Marion to UTEP is picking up steam

[Rebelbacker]

If Marion was smart he would have stayed another year. He’s not ready to be a HC and he may have had better opportunities next season.

But it is what it is and best of luck to him. I have complete confidence in BOs ability to hire a good OC.

 

[Masked_rebel]

Most of Rebel nation is delusional anyway.

But his girl is pregnant and will be delivering in the next couple of months. She also owns a small business in the city. Those are some reasons why ppl tied to the program thought that he would stay as of a couple months ago.

Just like I don't think Odom will be here forever, but I do think he will have forever changed the programs trajectory and future when he does...

 

[Rebel Hoya]

If it is the only one offered take it.

I’d rather wait it out in Vegas than have to move to El Paso.

 

[unlv7163]

UTEP would have been a tough sell for me personally. That being said, it‘d be difficult to pass up the opportunity to become a HC. I probably would have stuck it out another year and waited to see what pops up then, but not going to fault him for taking it. Biggest questions are obviously who replaces him and how many kids are decide to leave. Not sure how desirable El Paso would be for some, so could hold onto to 1 or 2 we might not have if it were someone else.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

UTEP would have been a tough sell for me personally. That being said, it‘d be difficult to pass up the opportunity to become a HC. I probably would have stuck it out another year and waited to see what pops up then, but not going to fault him for taking it. Biggest questions are obviously who replaces him and how many kids are decide to leave. Not sure how desirable El Paso would be for some, so could hold onto to 1 or 2 we might not have if it were someone else.

I don't think many would follow him to UTEP either.

As for who replaces him, hard to say but considering Odom had Petrino lined up and then landed Marion, I'm pretty confident he'll find somebody more than capable..

 

[unlv7163]

I don't think many would follow him to UTEP either.

As for who replaces him, hard to say but considering Odom had Petrino lined up and then landed Marion, I'm pretty confident he'll find somebody more than capable..

Derek Dooley (former Tennessee HC) was is OC at Missouri. Spent this year as an analyst at Bama. Would make some sense. Guessing, however, that if he were a fit it would have happened last year with 2 opportunities to hire an OC

 

[lobbybuu]

I don't think many would follow him to UTEP either.

As for who replaces him, hard to say but considering Odom had Petrino lined up and then landed Marion, I'm pretty confident he'll find somebody more than capable..

I was told by a "UNLV Insider" that Tre Fulton would decommit and follow him there.....in my head im thinking huh why would a Safety follow him there? That same person said Kayden McGee would follow him too.

Marion will try to get Jet to follow him.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

I was told by a "UNLV Insider" that Tre Fulton would decommit and follow him there.....in my head im thinking huh why would a Safety follow him there?

Marion will try to get Jet to follow him.

In regards to Fulton, can't miss what you never had. I know that sounds cavalier about losing recruits but I don't get too wrapped up about losing commits. It happens so often pretty numb to it.

Jett on the other hand..That one kinda stinks, he was pretty productive but let's be honest, there are a lot of fast dudes his size. Rather have him than not, but hardly irreplaceable.

 

[lobbybuu]

In regards to Fulton, can't miss what you never had. I know that sounds cavalier about losing recruits but I don't get too wrapped up about losing commits. It happens so often pretty numb to it.

Jett on the other hand..That one kinda stinks, he was pretty productive but let's be honest, there are a lot of fast dudes his size. Rather have him than not, but hardly irreplaceable.

The one recruit that I hope to keep in all of this is Greg Burrell, because he's the best player in our class IMO and he's a Vegas kid. I agree that Jet is hardly irreplaceable.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

The one recruit that I hope to keep in all of this is Greg Burrell, because he's the best player in our class IMO and he's a Vegas kid. I agree that Jet is hardly irreplaceable.

One thing I equally hated and liked about the GO GO was the use of so many backs.

I liked it because it made game planning against tougher and kept guys fresher.

Didn't like it because I think a lot of running backs need touches to get into a rhythm. Sometimes felt guy who was starting to get into a good flow would get the next series or even two series off.

Here's another OC candidate.

Willy Corn Co-Oc at Liberty..

 

[unlv7163]

One thing I equally hated and liked about the GO GO was the use of so many backs.

I liked it because it made game planning against tougher and kept guys fresher.

Didn't like it because I think a lot of running backs need touches to get into a rhythm. Sometimes felt guy who was starting to get into a good flow would get the next or two series off.

Here's another OC candidate.

Willy Corn Co-Oc at Liberty..

