When Marshal Yanda was at North Iowa Area Community College about 20 years ago, he never imagined that he would get to the doorstep of Canton, Ohio.
So as Yanda waits to hear Thursday night whether he'll be part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2025, he also has no expectations.
Yanda is one of the 15 modern-era finalists and one of five in their first year of eligibility, joining former Ravens teammate Terrell Suggs. He said he wasn't sure that he would make it this far on his first try.
"It's pretty crazy and it's obviously humbling," Yanda said in late December. "I have zero expectations. So going into it, I'm just very grateful."
The grizzled, hard-nosed blocker wasn't one for sentimentality during his playing days, but he couldn't help from thinking back on his journey now five years after he retired still at the top of the game following the Ravens' record-setting 2019 season.
After playing two seasons of junior college football, the farm boy received a last-minute scholarship offer to play at hometown University of Iowa, where coaches had originally told Yanda they would take him only as a walk-on. Yanda became a standout there and the Ravens drafted him in the third round in 2007.
"I was sitting in junior college in the fall of 2004. Three years later, I'm starting an NFL game for the Ravens," Yanda said. "Less than 1% make it to Division 1, let alone start on D-1, let alone be a starter in the NFL, then have a heck of a NFL career and be in the Ring of Honor for the Ravens."
Yanda wasn't an instant sensation, however. In his retirement press conference, he told the story of getting put on his back by Suggs in his first full-squad NFL practice. He wasn't sure he had what it took to play at the highest level, yet he started 12 games that season as a rookie.
Yanda settled in as a full-time starting right guard in his fifth season. He went to the Pro Bowl eight of the next nine seasons (every year he was healthy). Yanda was a two-time first-team All-Pro (2014 and 2015) and was named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.
Yanda helped lead the Ravens to a Super Bowl victory in 2012 and Baltimore was the only place he played during his 13 seasons.
"You step back now, after all that's done, and it's like, 'Golly, that was a crazy climb to the top,'" Yanda said.
"I'm very grateful that the Ravens drafted me. Being able to be consistent as a player and have a foundation with a franchise that's legit, that was a huge factor. If you're like chasing your tails every year, every other year and the whole staff's getting fired, how hard would that be to be consistent?"
Yanda is rooting for Suggs to also get into the Hall of Fame on his first try. Even if they don't, being a finalist in their first year of eligibility is a good sign that they'll eventually make it.
Yanda and Suggs would join three former longtime Ravens – Jonathan Ogden, Ray Lewis, and Ed Reed – in the Hall. Other players who spent multiple seasons in Baltimore (Shannon Sharpe, Rod Woodson, and Deion Sanders) are also enshrined. Former Ravens wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. could join that group, as he's also a finalist this year.
"One of my most common like questions I get is, 'What was it like playing with Ray Lewis?'" Yanda said. "But it's like, man, Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Haloti Ngata – all those guys. They were unreal guys that I got to play with, and what we did on offense. There's a reason why the Ravens are who they are and why they're competitive every year."
