Marion officially named to Pitt coaching staff
It had been reported earlier this month that Brennan Marion would be the next wide receivers coach at Pitt. Today the school officially announced the hiring of Marion through a press release.
"Dreams really do come true," Marion said in a release from Pitt. "I am extremely honored and thankful for the opportunity to return home and serve the football program at the University of Pittsburgh. Coach Narduzzi and his staff have been building something very special. I can't wait to get back to Pittsburgh and work in our wide receivers room."
Marion, a 2005 Greensburg-Salem High School graduate, had previously been on the staff at the University of Hawaii under the direction of former Pitt coach Todd Graham this past season.
"We went on a national search to find our new wide receivers coach and, boy, did we ever go national by finding him in Hawaii," Narduzzi said. "We had a ton of interest in this position but Brennan Marion clearly rose to the top."
The path for Marion to rise to the power-five level has been a steady one in recent years. Marion started his coaching career back in 2010 after a brief stint with the Miami Dolphins following his college career at Tulsa.
Marion moved back to his home state of Pennsylvania in 2014 and was the head coach of Waynesboro High School. He led the Indians to a 6-4 season in his only year as the coach.
The new Pitt assistant returned to the college game in 2015 with a one-year stop at Arizona State as a quality control coach, before heading to Oklahoma Baptist to coach running backs in 2016.
The trajectory of Marion’s career really started to get going with coaching quarterbacks and calling plays at Howard from 2017-18, where he led the Bison to a top-25 finish in scoring at the FCS level. He held the same responsibilities coaching at William & Mary in 2019 before his one year in Hawaii.
Marion will be taking over for Chris Beatty, who was hired to coach wide receivers for the Los Angeles Chargers after one year in Pittsburgh.
Beatty’s presence will be missed on the recruiting trail, as he was able to help secure a commitment from 2020 signee Jordan Addison, who went onto have a successful freshman season under Beatty guidance with 60 catches for 666 yards and four touchdowns. Pitt also landed four recruits from Virginia, Beatty’s home state, in the 2021 class, as he was instrumental in developing a pipeline in the region for the Panthers.
Given Marion’s experience coaching at places like Howard and William & Mary, he is also believed to have plenty of familiarity at recruiting the region, which he will be asked to do almost immediately. He also has ties across the country from his stops on the West Coast as well, and of course is from the Pittsburgh area, which should also play a factor in the areas he recruits.
"It was important that we find a tremendous teacher and coach," Narduzzi said of Marion. "Recruiting is very important, but your top priority is always having a coach who can develop his positional room. Brennan is a great hire because he truly checked every box—he's a great teacher of wide receiver play and has outstanding recruiting ties in key geographical areas for us. He is a high-energy person who builds relationships and connects people. Brennan will be a great coach and mentor for our receivers."
Marion will have an experienced group he will be inheriting in his first year at Pitt. Along with Addison, Pitt returns three other receivers that all caught at least 20 passes in 2020 including Shocky Jacques-Louis, Taysir Mack, and Jared Wayne.