Was going to suggest Korn as a possible replacement since he doesn’t call plays. Not really a geographical fit per se, but that doesn’t really matter much in today’s landscape. Joey Halzle the OC from Tennessee could be another possibility but would likely cost quite a bit.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

Was going to suggest Korn as a possible replacement since he doesn’t call plays. Not really a geographical fit per se, but that doesn’t really matter much in today’s landscape. Joey Halzle the OC from Tennessee could be another possibility but would likely cost quite a bit.

Interesting.

l

 

[DBminer]

Utep is not a bad job if you can get them anywhere close to winning you’ll have 45k in the stands — that town has been waiting for a winner… you have plenty of time to build the program… food is great and people are nice

 

[Couev]

I think 2 years of Marion was the best case scenario, again, this guy has been in coaching for 12 year and has had 11 different jobs, always trending towards higher positions. It will be the same at UTEP if he has instant success he will be looking to leverage that for a better job as soon as he can. I wish for our former WAC-bros and Coach Marion nothing but success.

 

[LocoRebel]

https://footballscoop.com/thescoop/the-scoop-monday-december-4-2023

UTEP: Sources tell FootballScoop UTEP is planning to make Austin Peay head coach Scotty Walden their next head coach. More coming...

 

[mwsn7022012]

https://footballscoop.com/thescoop/the-scoop-monday-december-4-2023

Please let it be true!

Two years of Brennan Marion would be enough.

 

[dcut03]

I have a friend and colleague that went to Grad school at UTEP. Said that it is a cooler town than it's reputation may have you to believe.
They have a cool stadium and decent fan base potential. Has had some decent teams in the past. I think it is a bit of a sleeping giant in the C-USA at least.

 

[Rebelsin54321]

Did Marion bomb the interview? His moving around so much can’t be a plus on any resume

 

[dcut03]

Did Marion bomb the interview? His moving around so much can’t be a plus on any resume

It is possible that he didn't like an offer. His resume wouldn't demand that big of a salary, so maybe he thought it wasn't worth the move just yet, especially with his family situation.
Or he just got beat out, who knows

 

[Meister_Rebel]

Did Marion bomb the interview? His moving around so much can’t be a plus on any resume

Scotty Walden has coaching and recruiting experience in West Texas. It's a good fit.

 

[lynaskin]

Wow. Walden is pretty young. He's 34.

 

[Meister_Rebel]

Wow. Walden is pretty young. He's 34.

Second youngest in FBS.

 

[lobbybuu]

I've never been more happy to be "wrong." I wonder what happened from last night to overnight to this morning though because he did stay the night.

There's only 1 one position/job that I'm worried about. I'll feel better once I hear Marion is back on the recruiting trail or when he tweets "Go Go Rebels!" or something like that.

 

[Masked_rebel]

Marion will be announced tomorrow and will be welcomed/introduced at their basketball game tomorrow.

So was it more "I think I want to stay in Vegas" or "That's not enough to get me and players I need to El Paso"?

 

[Masked_rebel]

I've never been more happy to be "wrong." I wonder what happened from last night to overnight to this morning though because he did stay the night.

There's only 1 one position/job that I'm worried about. I'll feel better once I hear Marion is back on the recruiting trail or when he tweets "Go Go Rebels!" or something like that.

Reno because it's a 45 minute flight and relatively short/awful drive?

 

[1Tripoda]

I've never been more happy to be "wrong." I wonder what happened from last night to overnight to this morning though because he did stay the night.

There's only 1 one position/job that I'm worried about. I'll feel better once I hear Marion is back on the recruiting trail or when he tweets "Go Go Rebels!" or something like that.

Me on the other hand am NEVER wrong.

 

[lobbybuu]

I haven't been filled in on any reasoning yet, but I'd guess that it was having a baby on the way and his girl being a business owner in Vegas played a big part in all of this. I mentioned this weeks ago and still believe that's the biggest factor.

My only question is did he ponder overnight and change his mind or did the UTEP brass flip last minute?

 

[unlove]

If he was the number 2 choice I suspect his numerous 1-yr stops had to play into the minds of UTEP. I’d be very hesitant to invest in a first time HC whose history is the No. 1 carpet-bagger in the country. Don’t mean that in a mean way just that he’s never shown any staying power literally anywhere. That’s gonna be tough to overcome when competing for any HC position, especially against guys with HC experience.

