Pitt’s newest hire has local roots.

According to various sources as well as a report by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic and a number of social media posts, Hawaii receivers coach Brennan Marion will be joining Pat Narduzzi’s staff in the same position.

Marion will be replacing Chris Beatty, who left Pitt last month to coach receivers for the Los Angeles Chargers.

A 2005 graduate of Greensburg Salem, Marion played junior-college football at Foothill College and De Anza College, both in California, before transferring to Tulsa prior to the 2007 season. He spent two seasons with the Golden Hurricanes and caught 82 passes for 2,356 yards and 19 touchdowns. His 28.7 yards per catch over those two years set an FBS record among players with at least 75 career receptions.

After his college career ended, Marion spent a summer on the Miami Dolphins before heading into coaching. He began as the strength coach at West Valley College in California before becoming the head coach at two different high schools in the state.

In 2014, he came back to Pennsylvania to be the head coach at Waynesboro High School, but he spent just one year there before heading into the college ranks.

Marion’s first big job was in 2017, when Mike London hired him to be offensive coordinator at Howard. Marion and London spent two seasons there before London was hired as head coach at William & Mary. Marion followed London to that job but left to be the receivers coach at Hawaii after one season.

Interestingly, Marion’s career has been tied to former Pitt head coach Todd Graham on numerous occasions. He played for Graham as a receiver at Tulsa; then, after he moved into the coaching ranks, his first job was as offensive quality control coach on Graham’s staff at Arizona State.

In 2020, Marion rejoined Graham as receivers coach at Hawaii.

Marion’s time as offensive coordinator - two at Howard; one at William & Mary - was notable for its production. Both of Marion’s seasons at Howard saw the Bison rank among the top 20 offenses in the country in virtually every major statistical category, and he became known as one of the rising offensive minds in college football.

At Pitt, Marion will be working under offensive coordinator Mark Whipple but he’ll also bring value in recruiting. He has local roots, of course, but his three years at Howard and William & Mary helped him build connections in Washington, D.C., and Virginia that should be useful for Pitt.

Marion is Pitt’s second hire this offseason. Former Bucknell defensive coordinator Ryan Manalac joined the staff last month as linebackers coach, replacing Rob Harley, who became the defensive coordinator at Arkansas State.