Marcellus Vernon Wiley Sr. (born November 30, 1974) is an American sportscaster and former professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player. He played as a
defensive end
Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football.
This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...
for 10 seasons in the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL) with the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...
,
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...
,
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
, and
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
. He was selected to the
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players.
The format has changed ...
in 2001 with the Chargers.
Wiley formerly hosted the ''More To It'' podcast, as part of the Dan Patrick Podcast Network.
He also formerly co-hosted ''
SportsNation'' on
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
, as well as an afternoon drive-time sports talk radio show on
ESPN 710AM in Los Angeles, and
Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports 1 (branded on-air as FS1) is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. FS1 airs an array of live sporting events, including Majo ...
's ''
Speak For Yourself''. Wiley also published a book ''Never Shut Up: The Life, Opinions, and Unexpected Adventures of an NFL Outlier'' in 2018.
Biography
Early life
At
Saint Monica Catholic High School in
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, Wiley starred in both football and
track and field
Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...
. In football, he was an All-Conference pick. Wiley was a teammate of
Adrian Klemm. He was his school's valedictorian and a member of the
National Honor Society
The National Honor Society (NHS) is one of the oldest, largest, and most widely recognized cocurricular student organizations in American high schools, with 1.4 million members.
The purpose of the NHS is to create enthusiasm for scholarship, to ...
. In 1988, he was a national typewriting champion, with 82 words per minute.
College career
At
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
, Wiley played
tailback, defensive end, and kick returner for the
Lions
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is se ...
. Starting as running back his freshman and sophomore years, he converted to defensive end in his senior season, recording 63 tackles (17 for loss), 6.5 sacks, eight pass breakups and three blocked field goals. As a team captain, he helped lead the Lions to
an 8–2 season, the team's most wins since 1945.
Wiley was a first-team
All-America
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
n and All-
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...
pick, and graduated from Columbia in 1997 with a degree in
sociology
Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...
.
Professional career
He was selected with the 52nd overall pick in the second round of the
1997 NFL draft out of
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
by the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...
.
Wiley started his professional career primarily as a situational pass rusher, recording nine sacks through his first three years. In 2000, Wiley underwent disc-repair surgery, missing the preseason. However, when Hall-of-Famer
Bruce Smith
Bruce Bernard Smith (born June 18, 1963) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for 19 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football for the Vir ...
left for the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
, Wiley replaced him at defensive end for the Bills, making the opening day roster.
He was selected to the AFC
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players.
The format has changed ...
team in 2001 as a Charger.
NFL statistics
Post NFL career
Wiley was a cofounder of Prolebrity (a
portmanteau
In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together. of professional and celebrity), a sports community where pro athletes express viewpoints, publicize their businesses, charities and events, and connect with other athletes, fans and business opportunities.
Wiley worked for
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
's ''
NFL Live'' and was a substitute co-host for ''
Mike and Mike in the Morning''. He also co-hosted ''
SportsNation''. Wiley co-hosted ''
Winners Bracket'' with
Michelle Beadle
Michelle Denise Beadle (born October 23, 1975) is an American sports reporter and host who is part of the San Antonio Spurs broadcast team. Beadle was formerly the co-host of the ESPN morning sports show '' Get Up!'' along with Jalen Rose and ...
from 2010 to 2012. Later, he co-hosted several renditions of LA's afternoon radio show including "Max and Marcellus," "Afternoons with Marcellus and Kelvin," and "Afternoons on ESPNLA with Marcellus Wiley and Travis Rogers" on
ESPN LA from 2013 to 2018.
In January 2013, he became co-host of ''
SportsNation'' on a full-time basis, taking over for
Colin Cowherd.
On July 13, 2018, Wiley left his position at ESPN and joined FS1 as co-host of ''
Speak for Yourself'' alongside
Jason Whitlock. When Whitlock's contract was not renewed by Fox Sports in June 2020,
Emmanuel Acho replaced Whitlock and joined Wiley as the new co-host. In July 2022, Wiley left ''
Speak For Yourself'' as its host, for another role at FS1.
In 2018, Wiley's book ''Never Shut Up: The Life, Opinions, and Unexpected Adventures of an NFL Outsider'' was released.
In 2022, Wiley began hosting the ''More To It'' podcast, as part of the Dan Patrick Podcast Network. His first guests were
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...
,
Bruce Smith
Bruce Bernard Smith (born June 18, 1963) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for 19 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football for the Vir ...
, and
LaDainian Tomlinson
LaDainian Tarshane Tomlinson (born June 23, 1979), nicknamed "LT", is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. After a successful college football career with the T ...
. Wiley ended the "More To It" podcast in October of 2023. He subsequently began a two Youtube podcasts, "Hydration Situation" and "On the Rocks." The former consists of Wiley providing opinions on sports and sports media controversies. The latter is a weekly roundtable discussion of sports, cultural and political topics with former athletes and non-athletes Wiley considers friends.
''Millionaire Matchmaker''
Wiley appeared on a November 2011 episode of
Bravo
Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels
* Bravo (band), a Russian rock band
* Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984
* Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...
's ''
Millionaire Matchmaker''. Season 5, Episode 12: "The Player and the Piano Player" ended when Wiley successfully found a romantic interest.
Personal life
Wiley is married to Annemarie Wiley (b. 1982 or 1983), a nurse anesthetist, who joined as a full-time cast member for the
thirteenth season of ''
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills''. Marcellus and Annemarie are parents to four children: Marcellus's daughter from a previous relationship, as well as their son and two daughters.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiley, Marcellus
1974 births
American Conference Pro Bowl players
American football defensive ends
American sports radio personalities
ArenaBowl broadcasters
Arena football announcers
Buffalo Bills players
Columbia Lions football players
Columbia College (New York) alumni
Dallas Cowboys players
ESPN people
Fox Sports 1 people
Jacksonville Jaguars players
Living people
NFL announcers
Radio personalities from Los Angeles
San Diego Chargers players
Sportspeople from Compton, California
Players of American football from Compton, California
Sports YouTubers