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From Hawaii to the honky-tonk: Nashville’s in love with Marcus Mariota

The Heisman Trophy winner, who was chosen one spot behind Jameis Winston in the 2015 NFL draft, has found a home in Nashville.
 
Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) takes a snap during a combined NFL football training camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) takes a snap during a combined NFL football training camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Published Aug. 17, 2018|Updated Aug. 18, 2018

NASHVILLE — Ten thousand blue leis were distributed to Titans fans for the NFL draft on the day their team picked Marcus Mariota.

The 2014 Heisman Trophy winner wasn't even at Nissan Stadium for the party, which drew a crowd of 20,000. But the warmth Mariota felt an ocean away in Oahu while celebrating with his family being taken No. 2 overall in 2015 didn't come from just the island sun.

You might think going from his native Hawaii to the honky-tonk capital would be a tough transition for Mariota.

But in Music City, they fall in love before the country song ends, and such was the case with Mariota.

"If you find a picture or video that night, you see everyone at the stadium at our draft party with the leis on the minute he gets drafted," said Mike Keith, the Titans' radio play-by-play announcer. "So the love was immediate."

It also has been enduring.

Whereas Jameis Winston has been a polarizing No. 1 pick by the Bucs in that draft from the beginning — from his history of off-field problems at Florida State to this year's three-game suspension for violating the league's personal conduct policy after the NFL said he groped a female Uber driver in Arizona in 2016 — Mariota has come to reflect the Southern values of his adoptive city.

"They love him. They love him," said Titans general manager Jon Robinson, who was the Bucs' director of player personnel when they drafted Winston. "He's very endeared here in the city. Everybody is a fan of him.

Since Steve McNair left the Titans after the 2005 season, the team's search for a real franchise quarterback had turned up empty. It used first-round picks on Vince Young in 2005 and Jake Locker in 2011, but neither was very successful and are now out of football.

Mariota is anything but a finished product. He has only two more NFL wins than Winston, at 20-22, but he has two playoff appearances to Winston's zero. He helped lead the Titans to a come-from-behind win at Kansas City in the AFC wild-card game in January. He is on his third head coach in four seasons after the Titans dismissed Mike Mularkey after last season and hired Mike Vrabel.

Mariota's character and humility have made him wildly popular even as he shuns the spotlight. In a way, Nashville is the perfect place for Mariota to blend in a bit. On any given day, you can run into a famous country music star.

"One of the reasons he likes this market is because we've got all the country music stars. They don't bother him," Keith said. "You can walk in anywhere you go and you'll see somebody. You'll see somebody at a salad bar. You say, 'Hey, I love your music,' and they're very nice. I mean, I'm standing next to Nicole Kidman (who is married to singer Keith Urban) in Starbucks one day. That will freak you out a little bit because she's 6 feet tall and beautiful.

"But for the most part, everybody is just like, 'Good luck this weekend.' For (Mariota) it's been a great fit for what the market is."

Mariota is fairly visible in the city. He and his girlfriend, Kiyomi Cook, lived downtown in a three-bedroom condo in a luxury apartment building. They recently purchased a house.

Drive by Nissan Stadium and you will see Mariota's image plastered along one of the corners and prominently displayed in the concourses. His No. 8 jersey is by far the biggest seller in stores and the most prevalent among fans at Titans' practices.

Mariota doesn't have a ton of endorsements. He was part of the Nissan Heisman House ad campaign . Nike, Subway and Beats by Dre signed him to deals coming out of Oregon. In his home state, he has deals with Island Insurance and First Hawaiian Bank.

Like Winston, Mariota is generous with his time. When a typical post-training-camp autograph session last year turned into 700 waiting fans, Mariota accommodated every last one of them.

"A lot of guys sign for 15 minutes and then it's, 'Sorry, I've got to run,' " Robinson said. "Marcus signed every item for everyone who was there."

To guard against Mariota's humility, the Titans have decided to select 20 fans to come down on the field each day for Mariota's autograph.

Mariota has always been a good teammate. Eventually, proof of his good deeds leaks out. Last year a rookie did not have a car; Mariota drove him back and forth from practice, even when it was a half-hour out of his way. The player did not even earn a roster spot.

Perhaps no one is closer to Mariota than Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan. Lewan tells the story of how Mariota will go out with his offensive linemen though he doesn't drink. He's happy to be the designated driver.

Mariota's relationship with the media is solid. Though not a big talker, he tries to be patient and honest with his responses. But after a terse news conference following a 12-7 loss at Arizona last year, Mariota said he got an earful from his mother, who watched the interview, and he apologized several days later.

"Here's the thing. The interview was fine," said Nashville sports radio co-host Mickey Ryan. "It was a tough loss. None of us thought anything about it. It just wasn't up to the standard of kindness set by him and his family."

Former Bucs tight end Luke Stocker, who played at Tennessee, said Mariota's star is just beginning to rise.

"The fans love him. They know he's the face of the franchise," Stocker said. "He's the guy this team is going to grow up with. You win with the quarterback position. That's how the league is."

Contact Rick Stroud at rstroud@tampabay.com. Follow @NFLStroud.