Former Vol wide receiver Marquez North hasn’t been in the headlines much since he surprised fans by forgoing his senior season in 2016 and entering the NFL Draft early. But now North’s name has resurfaced, and he may have a new home soon.
According to a report from National Football Post writer Aaron Wilson, the Dallas Cowboys worked out the former Vol on Monday.
Dallas Cowboys worked out wide receiver Marquez North today, according to a source
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) June 26, 2017
Although he was never his head coach, it’s worth noting that former Tennessee head football coach, Derek Dooley, is the wide receivers coach for Dallas. Dooley didn’t recruit North, but the two do share a Tennessee connection.
North left Tennessee early after an injury-riddled junior campaign in 2015 saw him appear in just seven games. North went undrafted despite impressing scouts at the NFL Combine but was eventually signed by the Los Angeles Rams. He spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury, however. The Rams cut him on June 20th along with three other players. Another former Vol, Brian Randolph, was released by the Rams a day later.
North burst onto the scene with the Vols as a freshman in 2013, hauling in a toe-tapping touchdown grab in Tennessee’s oh-so-close upset bid against Georgia and brought down the catch of Tennessee’s 2013 season when he made a one-handed snag deep down the field against South Carolina two weeks later. North would finish his freshman season with 38 catches for 496 yards and a score.
But North could never replicate his freshmen year results after that, and injury was partially to blame. He played in just 10 of the Vols’ 13 games in 2014 and caught 30 passes for 320 yards and four touchdowns. Then came his junior season that saw him hampered by multiple injuries. North would catch just six balls for 58 yards in seven games in his final year with Tennessee.
If North can make the Cowboys’ roster, he would join former Vol tight end Jason Witten as the only two Vols in Dallas.
