When Marley Cook entered the Portal, Miami had a pretty good idea of what he could do against ACC competition. The 6’2, 305-pound Middle Tennessee transfer was a terror against the Canes in 2022 and finished that season with 49 pressures, fifth among defensive tackles in the nation. He ultimately chose Miami over Ohio State and Baylor. Below is everything he was telling reporters after the latest spring practice:
On squatting 705 pounds at Miami: I did 705 at my senior year of high school in a powerlifting meet (he was state powerlifting champion in Mississippi). The most I did [at Middle Tennessee] was like 635. They made me stop because they wanted to keep me safe. When I got here, they kept loading the bar. Coach Feld, he's like, “Keep going, keep going.” I looked at it and said, “Yeah, let's get it. It’s on now.”
On how he uses his weight-room strength on the field: Using my technique. Everybody on the outside looks at lifting weights, but the technique really matters. Your technique expands everything.
On his weight: Today, I weighed 305, 306.
On why he chose Miami: I've seen the potential they had. I watched the majority of their games. I said, “Yeah, this team is pretty young, but let’s get a couple of older guys in to uplift the younger guys.” You got talent everywhere. We just gotta let them know the standard.
On what he brings to the program: Dominance. I'm very disruptive. A real good competitor. Great leader. I just want to put all my chips in and get this program the best I can get it. Give everything that I got.
On the defensive line rotation at Miami: You got a lot of competition going on. You’ve got Double H (Jared Harrison-Hunte) and you got Thomas [Gore] going inside. Me and CJ [Clark] are going to be competing for those spots. It's a real good competition. They're making us better and we're making them better every day.
On squatting 705 pounds at Miami: I did 705 at my senior year of high school in a powerlifting meet (he was state powerlifting champion in Mississippi). The most I did [at Middle Tennessee] was like 635. They made me stop because they wanted to keep me safe. When I got here, they kept loading the bar. Coach Feld, he's like, “Keep going, keep going.” I looked at it and said, “Yeah, let's get it. It’s on now.”
On how he uses his weight-room strength on the field: Using my technique. Everybody on the outside looks at lifting weights, but the technique really matters. Your technique expands everything.
On his weight: Today, I weighed 305, 306.
On why he chose Miami: I've seen the potential they had. I watched the majority of their games. I said, “Yeah, this team is pretty young, but let’s get a couple of older guys in to uplift the younger guys.” You got talent everywhere. We just gotta let them know the standard.
On what he brings to the program: Dominance. I'm very disruptive. A real good competitor. Great leader. I just want to put all my chips in and get this program the best I can get it. Give everything that I got.
On the defensive line rotation at Miami: You got a lot of competition going on. You’ve got Double H (Jared Harrison-Hunte) and you got Thomas [Gore] going inside. Me and CJ [Clark] are going to be competing for those spots. It's a real good competition. They're making us better and we're making them better every day.
