Members
Inductee
CARPENTER, MARCUS
CARPENTER, MARCUS
Born on March 17, 1977
Elkhart, Indiana
Inducted On
June 7, 2024
Location Inducted
South Bend, Indiana
Region Number
2
Jimtown High School
Player
Jimtown High School
1995
Marcus is a 1995 graduate of Jimtown High School. During his time at Jimtown, Marcus earned 12 varsity letters in football, basketball and track.
In Football, he had a Career 3,652 rushing yards with 71 touchdowns and 426 total points. As a freshman, he helped the team to the 1991 IHSAA
Class 2A state championship. He also helped the team to three Northern State Conference championships, four sectional championships and one
regional championship during his time at Jimtown.
Marcus was a three-time all-state selection, a Mr. Football finalist and a 1995 North-South All Star selection.
University of Wisconsin
B.S. in Sociology, Behavioral Sciences and Law, and Criminal Justice.
2000
Marcus went on to attend the University of Wisconsin in the Fall of 1995 where he played on four bowl teams, including a two-time back-to-back Rose Bowl Championship team in the 1999/2000 season. The feat of being Back-to-Back Big Ten AND Rose Bowl Champions had never been done before in the history of the Big Ten Conference and is a record that still stands to this day.
Marcus is a follower of Christ Jesus, a husband to wife Tara (his college sweetheart) and a father to three beautiful daughters:
Jadyn, Gianna, and Norah.
After graduation, Marcus moved to the Twin Cities of Minnesota and spent the first 20 years of his career leading top sales organizations and
implementing strategic development initiatives for companies including Philip Morris USA, The National Basketball Association, CA Technologies, Jostens and Rewriting the Code, a tech non-profit focused on supporting Women in Tech. Marcus is currently a candidate for a Masters of Non-Profit Administration degree and is the Founder of Route 1, a social enterprise laser focused on increasing food access, specifically within communities of color. As the great-grandson of one of the first black, multi-acre landowners in Poinsett County, AR, Marcus believes that by empowering, encouraging, and supporting the next generation of emerging farmers, America can continue to preserve and promote the legacy farming values of hard work, perseverance, patience, and integrity and we can bring good, sustainably grown food to our communities.