Finalist emerges for Sacramento State football coach job. He’s a hot name in college ranks
UNLV offensive coordinator Brennan Marion is a finalist and well may be the leading candidate for the vacant Sacramento State football post, The Sacramento Bee has learned through two sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
Marion is a hot name in college football, with a wide-open offensive attack he coordinates that goes by “Go-Go” having helped boost a sagging Running Rebels program into a nationally ranked one. No. 24 UNLV is 10-3 and will play Cal in the L.A. Bowl at 6 p.m. Wednesday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
Marion did not make the trip with the Rebels as he aspires to become a head college coach for the first time. He is one of an army of people who have expressed interest in the post at Sacramento State, which closes the listing on Wednesday. The school sought a replacement for Andy Thompson who, after two mixed seasons as head coach of the Hornets, resigned on Dec. 6 to become assistant head coach at Stanford.
Sacramento State president Luke Wood and Hornets athletic director Mark Orr confirmed to The Bee that they had received “a crazy amount of interest,” according to Orr, but neither would comment on Marion. The school is aiming to make a big-name hire to steer the program into a new era.
There is interest in the Hornets because Sacramento State enjoyed a recent run of success, including winning Big Sky Conference championships in 2019, 2021 and 2022 and reached the FCS playoffs in 2023 before injuries and close losses led to a three-victory campaign.
Clarifying $54 million in NIL
What has added to the interest is the announcement in recent weeks by the SAC-12 committee comprised of local government officials and Hornets alums of $54 million in pledges for Name, Image and Likeness — or NIL — revenue streams for student-athletes. NIL has become a big player in the game of college athletics, a way to compensate athletes legally.
To clarify, the $54 million the SAC-12 has mentioned is not one lump sum that has been raised or secured but a 10-year commitment from local businesses to commit to the NIL efforts should Sacramento State gain entry into a higher-level conference in the FBS such as the revamped Pac-12 or the Mountain West.
Sacramento State in September announced that it would build a new football stadium to replace 55-year-old Hornet Stadium. That project would not be completed until the 2028 season, and the Hornets could not enter another conference in football without updated football and basketball facilities.
ESPN reported on Monday that Sacramento State “is in discussions to hire former NFL Pro-Bowl QB Mike Vick as its new head coach, per sources.”
Wood responded Monday afternoon on Vick: “He has expressed interest in the position, and yes, I did meet with him about his interest in Sac State football and our athletic rise. As you can imagine, given the success of our athletic programs, our football head coach job is an attractive role.”
The Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press reported Tuesday afternoon that Vick landed the Norfolk State head coaching position. Vick is a native of the state, having starred at Virginia Tech before becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft.
Marion, unlike Vick, has an extensive coaching background.
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Who is Brennan Marion?
A native of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, the 37-year-old Marion worked his way up the coaching ranks after starring in multiple sports in high school. He wound up at a junior college in the Bay Area, De Anza of Cupertino in 2006, and he set NCAA receiving records at Tulsa in Oklahoma as a player on scholarship in 2007 and 2008.
Marion had a taste of professional football with the Miami Dolphins and the Canadian Football League’s Montreal Alouettes before moving into coaching. He has been tied to college coordinator gigs in recent seasons, his innovative “Go-Go” offense featuring an option-rush attack that blends a more tradition spread-option passing attack.
Marion was not named UNLV’s interim coach after head coach Barry Odom accepted the Purdue post on Sunday after leading the program to back-to-back bowls for the first time in program history. UNLV then hired Dan Mullen as coach, signing a five-year contract.
Marion’s head-coaching stints were in 2013 at St. Patrick/St. Vincent High School in Vallejo, where he led the team to the playoffs, and in 2014 at Waynesboro Area High in Pennsylvania, where he helped the team reached the postseason.
Marion’s stops since: quality control assistant at Arizona State in 2015, running backs coach at Oklahoma Baptist in 2016, offensive coordinator at FCS-level Howard in 2017 and 2018, offensive coordinator at William & Mary in 2019, receivers coach at Hawai’i in 2020, receivers coach at the University of Pittsburgh in 2021, passing-game coordinator at Texas in 2022 and the last two seasons at UNLV.
This story was originally published December 17, 2024 at 2:15 PM.