Keelan Marion’s noise quiets the armchair kickoff returners

If you were among the BYU fans yelling “Don’t do it!” at your television or radio moments before Keelan Marion did it — you are not alone. Marion’s 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to start the second half of Saturday’s game at Wyoming surprised more than just the Cowboys.
After his four previous kickoff returns failed to reach the 25, including three that didn’t exceed the 17, the idea of bringing out the second-half kickoff from 2 yards deep in the end zone took some moxie — and a lot of faith.
Fortunately for BYU, the junior from Atlanta has plenty of both, but he just needed a timely reminder.
The kick return struggles that surfaced at SMU carried over to Wyoming. The UConn transfer spent the halftime break in Laramie languishing in a cloud of doubt. His heady head coach knew exactly what to do.
“I was a little down at halftime and Kalani (Sitake) came up and told me, ‘Key, hit it and trust it!’” Marion told BYUtv. “I came out and told the coaches which return I wanted, and I hit it and trusted the guys. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the kickoff return team.”
Leading 17-7, Marion caught the opening kick of the third quarter and took off. By the time he reached the 20, there were Cowboys converging all around him. Spotting some daylight, Marion cut to his left and with a few more steps he was out in the open — running fast and free.
A trio of defiant defenders took shots at him on the Wyoming side of the 50, but their diving efforts missed at the 39, the 14 and lastly, the 9-yard line.
“Those last 20 yards, (Wyoming) thought I was running out of gas,” Marion said. “But I was just letting my blocks set up.”
Marion’s moment, the first kickoff return for a touchdown at BYU in 10 years and the first to happen for the Cougars outside of Provo in 26, gives the special teams unit a jolt of momentum just in time for conference play. As BYU learned last year, good field position in the Big 12 is priceless.
A 34-14 victory, and 3-0 start, has the Cougars eager to challenge conference contender No. 13 Kansas State (3-0) on Saturday (8:30 p.m., ESPN). BYU is 23-3 over their last 26 night games.
Marion’s 100-yard scamper made a lot of noise, but it also silenced the armchair kick returners who, like Wyoming, didn’t see it coming.
In fact, had their reactions been recorded, it likely sounded something like, “No! No! No. OK. Alright. At least we can get the 20. Oh, man! Get to the outside! Yes! Yes! Go! Go! Watch out for those guys! No way! He’s going to do it! C’mon, don’t get caught! Oh, I don’t believe it! Touchdown! What a great run. … I told you guys he could do it!”
Sound like your house?
The run not only gives Marion a moment to remember forever, but it also gives the Wildcats something else to worry about when they roll into LaVell’s house Saturday night.
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.