Bio

Marvin Kendricks, a Chicago, IL native, was determined to make his football dreams a reality. He endured a difficult road leading to his greatness, but much like his playing style, he never backed down from a head on challenge. Kendricks packed his bags and traveled across the country by foot in order to earn the opportunity to play for the Riverside City College Tigers. His ultimate goal was to earn a football scholarship to a four-year university, little did he know destiny was knocking at the front door. Former RCC Head Football Coach Robert Dohr caught wind of the traveling Kendricks and picked him up at a local bus station and transported him to campus. “I was hungry when I arrived and I wanted to win,” said Kendricks. And boy did he eat. In his two-year career for the Tigers, Hendricks established a winning culture through his three main philosophies: you get out what you put in, when you’re on the field, make something happen and practice like you play. The rumbling running back followed his three philosophies religiously. He paced the Mission Conference in rushing for two-consecutive seasons leading to a pair of Most Valuable Player awards. Furthermore, he was a two-time All-American and named to the nationwide Junior College All-Star team compiled by JC Gridwire in 1968. His successes caught the attention of the UCLA football team who offered him a scholarship. After being hesitant at first, he accepted the scholarship offer and undoubtedly thrived. During his time at UCLA, Kendricks established himself as one of the most dominant running backs in the then Pac-8. He played in 21 games and scored 11 touchdowns, rushed for a total of 1,155 yards and averaged 4.7 yards-per-carry. He ranked third in rushing yards-per-attempt in 1970 and fourth in rushing touchdowns in 1970 and 1971. He snapped UCLA’s single-game rushing record against rival USC. The record stood for approximately 15 years. Kendricks was drafted by the New Orleans Saints, but declined the offer and signed with the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League (CFL), becoming the starting running back. After four years in the CFL, he was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles, playing for one season.  His two sons, Eric and Mychal, are current defensive stars in the NFL, Eric playing for the Minnesota Vikings and Mychal plays for the Seattle Seahawks.