ALTOONA, Pa. -- On one hand, it looks like Penn State made a home run hire in new wide receivers coach Marques Hagans, when it comes to coaching up players and getting max performance.
Here's all the proof you need about his tenure at Virginia, from the Penn State release.
During his time in Charlottesville, Hagans coached 10 of the top 15 players in career receptions at Virginia, led by Olamide Zaccheaus and his program-record 250 receptions and 2,753 career receiving yards, which is second in school history. Zaccheaus is currently with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons.
Clearly, once the wide receivers get on campus, Hagans knows how to make them better.
That's what Penn State will be counting on with Hagans, who was named to the position Monday to replace Taylor Stubblefield, who was fired last week.
"We are excited to add Marques to our family," James Franklin said in a university release. "He is a veteran coach, whose experiences playing both quarterback and wide receiver at the highest levels will bring tremendous value to our program.
"Marques has a proven track record of developing receivers throughout his career and has worked alongside many coaches I respect. Marques is a relationship-based leader, whose family values align with the culture of Penn State."
Hagans, 40, also will be Penn State's offensive recruiting coordinator.
There is, without question, a lot to like about Hagans and his track record, including the fact that he reportedly is held in extremely high regard by everyone in the Virginia program.
Heard from a few UVA folks this morning. They're really, really, really gonna miss Marques Hagans.
— Tyler Donohue (@TDsTake) January 23, 2023
"Genuinely one of the best people I've ever met." https://t.co/HEQ2Jtlwuh
But there's also this very peculiar aspect: Hagans has not been an overly successful individual recruiter at Virginia, at least according to rankings compiled by 247Sports. That outlet ranks all the top recruiters in the country, as well as the top recruiters in each conference.
To be honest, it's pretty alarming looking at Hagans' track record as a recruiter. Here's where he ranked in the ACC for annual recruiting classes during his Virginia tenure. This isn't nationally, mind you, but just in the ACC:
2023: not ranked among 112 coaches listed
2022: 67th, 1 commit
2021: 111th out of 127 coaches listed, 1 commit
2020: not ranked among 112 coaches listed
2019: 75th, 3 commits
2018: not ranked among 93 coaches listed
2017: 74th, 1 commit
2016: 33rd, 3 commits
2015: 78th, 2 commits
2014: 123rd out of 124 coaches listed, 1 commit
2013: 89th, 3 commits
Additionally, Hagans' list of top all-time recruits includes only one 4-star prospect and just four 3-stars.
Now look, Virginia doesn't have the same things to sell as Penn State when it comes to recruiting, so this isn't exactly an apples to apples comparison. And to be fair, I can't sit here and tell you that I know how Virginia's staff responsibilities were handled with regards to which assistant coaches did exactly what in recruiting.
Still, those rankings numbers above are ... well, surprising to say the least for a new hire, because we all know how much emphasis Franklin and Penn State place on recruiting. And as we pointed out last week when Stubblefield was fired about his subpar recruiter rankings in the Big Ten, the Lions are recruiting against perhaps the best wide receivers coach/recruiter in the country in Ohio State's Brian Hartline, so Penn State cannot afford a dropoff at the same spot on its staff.
The best component is that Hagans should have a lot of connections in Virginia and the surrounding areas, which have always been extremely important to Penn State in recruiting.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to be led by James Franklin and work with his tremendous coaching staff," Hagans said in the Penn State release. "I am excited to be part of the tradition of Penn State Football, to uphold the standard of excellence and to work relentlessly to compete for championships. My wife, Lauren, and our boys cannot wait to get to Happy Valley."
Recruiter rankings aside, there is a whole lot to like about Hagans. He played quarterback at Virginia and played wide receiver in the NFL, so he has a wealth of knowledge about both aspects of the passing game.
Here's more about Hagans from his Virginia bio:
Hagans was a four-year letterwinner at UVA from 2002-05 and currently is No. 10 all-time in passing at UVA with 4,877 passing yards. He finished his career in the No. 5 on that list. Hagans in No. 7 all-time at UVA in total offense with 5,779 yards and his 2005 season ranks No. 9 all-time with 2,802 total yards.
The St. Louis Rams selected Hagans in the fifth round (144 overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He spent three seasons with the Rams before being picked up by the Kansas City Chiefs for the 2009 campaign. Hagans finished the 2009 season with the Washington Redskins and was released in the summer of 2010 after injuring himself in off-season workouts.
Hagans spent the 2011 and 2012 seasons at UVA as a graduate assistant, working with the offense.
Hagans is a native of Hampton, Va., and graduated from Hampton High School after spending two years at neighboring Bethel High School. As a junior at Hampton, Hagans led the Crabbers to the state championship in Group AAA, Division 5 of the Virginia High School League in 1998. Hampton advanced to the state semifinals in Hagans’ senior season in 1999.
