JimBob
02-11-2008, 09:27 AM
Poet player brings verse to OSU team
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
2/11/2008
Freshman Marshall Moses, a prolific writer, improves on the court.
STILLWATER -- In Oklahoma State's continuing search for post players, the Cowboys may have found themselves a poet player.
Freshman forward Marshall Moses played less than one minute in OSU's first four Big 12 games. He has averaged 11.5 minutes of court time while playing in four of five games since.
"I think he's getting better," said coach Sean Sutton, who indicated that Moses was one of few Cowboys who played "pretty well at times" in a Saturday loss at Kansas State.
"Some freshmen, it takes longer than others. I think it's starting to click for him."
Time will tell if Moses has the right stuff, but he's pretty sure he has the write stuff. Moses, who will major in journalism, said people have always told him he is a gifted writer.
"I've got notebooks stacked up to here of stories and poems," he said.
"I used to write scary movie type stories, creative type stuff. And then I kind of wrote a book of poetry, kind of like Edgar Allen Poe used to do, with that book he's got with just different poems. I kind of did that and just put it all together. I wrote a story about my life and things that I grew up seeing and things that I noticed about life and the world and my opinion on them."
Asked if you have to be secure in your masculinity to write poetry, Moses said, "You have to. Sometimes it's for the women. You never know."
Apparently, the fellows think Moses has a way with words, too, whether it's a rap or something on paper.
"I know Marcus (Dove) and those guys, they are going to tell me the truth," Moses said.
"They love it. Sometimes they call me and say 'Marshall, man, just come over and give us some poems or something.' And I'm like 'I'm in bed, dude.' But it makes me feel better to know that other people like my work that much, so maybe if I get into it, the world will have a chance to enjoy it just as much as they do."
Moses isn't ready for the real world quite yet. The 18-year-old admits he's not far removed from kid stuff. He said he just stopped playing with toys about two years ago. He loves cartoons, especially "SpongeBob SquarePants." He even has animation on his body, sort of. Of his nine tattoos, five are religious in nature.
"I grew up in the church and I love God," he said. "He got me here and He got me through the crazy stuff we went through in the summer in getting ready for the summer and just in life period. If I don't give my blessings to Him, I know my blessings won't come or flow as well as they should."
When Moses arrived in Stillwater, he learned that some blessings had to be earned.
Because Moses was superior physically to many high school players he faced in North Carolina and South Carolina, he didn't always give 100 percent effort. He felt like quitting when he wasn't rewarded with immediate playing time at the college level, but his father told him it's how one deals with adversity that makes him a man.
"I feel like our coaches do a great job of pushing me because I'm one of those guys that if you don't push me, I will stay right there," he said.
"Whatever level I'm at right now, if no one is pushing me, I will be there. If no one is getting me up and telling me go take some shots or get in the gym and run some extra sprints, then I won't do it.
"I don't feel like nothing is wrong with that. Some guys just have extra ambition. But I'm glad I do have people in my corner pushing me so I can become the best player I can be."
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
2/11/2008
Freshman Marshall Moses, a prolific writer, improves on the court.
STILLWATER -- In Oklahoma State's continuing search for post players, the Cowboys may have found themselves a poet player.
Freshman forward Marshall Moses played less than one minute in OSU's first four Big 12 games. He has averaged 11.5 minutes of court time while playing in four of five games since.
"I think he's getting better," said coach Sean Sutton, who indicated that Moses was one of few Cowboys who played "pretty well at times" in a Saturday loss at Kansas State.
"Some freshmen, it takes longer than others. I think it's starting to click for him."
Time will tell if Moses has the right stuff, but he's pretty sure he has the write stuff. Moses, who will major in journalism, said people have always told him he is a gifted writer.
"I've got notebooks stacked up to here of stories and poems," he said.
"I used to write scary movie type stories, creative type stuff. And then I kind of wrote a book of poetry, kind of like Edgar Allen Poe used to do, with that book he's got with just different poems. I kind of did that and just put it all together. I wrote a story about my life and things that I grew up seeing and things that I noticed about life and the world and my opinion on them."
Asked if you have to be secure in your masculinity to write poetry, Moses said, "You have to. Sometimes it's for the women. You never know."
Apparently, the fellows think Moses has a way with words, too, whether it's a rap or something on paper.
"I know Marcus (Dove) and those guys, they are going to tell me the truth," Moses said.
"They love it. Sometimes they call me and say 'Marshall, man, just come over and give us some poems or something.' And I'm like 'I'm in bed, dude.' But it makes me feel better to know that other people like my work that much, so maybe if I get into it, the world will have a chance to enjoy it just as much as they do."
Moses isn't ready for the real world quite yet. The 18-year-old admits he's not far removed from kid stuff. He said he just stopped playing with toys about two years ago. He loves cartoons, especially "SpongeBob SquarePants." He even has animation on his body, sort of. Of his nine tattoos, five are religious in nature.
"I grew up in the church and I love God," he said. "He got me here and He got me through the crazy stuff we went through in the summer in getting ready for the summer and just in life period. If I don't give my blessings to Him, I know my blessings won't come or flow as well as they should."
When Moses arrived in Stillwater, he learned that some blessings had to be earned.
Because Moses was superior physically to many high school players he faced in North Carolina and South Carolina, he didn't always give 100 percent effort. He felt like quitting when he wasn't rewarded with immediate playing time at the college level, but his father told him it's how one deals with adversity that makes him a man.
"I feel like our coaches do a great job of pushing me because I'm one of those guys that if you don't push me, I will stay right there," he said.
"Whatever level I'm at right now, if no one is pushing me, I will be there. If no one is getting me up and telling me go take some shots or get in the gym and run some extra sprints, then I won't do it.
"I don't feel like nothing is wrong with that. Some guys just have extra ambition. But I'm glad I do have people in my corner pushing me so I can become the best player I can be."