Marrow joins Stoops' staff as TE coach

Former NFL tight end and Nebraska assistant coach Vince Marrow has been officially announced as the newest member of Mark Stoops' coaching staff at Kentucky.

Former NFL tight end and Nebraska assistant coach Vince Marrow is the latest addition to Mark Stoops' new Kentucky staff, the school announced Thursday afternoon.

Marrow will be coaching the Wildcats' tight ends.

“I’ve known Mark Stoops for a lot of years and this is a great opportunity to come here and work with him,” Marrow said. “I’m excited to be here and looking forward to the new era of Kentucky football."

“I’m very excited that Coach Marrow has joined our staff,” Stoops said. “His diverse experiences as a coach and NFL player will be invaluable to our players and our program. He also is a great recruiter, especially with his outstanding connections in Ohio.”

Stoops and Marrow, both from Youngstown, Ohio, knew each other as children before playing football together at Cardinal Mooney High School. Marrow went on to have a successful playing career collegiately and professionally as a tight end before entering the coaching ranks.

Marrow comes to UK from Nebraska, where he coached the Cornhuskers’ tight ends the last two seasons. In 2012, Marrow helped guide NU’s tight ends to a combined 45 catches for 579 yards and five touchdowns, while their blocking ability has helped NU rank eighth in the country in rushing offense.

Although Marrow’s title was graduate assistant in his term at Nebraska, he had an expanded role last spring, getting to hit the recruiting trail after Nebraska was granted a waiver from the NCAA to allow Marrow to recruit off campus while associate head coach Barney Cotton was unable to recruit due to surgery. Marrow made an immediate impact on NU’s recruiting in Ohio.

Prior to his stint at Nebraska, Marrow spent six years in the coaching ranks, mostly in professional football with NFL Europe and the United Football League. The year before joining Bo Pelini’s staff at NU, Marrow was tight ends coach with the Omaha Nighthawks of the UFL.

Marrow had a professional playing career as a member of NFL rosters on five teams, including Buffalo, Carolina, the New York Jets, Chicago and San Francisco.

Marrow began his collegiate playing career at Youngstown State before transferring to Toledo. Marrow played two seasons at Toledo, earning second-team All-Mid-American Conference honors in 1991 before being drafted by the Bills in 1992.

Marrow graduated from Toledo with a degree in criminal justice. He and his wife, Dr. Monique Marrow, have five children, Mike, Phylica, Merrisa, Victoria and Aryanna. Mike is a fullback at Nebraska.