Seasons
Announcement
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Gwynn Park center steps up on, off the court
Boyd cared for younger brothers while father served in Iraq, Afghanistan
Marcel Boyd always had a lengthy list of chores growing up: taking out the trash, cutting the grass, sweeping the floor, vacuuming the steps, cleaning his room, cleaning the living room, cleaning the basement.
And as the son of an Army officer and a corrections officer, he never had any leeway in completing his tasks.
But as a high school sophomore, Boyd faced his biggest responsibility: taking care of his brothers, 3 and 10 years younger than him, while his father served for a year in Iraq and Afghanistan and his mother worked.
"It was stressful,” said Boyd, who's now a senior at Gwynn Park. “It was my first year playing basketball. I had a lot on my plate.”
To find his way, Boyd emulated his dad. He made his younger brothers do their homework immediately after school, just as his father made him. And when they didn't want to do their chores, he was firm with them, just as his father was with him.
“Sometimes, I'd say stuff to my brother, and he'd be like, ‘Man, You're acting like dad. You're acting like dad.'” Boyd said. “Well, he's not here, so I have to take on that responsibility. You always say that you don't want to be like your parents, but I always find myself feeling like I'm my father.”
Boyd also missed some AAU games that year, his first playing varsity basketball. Moving between Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia and Maryland — with more stops in some states than he can remember — he never settled in one place long enough to establish himself on a team.
If that slowed Boyd's progress, he's well on his way now. The 6-foot-9, 230-pound center is averaging 12.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game for Gwynn Park, which would win at least a share of the Prince George's County 3A/2A/1A League title with a win against Friendly on Thursday.
“He's been our MVP,” Gwynn Park coach Michael Glick said of Boyd, who was the team's ninth man as a sophomore and eighth man as a junior before signing with Howard University last fall. “If he was still available, he would have numerous offers off of what he's done this year.”
Boyd has been part of Gwynn Park's ROTC program since he enrolled in the school as a freshman. He doesn't plan to enlist in the military — he wants to become a firefighter — but he wanted to keep his connection with a military lifestyle.
He still addresses adults as “sir” and “ma'am,” and the ROTC class has taught him about leadership and different ways to motivate people. Boyd often speaks of “good pressure” — the kind of pressure that encouraged him to do his chores, the pressure that helped him improve on the court to the point he earned a college scholarship and the pressure the forced him to step up while his father, who has served for 19 years and plans to retire soon, was overseas.
“It made me see through my father's eyes of how stressful life can be and how much you need to appreciate the things that you have while they're there,” Boyd said. “It definitely made me more mature.”
