FAYETTEVILLE, Ala. – Back-to-back days brought back-to-back collegiate signings for Fayetteville High School athletes as senior basketball player Brennon Marlin officially signed to continue his playing career at Huntingdon College on Thursday, May 7.
The signing came one day after Fayetteville athlete Cam Hammonds signed a football scholarship with Point University.
Marlin will join the Huntingdon Hawks, who compete at the NCAA Division III level as members of the Collegiate Conference of the South.
“It means a lot,” Marlin said on signing day. “It’s a big milestone. I’ve dreamed of this day for a long time.”
Marlin said he fell in love with basketball in the eighth grade and quickly set a goal of playing at the collegiate level. Huntingdon began recruiting him during the summer before his senior season, eventually offering him a scholarship during an official visit to the Montgomery campus in December.
“I love the program,” Marlin said. “They’re a faith-based program. They produce championship caliber players, and it’s close to home.”
The Fayetteville point guard expects to remain at the same position in college. Marlin said he models parts of his game after Stephen Curry, citing his three-point shooting as his greatest strength while identifying transition defense as the biggest area he hopes to improve.
Marlin also received interest from LaGrange College and Southern Union State Community College before ultimately choosing Huntingdon.
Academically, Marlin plans to study exercise science.
His path to a college signing was not without setbacks. Marlin said he did not make the basketball team during either his seventh or eighth grade years in junior high. He eventually earned a spot on the junior varsity team as a freshman before being called up to varsity near the end of the season.
“That’s when it hit me that I needed to work hard,” Marlin said.
After dedicating himself during the offseason, Marlin returned his sophomore year and won the starting point guard position, a role he held throughout the remainder of his high school career.
Marlin credited Fayetteville head coach Matt Moore for playing a major role in his development.
“He’s kept me grounded. He’s kept me disciplined,” Marlin said. “He saw the potential in me that a lot of people didn’t see.”
Marlin also thanked his family and teammates Landon Thomas and Aiden Blair for helping deepen his love for the game.
Moore praised Marlin’s dedication and growth throughout his time in the program.
“I don’t know that we’ve had a player that’s worked as hard from his freshman year up to his senior year as much as Brennon Marlin,” Moore said. “Everybody works hard, but Brennon put that extra in.”
