West Virginia Football Legend Rasheed Marshall Opens Up About Health Scare Journey

West Virginia football legend Rasheed Marshall has been a warrior on the football field, but is now being asked to be one off of it too.

Some may know about his recent health issues, but most likely don’t know the full details. Because he is still very much apart of the fabric of the football program and WVU fans care about those who they consider one of their own, WVSN felt the need to get the full scoop. Mike Asti sat down with the former Mountaineer and his ‘All Three Phases‘ co-host to learn about what’s really going on and the status of his health today.

Anyone who has kept up with Marshall since his playing days, that also included some time in the NFL, knows he has kept himself in incredible shape. His physique makes him look like someone who could get back out there on the field. But with that said, Marshall is 41-years-old and by no means immune to the trials and tribulations of getting older.

Here he details the journey that led him to one of his biggest battles yet, and this one is tougher than dealing with any rush from a defense.

“Back in 2017, I started developing an extreme dull, Charlie horse type of pain in my left calf muscle. Being a former athlete you’re conditioned over time to push past and through pain. Especially with the smaller things that wouldn’t necessarily need immediate attention like broken bones, deep lacerations, etc. Leading up to this point, I also realized there were some changes in my breathing that I noticed during my workouts. I was getting extremely winded and exhausted with little to no effort and I was in pretty good shape.”

Marshall continued. “Initially, it was misdiagnosed as exercise induced asthma and I was sent home with an inhaler. After about a month or so the pain intensified, so bad to the point where I couldn’t walk. At that point, I knew it was time to go to the ER,” said the man who starred at Brashear High School in the City of Pittsburgh before taking his talents down to Morgantown to lead the rebirth of the West Virginia program during its transition from Don Nehlen to Rich Rodriguez in the early 2000s.

So what happened next?

“I was immediately admitted into the hospital where they begin running tests and different imaging scans. They quickly learned that I developed a DVT or deep vein thrombosis. I didn’t know much about it, but I began reading up on it since I had pretty much nothing else to do while in a hospital. I’ve always been healthy with no issues so I was curious to learn more about what was going on. They wanted to run one more test to make sure the clots didn’t break off and travel elsewhere in my body because that’s where the real trouble begins. The tests came back and it revealed that in fact the clots did break apart and traveled to my lungs. I was out of commission for about 3-4 months and had to build myself back from ground zero.”

Now this gets to the more recent part of the story and why Marshall felt the need to release some information on his personal health. He felt he had to inform his fans and calm the nerves of those who voiced a concern over what led to his social media hiatus and posts about a health issue.

Thank you @NealBrown_WVU and the entire @WVUfootball program for their thoughts and prayers after a recent health issue. I received a heartfelt message in the mail that really lifted my spirits as I embark on this journey to recovery. FAMILY💙💛 #onlythestrongsurvive #mindset

— Rasheed Marshall (@RasheedMarshall) January 15, 2023

“Fast forward to Christmas weekend of 2022 and I’m experiencing the same symptoms, but not nearly as bad. Over the span of about a month or so, I noticed that the metrics of my workouts were declining on a weekly basis. My resting heart rate was skyrocketing and I felt out of shape, which was a major red flag. In the back of my mind, I was okay and it was just the cold air taking a toll on my respiratory system because I was still taking the medication from the first PE. But I finished up a workout, left the gym and made my way to the ER where I found out that wasn’t the case. It was much deeper. I was once again admitted and placed in the ICU with another PE. They immediately started me on medication to prevent further formation of new clots and the build up of the existing clots. At that point, I was in complete disbelief and felt defeated to say the least,” he said, admitting this caused him to feel a sense of being defeated and that these blood clots could be a competitor he could not defeat.

But no matter what, Rasheed Marshall is not one to ever feel sorry for himself or make excuses.

“Time to wipe the tears and stop feeling sorry myself. I climbed this mountain once before and I will damn sure do it again. Time to get to work. THE JOURNEY STARTS TODAY…I’M READY!!,” he posted on Facebook days after his Christmas health scare.

So how is Marshall doing today, now a couple months removed from his holiday health scare and realizing this may all be a lifelong issue he will always have to keep tabs on and be conscious of?

“I’m now a couple months into my recovery and it’s been challenging. I’m getting better, but it’s happening at a slow pace. I doing a lot of walking and a decent amount of resistance training with a lot of breaks. I’m just being as patient as possible, but it’s definitely frustrating. I’m hoping by March/April I’m able to start turning it up a notch,” said Marshall honestly.

With his recovery and taking care of himself at the top of his mind, Marshall is now just appreciating being alive, something never guaranteed to anyone and could very well not be the case for him based on what he’s endured, and taking it one day a time.

Marshall closed our talk with another message to Mountaineer Nation and all of the people who have been supporting him for well over two decades now.

“I would like to thank everyone across Mountaineer Nation who reached out and sent their well wishes my way. I’m on the mend and will be back to 100% soon enough,” he offered with conviction.