He faced adversity. He could've left. But this York football star will be a West Point grad

Ay'Jaun Marshall thought he might need a change.

The West York grad had finished his sophomore season on the Army football team and decided to enter the transfer portal. He was a few months from his Affirmation at the U.S. Military Academy and could freely leave for another school if he wanted.

Becoming a West Point cadet had been a difficult adjustment. He imagined what it must be like to have a typical college experience while still playing high-level football.

"I was at a point where I was set on leaving," he said. "Talking to some professors and mentors showed me I could do this. There were other guys on the team similar to me who didn't have a military background.

"I realized I was exactly where I was supposed to be ... even if it was hard."

Almost three years later, Marshall is preparing to graduate from West Point this spring and be commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He played four years of college football — winning three Army-Navy games and two bowl games. He played in some of the most historic venues in college football.

That doesn't mean it got easier. Attending a service academy can be a monotonous and often grueling experience. And Marshall will be the first to admit his football career didn't go exactly as he hoped. A promising junior season was followed by a frustrating senior campaign this fall.

But he persevered. The slotback had one of the best performances of his career during his final home game. A few weeks later, he celebrated winning another Commander-in-Chiefs Trophy in the locker room of the New England Patriots' Gillette Stadium.

He has the opportunity to workout in front of NFL scouts this spring.

More importantly, he's set up for a successful career in both the military and eventually the private sector. He had the football experiences he always dreamed of and the life experiences he never imagined until Army began recruiting him his junior year of high school.

"You can't be regular to do this," he said. "I had some tough times where I didn't want to do this anymore, but I always remembered how excited I was to get that Army offer.

"That version of me saw the vision of what I was able to do."

Life at West Point: 'You get used to the routine'

Repetition breeds discipline. Marshall knows it sounds cliche, but it's the best way to describe the daily grind at West Point.

Wake up at 6 a.m. for morning formation. Breakfast at 7:30. Class for the next four hours. Another formation and lunch. An hour of academic or military training. Then roughly six hours dedicated to team meetings, practice, workouts and team dinner. Then a few hours of homework before an 11:30 p.m. bed check.

"You get used to the routine," he said. "Eventually you get comfortable with it, and that follows the theme of the academy."

His time at the academy got off to a very uncomfortable start.

A 2019 West York grad, Marshall spent his first year studying and playing football at West Point's on-campus prep school — a precursor to his four years at the academy and a common path for athletes. A three-week boot camp that summer was difficult and a wakeup call to the strict discipline required in the military.

But nothing he experienced during that year of acclimation could prepare him for the coronavirus pandemic that spring.

During his recruitment, Marshall was told that West Point was regimented but not a prison. He would still have freedom. But his freshman year in 2020-21 was absolutely spent in a bubble.

"We weren't allowed to leave campus at all for months," he said of the academy's strict COVID restrictions. "It was rough. You really had to take it one day at a time because there was already a lot of our plates with football on top of being students."

'Nothing like' playing football for Army

If there was a silver lining, Marshall said his rigorous routine felt more relaxed the following years because of how strict that first year was. And by then, he started to find more success on the football field.

A versatile player who could play running back and receiver, Marshall got three carries in a Liberty Bowl win over West Virginia his freshman year. He scored his first touchdown as a sophomore. And as a junior, he rushed for 256 yards on 24 carries (11 yards per carry) and had 208 receiving yards on just six catches (35 yards per catch).

He routinely played in front of 38,000 fans at Army's historic Michie Stadium and won a double overtime game over Navy at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field. He met Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin after the annual rivalry game one season.

"If you want to play big-time Division I football, you get that here," he said. "You play Power Five schools. The Army-Navy Game feels like the Super Bowl because it's the only game on that day. The buildup, the hype, College GameDay, the atmosphere ... there's honestly nothing like it."

Off the field, he was beginning to see the bigger picture of why he chose West Point. The summer before his junior year, he shadowed a lieutenant at Fort Campbell on the border of Kentucky and Tennessee.

He realized the leadership skills he learned in football would translate to his career.

"The platoon leader is like the quarterback or head coach," he said. "It's just like building relationships with your teammates."

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Coming full circle

As his senior season continued, Marshall grew frustrated.

He entered this fall with high expectations as one of Army's most explosive playmakers. But he fumbled in each of the Black Knights first two games. His playing time dwindled as a result.

"This wasn't how it was supposed to go," he thought. He had remained committed and worked hard when he could've left. Was this really how his career was going to end?

He reminded himself this was Division I football. Everyone was working hard. What happened to that kid who put up consecutive 1,800-yard seasons in high school and was still worried he wouldn't get a scholarship? How would he handle this situation?

"'He would kill to be in this moment right now,'" Marshall said of what he told himself. "'Find that version of you again.' I tried to hone in on my craft more."

Marshall had seven carries for 64 yards and a touchdown in a 28-21 win over Coastal Carolina on Senior Day. He called it a "full circle" moment. He had four touches for 28 yards in a dramatic 17-11 win over Navy in the final game of his career.

He will participate in Army's pro day in March. West Point football players are allowed to defer their military service if they get the opportunity to play in the NFL, but Marshall knows it's not likely he'll be drafted. He's required to serve at least five years in the military and is waiting to find out where he'll be stationed after graduation.

A law major, he'll be serving in the Armor Branch — meaning he'll be working with tanks.

He doesn't know what his future will hold after that. But a few years after he considered a change, he's glad he stayed on the same path.

"I can walk away knowing I put my best foot forward," he said. "There's not a lot of West Point graduates. Only 1,000 a year. A lot of people don't make it through. It's something very important, and it's been a blessing."

Matt Allibone is a sports reporter for GameTimePA. He can be reached at 717-881-8221, mallibone@ydr.com or on X at @bad2theallibone.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Army football player Ay'Jaun Marshall set to graduate from West Point