how far I’ve come. I mean, 10-15 years ago (while running at Sandy’s) if you had told me I was gonna be in Nashville, Tennessee playing for the Titans, I would have just shook my head. I mean, it is all such a dream come true for me."
Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.
