Student Marcel Duncan poses on grass as he proudly displays his Super Bowl rings.

(Photo by: Khadeeja Saleem)

The JCCC halls are filled with students with unique and inspirational stories, Marcel Duncan is one of them. From the Army to the Kansas City Chiefs, Duncan’s story is surely one to inspire others.

Duncan’s Chiefs journey starts back in 2018, two years after he got out of the Army. Duncan served as a 12 Bravo combat engineer. Throughout his time in the Army, he served in Afghanistan, Korea and Kuwait, where his main task was to search for bombs.

“I think a lot of soldiers when they get out, it’s the camaraderie that they miss the most,” Duncan said. “Being with your friends every day, doing cool stuff with your friends every day. So when you get out, it’s a different world out here. It’s a different system. So I think a lot of soldiers get out, and that’s where they go wrong–there’s no camaraderie here. So for me, the Chiefs gave me that. I [get] to see 70,000 people every day, and I’m like ‘Man, this is different, but I’m part of something.’ I felt like I belonged.”

Duncan learned of the flag runner tryouts in 2018 while scrolling through his phone. He put in an application and later received an email to try out for the position.

“It was 25 or 30 of us,” Duncan said. “What I can tell you is the minute that I got the email that it was an opportunity, I was praying. I was like, ‘Hey, if this is for me, let it be for me.’”

Not long after, his dedication to the Chiefs was rewarded when they announced the new Kansas City Chiefs flag runner on Twitter.

“I got a call maybe two weeks after tryouts, my friend was like, ‘Hey man, did you see?’ And I just knew what he was talking about, so I hung up on him, I [got] on Twitter and I [saw] my name,” Duncan said. “It’s a moment I can always associate with happiness.”

Now seven years later, he has three Super Bowl rings, as well as Chiefs jerseys signed by Paul Rudd, Gracie Hunt, Jawaan Taylor and Jason Kelce, respectively. He’s acted as the Chiefs’ Flag Runner since 2020, and he has had his fair share of celebrity interactions.

“There’s like no limit to what they allow us to do. So once we won, we’re just on the field, and we’re talking to these guys, so I’ve had a lot of interactions,” Duncan said. “I did see Taylor Swift. She walked past me.”

Duncan doesn’t consider himself famous; he believes the role is what’s well-recognized. That being said, he does have a group of fans in the crowd who know him by name. He hopes that his story inspires people to believe they can accomplish what he has.

Duncan is not just a flag runner, says Professor Ben Messner, an adjunct instructor at JCCC. Much like K.C. Wolf, he has become a symbol of Chiefs spirit.

“He’s a mascot without a mask,” Messner says.

He is the one who convinced Duncan to share his story. During the class Messner teaches, he had Duncan work with another man in his class who ended up being a retired veteran, just like Duncan. He heard his stories from overseas with the Army and his stories with the Chiefs, and urged Duncan to share his inspirational story.

Duncan is currently studying at JCCC to work in broadcasting and hopes to one day work for ESPN.

“I’m somebody who’s a great father, and trying to better myself and find my purpose, and understand that being different is good,” Duncan said. “I’m trying to tell my story, get it out there, and hopefully motivate somebody else to go try out, or understand a position you never thought you’d have, you could have.”