 

[lobbybuu]

If he was the number 2 choice I suspect his numerous 1-yr stops had to play into the minds of UTEP. I’d be very hesitant to invest in a first time HC whose history is the No. 1 carpet-bagger in the country. Don’t mean that in a mean way just that he’s never shown any staying power literally anywhere. That’s gonna be tough to overcome when competing for any HC position, especially against guys with HC experience.

This seems like a huge 180, but I agree with your assessment. Why tell the man to come for an in person interview (he was the only one that interviewed in person), then tell him to stay the night? he then starts following UTEP players that are in the portal and we wake up to news that he's not the HC.

 

[Masked_rebel]

This seems like a huge 180, but I agree with your assessment. Why tell the man to come for an in person interview (he was the only one that interviewed in person), then tell him to stay the night? he then starts following UTEP players that are in the portal and we wake up to news that he's not the HC.

Best guess- a donor with deep pockets in the program wanted the other guy and called the AD. Sounds like hes probably sticking around at this point, and I dont think the "1 year at a stop" was the reason that he didnt get the gig in UTEP. Has to be someone wanted the Austin Coach more and made it known after the decision started getting circulated...

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

Why not just wait for a P5 OC job?

Because he wants to be a HC.

There is some amount of Hubris as well. Most of these coaches think they can fix it or there way is right.

 

[Rebelsin54321]

Some thing to think about. How is this affecting recruiting with Marion interviewing for all these openings

 

[dcut03]

Because he wants to be a HC.

There is some amount of Hubris as well. Most of these coaches think they can fix it or there way is right.

Marion is fortunate that he has practically free reign to run his offense here. He hasn't had that since William and Mary.
He could get an OC under an offensive minded coach and have to change what he wants to do. Even a defensive minded HC may micromanage a bit. When you try unconventional things, not every coach will be down for that.
Marion has already learned that the hard way.

 

[dcut03]

Some thing to think about. How is this affecting recruiting with Marion interviewing for all these openings

Some no doubt, but it has only been a couple of weeks. That is not a lot of time.
Especially these days. It is so easy to transfer, committing to a school to play for a particular coach isn't such a commitment anymore.

 

[Masked_rebel]

Some thing to think about. How is this affecting recruiting with Marion interviewing for all these openings

Its a recruiting dead period or was. So while Im sure some might be calling or texting asking what's up, I dont think itll be damaging to interview for jobs. If the kid is committed to the coach, then it doesnt matter, if they're committed to the school, it also likely doesnt matter.

 

[lobbybuu]

Some thing to think about. How is this affecting recruiting with Marion interviewing for all these openings

Some recruits do not believe that hes interviewing at all.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

Marion is fortunate that he has practically free reign to run his offense here. He hasn't had that since William and Mary.
He could get an OC under an offensive minded coach and have to change what he wants to do. Even a defensive minded HC may micromanage a bit. When you try unconventional things, not every coach will be down for that.
Marion has already learned that the hard way.

Funny thing about it. It's not really all that unconventional. He took some of it from an old Navy offense. But instead of the backs being each side of the QB he stacked them to one side. Then added RPO and Zone read elements.

It's unique in its alignments for sure.

To your larger point I agree 100%. Odom gave him free reign to run the offense. College football or football in general is funny in that it's equal parts stuck in their ways and innovative.

 

[j. spilotro]

Regardless, have to trust in Odom on this. If he’s not leaving this year, it might be next, or next. It’s that type of situation so you really can’t fight it, you simply cannot provide a better opportunity here, there’s a ceiling for him as OC.

So Odom is going to have a list … it’s not like he will be surprised and say “oh shit, we better do something now!” I have faith that he will be ready to fill within minutes of Brennan leaving. You have to be proactive, not reactive … with recruits, current roster, staff. Chance favors the prepared. Odom strikes me as somebody who is prepared.

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

Regardless, have to trust in Odom on this. If he’s not leaving this year, it might be next, or next. It’s that type of situation so you really can’t fight it, you simply cannot provide a better opportunity here, there’s a ceiling for him as OC.

So Odom is going to have a list … it’s not like he will be surprised and say “oh shit, we better do something now!” I have faith that he will be ready to fill within minutes of Brennan leaving. You have to be proactive, not reactive … with recruits, current roster, staff. Chance favors the prepared. Odom strikes me as somebody who is prepared.

If Marion is leaving its as a P4 OC job at this point. The HC jobs are filling up quick.

 

[RebelSoldat]

Hopefully he stays here a bit longer and Odom convinces him he has some unfinished business