Marcus Mariota sets the record straight on name pronunciation

Marcus Mariota is a familiar name to even the most casual of football fans.

Many will remember his dominant run with the Oregon Ducks, where he won a Heisman Trophy and ended as one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in college football history. The Hawaii native began his career with the Tennessee Titans and has since gone on to play for the Las Vegas Raiders, Atlanta Falcons, and, currently, the Washington Commanders.

Commanders fans have seen more of Mariota than they probably wanted to this season, as he's had to play in eight games in relief of Jayden Daniels. For some reason, though, during his most recent game with the Commanders, the pronunciation of his last name became a major talking point.

On Sunday Night Football, Cris Collinsworth was roasted online for his pronunciation of "Mariota." Collinsworth was pronouncing the name “Mah-ree-OH-tah” with an emphasized final syllable. Most fans had heard it as “MAR-ee-oh-tah” or even “MARY-oh-tah.”

However, in his SNF player intro, Mariota pronounced his last name the way Collinsworth did. On Wednesday, Mariota was asked by J.P. Finlay for clarification on the pronunciation.

"'Mah-ree-OH-tah,'" the quarterback explained. "It's been said over the years like 'MARY-oh-tah,' and that's incorrect."

Well, that should settle it. If there's ever any question about the pronunciation in the future, you can just refer back to the quarterback himself.

This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders: Marcus Mariota sets the record straight