BYU Football adds WR Keelan Marion from transfer portal

PROVO, Utah– The latest addition to the BYU football wide receiver ranks is Keelan Marion.

Marion announced his commitment to BYU on Wednesday night. He wrote: “PROVO GIVES IT!”

PROVO GIVES IT! pic.twitter.com/RgVcgIFYt7

– Keelan Marion (@keelanmarion1) May 18, 2023

Marion is a transfer wide receiver from the University of Connecticut. He started all 12 games at UConn in 2021 and was projected to play a leading role in 2022. His season last year was derailed by a broken collarbone in the season opener at Utah State.

Marion finished last year with four receptions for 89 yards and a touchdown.

Keelan Marion led UConn in receiving yards in 2021

During the 2021 season, the 6-foot, 200-pound passacher had 28 receptions for 474 yards and five touchdowns. He is second in UConn history for most starts by a freshman in a season with 10. In his two years at UConn, Marion averaged 17.6 yards per catch.

Marion jumped onto BYU’s radar in the varsity after Kody Epps came in on April 30. Then, when Epps returned, BYU added Darius Lassiter from Eastern Michigan, and it looked like Marion would move on to other opportunities.

He explored other options.

Marion committed to East Carolina on May 9. Then a week later, he announced on his personal social media account that he was resigning from the Pirates.

“I want to thank Coach Houston and Coach Roberts for the opportunity to play at East Carolina, but after much thought and prayer, I am decommitting from ECU and opening my recruitment.” Marion tweeted on May 16.

Marion was in Provo the same day for a visit.

What the addition of Marion means for BYU football

The addition of Marion is important to BYU’s wide receiver unit. Heading into fall camp, BYU now has nine scholarship wide receivers on the roster. That gives BYU a potential three-deep of scholarship recipients, along with walk-ons like Talmage Gunther and Hobbs Nyberg.

In addition to being a help in the receiving game, Marion could also provide a spark in BYU’s return game. BYU special teams coordinator Kelly Poppinga said earlier this year that he wanted to find a dynamic returner. In the 2021 season, Marion averaged 12.4 yards per punt return. Last year, he started at the kick and punt return positions.

Marion has two years of eligibility remaining in his college career.

BYU opens the 2023 season on Sept. 2 against Sam Houston in Provo. The Cougars are headed to the Big 12 Conference this fall. They will officially join UCF, Cincinnati and Houston on July 1, 2023.

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Mitch Harper is KSLsports.com’s BYU Insider and host of the Cougar Tracks podcast (ROOM) and Cougar Sports Saturday (starting at 123 on Saturday) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU’s move to the Big 12 Conference on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.

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