Career: Former walk-on who earned a scholarship in 2006 ... Hard-working player who brought a great deal of enthusiasm to the program ... Played a major role in NU's kicking game and at NU's fullback position on short-yardage plays ... Coaching staff raved about the intangibles he brought to the program ... Named a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar in 2009 and 2010.

2009: Graduate student ... Played in all 13 games ... Recipient of team's Thomas Airth Spirit Award (given to a player whose spirit and enthusiasm has been an inspiration to teammates, coaches and fans throughout the season) ... Credited with two solo tackles at Iowa ... Against Penn State, caught a pass from punter Stefan Demos on a broken punt attempt and carried it nine yards for an NU first down ... One catch for six yards at Michigan State ... First career start at superback vs. Minnesota ... Against Towson, rushed six times for 17 yards ... Named team's offensive practice player of the week vs. Michigan State ... Academic All-Big Ten ... 2010 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar recipient.

2008: Backup superback ... Former walk-on ... Played in all 13 games in 2008, including the Alamo Bowl vs. Missouri ... Registered one tackle at Duke and against Ohio ... Earned first career start vs. Purdue ... Academic All-Big Ten ... 2009 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar recipient.

2007: Backup superback ... Academic All-Big Ten ... Caught three passes, including his first TD reception, a 2-yard grab, vs. Iowa.

2006: Academic All-Big Ten ... Key special teams performer ... Named team's offensive practice player of the week vs. Penn State.

2005: Did not see action ... NU's Offensive Practice Player of the Week vs. Northern Illinois and the Defensive Practice Player of the Week vs. Illinois.

High School: An honorable mention all-state fullback ... Also earned all-conference and Daily Herald all-area honors in 2004 ... Buffalo Grove's team MVP ... 2004 Academic all-state selection ... Rushed for 1,225 yards (4.6 ypc) and 15 TD's in 2004 ... Added 21 receptions for 247 yards, as well as 35 tackles and two sacks at linebacker ... Finished seventh on the Bison career rushing list and 11th on the all-time scoring list ... As a sophomore in 2002, started on a team that went 11-1, won a conference championship and advanced to the state quarterfinal round ... Tom Zbikowski (Notre Dame) and Eric Andino (Michigan State) were prep teammates ... Team's Decleator Award recipient in 2003 and Gatorade Rookie of the Year award in 2002 ... Also lettered three years in track and field (shot put/discus) ... Senior Honor Roll all eight semesters and NHS member ... Coached by Rich Roberts.

Personal: Born Mark Alan Woodsum ... Son of Gregory and Melody Woodsum ... Graduated in June 2009 with a degree in environmental sciences and a minor in business institutions ... Enrolled in graduate school (civil and environmental engineering master's of project management).

The Mark Woodsum File
Q: Name five favorite songs (and artist) on your I-Pod:
A: "The Blister Exists" Slipknot, "Vitamin" Incubus, "Walk" Pantera, "He's A Pirate" Klaus Badelt and "Living in Fast Forward" Kenny Chesney
Q: A song that best describes you is ...
A: "Guys Like Me" by Eric Church
Q: If you could dine with anyone from any period in history, who would it be?
A: Vince Lombardi
Q: What is the greatest lesson in life that you have learned?
A: Be thankful for all that you have in life
Q: What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?
A: Earning a scholarship at NU
Q: The person that inspires me the most is:
A: My parents
Q: My favorite thing about playing at Ryan Field is:
A: Celebrating with my teammates in the end zone
Q: My ultimate SportsCenter highlight would be:
A: Fourth-and-goal, leading block on a middle linebacker, popping his helmet off into the air as I put him on his back and the tailback scores to win the game
Q: My favorite television show is:
A: Lost
Q: My favorite place to visit is:
A: The mountains
Q: If you could have a starring role in any film already made, which movie would it be?
A: Varsity Blues
Q: My favorite food is ...
A: Steak
Q: When I played football as a kid, I pretended to be ...
A: Mike Alstott
Q: My favorite pre-game ritual is ...
A: Listening to music and visualization
Q: The best thing about NU is ...
A: The lakeside campus
Q: If I were not playing football, I would be ...
A: In the Marines
Q: What are you most thankful for in life?
A: My parents
Q: Most humbling experience:
A: My first day of college practice

Woodsum's Career Stats

RUSHING G Att Yds TD Lg Avg/C Avg/G2006................ 12 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.02007................ 12 4 4 0 2 1.0 0.32008................ 13 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.02009................ 13 6 17 0 8 2.8 1.3TOTAL............... 50 10 21 0 8 2.1 0.4
TOTAL OFFENSE G Rush Pass Total Avg/G2006................ 12 0 0 0 0.02007................ 12 4 0 4 0.32008................ 13 0 0 0 0.02009................ 13 17 0 17 1.3TOTAL............... 50 21 0 21 0.4
RECEIVING G Rec Yds TD Lg Rec/G Avg/C Avg/G2006................ 12 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.02007................ 12 3 9 1 4 0.2 3.0 0.82008................ 13 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.02009................ 13 2 15 0 9 0.2 7.5 1.2TOTAL............... 50 5 24 1 9 0.1 4.8 0.5
SCORING G TD Rush Pass Retn PAT 2PAT FG Total Avg/G2006................ 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.02007................ 12 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 6 0.52008................ 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.02009................ 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0TOTAL............... 50 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 6 0.1
KICK RETURNS G No. Yds TD Lg Avg/R Avg/G2006................ 12 1 12 0 12 12.0 1.02007................ 12 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.02008................ 13 1 3 0 3 3.0 0.22009................ 13 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0TOTAL............... 37 2 15 0 12 7.5 0.3
ALL PURPOSE G Rush Rec PR KR IR Total Avg/G2006................ 12 0 0 0 12 0 12 1.02007................ 12 4 9 0 0 0 13 1.12008................ 13 0 0 0 3 0 3 0.22009................ 13 17 15 0 0 0 32 2.5TOTAL............... 50 21 24 0 15 0 60 1.2
TACKLES G UA A Total TFL-Yds PD FF FR Blkd2006................ 12 0 1 1 0.0-0 0 0 0 02007................ 12 0 0 0 0.0-0 0 0 0 02008................ 13 1 1 2 0.0-0 0 0 0 02009................ 13 3 0 3 0.0-0 0 0 0 0TOTAL............... 50 4 2 6 0.0-0 0 0 0 0