More questions than answers surrounded Kansas defensive, lineman D.J. Marshall, and his family when they learned he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in early November. Now about a month and a half later, D.J and his family are becoming more and more confident that D.J. will be back in Lawrence for good in the near future.
This fall has been a hectic time for David Marshall, D.J.’s father, and his family. When D.J. noticed the lump near his chest/neck area earlier this year, it was quickly dismissed by doctors who said it was just a swollen gland. As the lump grew in late summer, D.J. once again had it looked at, at that time it was discovered that he had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Before the diagnosis, David Marshall’s biggest challenge was trying to get college coaches around the country to take notice of his younger son, Robert, who had transferred to A Maceo Smith High School (TX). Once the news came of D.J.’s diagnosis, David quickly did whatever needed to be done to ensure that his oldest son would have everything he needed to fight the disease. It hasn’t been easy for anyone in the Marshall family, especially D.J., who has been undergoing chemotherapy treatments in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Having just received a treatment this past Tuesday, D.J. and his family are hoping that he will be given a clean bill of health very soon.
“He has chemotherapy on Tuesday,” David Marshall said of D.J. last week. “He has five more over the next ten weeks, and then they will rescan him to see if it’s all gone. We’re hoping that he is back to school and playing ball soon. Probably not during spring ball, but hopefully this summer,” added Marshall.
Great news for both D.J. and his family and the University of Kansas. The outlook for a full recovery wasn’t so sure for David Marshall after speaking to doctors a few weeks ago.
“They thought it was worse. They saw some spots on his lungs and thought the cancer had spread. They thought it was now at stage 4 cancer, but the great news was that the spots were not cancer,” David Marshall said. “It’s back to stage 1 now,” added Marshall.
Throughout the last month and a half, D.J. has been in contact with multiple coaches from the former Kansas coaching staff. One member in particular, former head coach Mark Mangino, reached out to Marshall often over the past month and half.
“Coach Mangino called the day after Thanksgiving to check in on him,” Marshall said. “He has been very consistent in checking up on D.J. He has called him 4-5 times since D.J. was diagnosed,” added Marshall.
As for returning to the football field, D.J. is being told that he should be able to run into Memorial Stadium with his teammates once again.
“The first doctor said the he wouldn’t play football again,” David Marshall said. “These doctors now say once it’s gone, he can do everything again,” added Marshall.
As for his younger son, David Marshall says things are looking pretty good for Robert. After having a terrific season at A Maceo Smith High School, Robert is getting noticed by some great football programs around the country. The latest being Michigan and Clemson, who have both visited A Maceo Smith to see Robert and get his transcripts.
Robert’s season is one his dad is very proud of, and one that Robert put a lot of hard work into. At 6′1″, 225 pounds, Robert’s size and speed has made him one of the top players in Texas to remain un-signed. He led his district in rushing in 2009 with 1,185 yards in 9 games. In a game that ended with a forfeit by A Maceo Smith, Robert rushed for 150 yards before the game was called in the second half. His season high was 285 yards after missing most of that week in school with the flu. 255 of the 285 yards came in the first half, as Robert didn’t play but a few minutes of the second half.
