Could Cincinnati have Vince Marrow on its short list for new head coach

Vince Marrow has been with Mark Stoops since day one at UK but his contract runs out in June and UK might need to give him a significant salary boost to keep him. (Vicky Graff Photo)

Wisconsin has hired Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell as its new head coach and that could impact Kentucky football. The Bearcats obviously will be looking for a new coach and one name that immediately surfaced was Vince Marrow, UK’s associate coach, recruiting coordinator and tight ends coach.

Fickell went 57-18 from 2017-22 and in 2021 the Bearcats were 13-1 and became the first -ever Group of 5 team to make the College Football Playoff. Cincinnati has three seasons with 11 wins under Fickell and also has had 16 players drafted since 2018, including nine last season.

Fickell is known for his ability to recruit in the Midwest — and that’s where the Marrow connection comes in.

Marrow has been a relentless recruiter in Ohio because of the connections both he and head coach Mark Stoops have in their home state. Marrow also has contacts in Michigan — and he obviously has big-time connections in Kentucky where he has brought most of the top Division I talent at UK since 2018.

Those recruiting connections — and UK’s recent success — have Marrow on Cincinnati’s early list according to what various sources told me.

Marrow has been approached about other jobs — Michigan State recruiting coordinator probably was the most recent — but this would be a head job at a school that has won. Fickell was on a new contract that ran through 2028 paying him $5 million per year. Marrow makes about $1 million per year with a contract that runs through June 30, 2023.

Kentucky athletics director Mitch Barnhart recently raised Stoops’ salary to $8.6 million per year with the contract running through the 2030 season.

If you are going to invest that money in Stoops, you don’t want him to lose Marrow. Knowing Marrow is due for a new contract anyway, it’s time for UK to show the love to Marrow.

Why would Marrow stay?

— Kentucky plays in the SEC, which helps Marrow recruit.

— Kentucky is working on NIL funding, which will help recruiting and Kentucky should have a much bigger money pool than Cincinnati.

— Marrow is a folk hero in the Bluegrass. I think he might be the most popular UK coach and he has a way to relate to all BBN fans.

However, every coach has an itch to be a head coach — and make more money — and Cincinnati just might be willing to let Marrow have that opportunity.