Why Marques Hagans Left Virginia for Penn State

"Wasn't an easy decision," the Lions' new receivers coach said, "but I couldn't turn it down."

Marques Hagans, Penn State's new receivers coach, grew up with Allen Iverson and named his son after a new co-worker. He hasn't coached anywhere but Virginia and is nicknamed "Biscuit," which he's shy to explain.

Moreover, Hagans fits James Franklin's staff of relationship-driven coaches who demand as much from themselves as they do from their players.

"If there's no relationship," he said, "you're just a supervisor."

Hagans recently introduced himself to the Penn State community, sharing his view on coaching and recruiting (he'll be the offensive recruiting coordinator) and why this was the right time to leave Virginia. Here's what we learned about new Penn State receivers coach Marques Hagans.

He'll always be Virginia

Hagans played quarterback at Virginia, spent five seasons in the NFL and returned to Charlottesville as a graduate assistant in 2011. He hasn't coached anywhere else, rising from GA to receivers coach. He worked with three different staffs for the Cavaliers.

Hagans' wife, Lauren Swierczek, played basketball at Virginia. They chose to remain in Charlottesville longer while Lauren underwent treatment for breast cancer.

"Charlottesville has been a place that has become home," Hagans said, "and a lot of it is because of the people."

Why now, and why Penn State?

Hagans has respected Franklin "from afar" over the years and saw an opportunity to join a championship contender. Franklin recently said he wants to build a receivers room that "puts the fear in people," and Hagans is on board.

"As coach mentioned, this group has to take another step for us to accomplish the goals we want to," Hagans said.

Moreover, Hagans felt the timing was right.

"The opportunity to work for coach Franklin and join Penn State was a great opportunity I couldn't turn down," he said. "Wasn't an easy decision, but I couldn't turn it down."

An old friend helped bring him to Penn State

One of Hagans' first coaches at Virginia was Anthony Poindexter, a former Cavaliers star player who also began his career as a GA. The two formed a tight bond as player-coach and then as co-workers on the staff. Hagans' son Christoper's middle name is Dex.

Poindexter was instrumental in helping broker introductions between Hagans and James Franklin and assist with Hagans' transition.

"The opportunity to reunite with him is a big reason I'm here," Hagans said.

This isn't a 'fresh start'

In November, a former Virginia football player shot and killed three members of the 2022 team. Hagans memorialized the players (Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D'Sean Perry) with a tattoo on his arm.

But Hagans did not want his decision to leave Virginia to be characterized as a "fresh start."

"I think that would be insensitive to say a fresh start because there are three families that won’t ever get that opportunity to have a fresh start," Hagans said. "I don’t know if you ever move on. Those three guys will always be part of my life. I have them tattooed on my arm so I never forget them, and their families will always be part of my family.

"There's three families that I love very deeply, and I don’t know that move on is the right word, because I’ll never move on with out them. The place has changed, I’m in a different place, but those families and Lavel, D'Sean and Devin always be a part of me. They’ll always be part of my heart, my life and my family."

He's childhood friends with Allen Iverson

Hagans grew up in Hampton, Virginia, with the former Philadelphia 76ers star. They're still tight to this day. Perhaps Iverson might get to a Penn State game this season.

"AI is someone who I grew up around," Hagans said. "He’s a few years older than me. We played same rec league [basketball], and he became a big brother to me. To have someone like that, arguably one of the best players to play pro hoops, be from your neighborhood and to be a big supporter of mine really means a lot."

Like Franklin, he's a relationships coach

This certainly went over well during the interview process. Hagans sounds a lot like Franklin when discussing how he relates with players. "If there's no relationship, then you're just a supervisor," he said.

"As a coach I’m very relationship driven and then I’m very demanding," Hagans said. "The only way I can be demanding is if I know exactly who I’m coaching and what they aspire to be, and I can help them become that."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.