Wisconsin football offers BYU transfer wide receiver, college football's top kick returner
Wisconsin football offers BYU transfer wide receiver, college football's top kick returner
Wisconsin football extended an offer to BYU transfer wide receiver Keelan Marion on Sunday.
Marion is in the portal after two seasons with the Cougars. That stint followed three campaigns at UConn, which he originally joined as a three-star recruit in the class of 2020. Since reentering the portal, the wide receiver has also shared offers from SMU, Miami, Arizona State, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida State, Baylor, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Colorado and Syracuse.
The Lawrenceville, Georgia, native began his college career with a stellar 28-catch, 474-yard (team-high), five-touchdown (team-high) redshirt freshman season at UConn in 2021. He then missed most of the 2022 season with a broken collarbone, finishing with just four receptions, 89 yards and one score. Marion entered the portal after the 2022 campaign.
After initially committing to East Carolina during the 2023 spring window, the veteran receiver walked back that pledge and eventually transferred to BYU.
Marion went on to have two extremely productive seasons with the Cougars. His 2023 campaign included 20 receptions, 216 receiving yards, nine carries, 40 rushing yards and three rushing scores. He was also the team's starting kick-returner, with 393 total return yards on 19 attempts. 2024 then became a career-best season, as he tallied 24 catches, 346 receiving yards, 21 carries, 96 rushing yards and three total touchdowns on offense, plus 18 kickoff returns, 472 return yards and a Football Bowl Subdivision-best 26.2 yards per return and two return touchdowns on special teams.
The 6-foot, 195-pound wide receiver is in the portal with a final season of eligibility remaining. All indications are that he's a popular prospect at this late stage of the offseason.
Wisconsin is looking to bolster its wide receiver group after Mark Hamper, a winter transfer addition, and veteran Quincy Burroughs each entered the portal. The team is set in the starting lineup with Vinny Anthony and Jayden Ballard on the outside and speedster Trech Kekahuna in the slot. Marion would provide an intriguing offensive threat, whether on the boundary, in the backfield, or in the return game.
The Badgers have minor question marks at both returner positions, with Anthony (kickoff) and Kekahuna (punt) as the current projected starters. Marion's potential addition would provide a clear answer on kickoff return, as he was arguably college football's best at the position last season.
Marion is one of Wisconsin's several reported transfer interests at wide receiver, along with Quaron Adams (South Dakota) and Karmello English (West Georgia). Of the three, Wisconsin will likely face the most competition for the former BYU Cougar and top return threat.
For more on Wisconsin's spring transfer movement and remaining needs, bookmark our 2025 spring window tracker.
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