After the 2012 National Football League Draft concluded, there was a mad dash to begin signing undrafted free agents. No sooner had the draft ended than the Oakland Raiders put pen to paper to sign Fort Valley State University (FVSU) punter Marquette King. King, a First Team All-SIAC member and recently voted the 2011 FVSU Wildcats Most Valuable Player signed a three-year deal with Raiders.
“The reason they were so impressed was because he was constantly booming 70 and 80 yard punts on the sidelines of the practice, which were recorded at over 5.6 seconds hang time. That is a pretty amazing statistic. This year alone Marquette has punted an 80 yarder against Bethune Cookman University and a 76 yard punt against Clark Atlanta University. These punts are not a fluke; this kid can do it, over and over again.
Marquette King might be the most special punter coming out of college since Shane Lechler of Oakland in 2000... This year alone [King] has hit two bombs over 75 yards and they were in the air the complete time.”
In his final season at FVSU, King led the conference in punting with a 43 yards per punt average. His longest punt of the season was an 80 yard kick. 21 of his punts landed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. 16 of his punts were for 50 yards or more and of his 60 punt attempts during the season, only one was blocked. King is a native of Macon, Georgia.