MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Kerry Marbury, a former West Virginia University football standout considered among the top prep players in state history, died at 67.
Marbury passed away Sunday morning after battling cancer. Sources close to the family confirmed his death Monday to MetroNews.
Marbury rushed for 1,665 yards and 22 touchdowns over the 1971 and 1972 seasons at WVU. He carried the ball 145 times for 890 yards as a sophomore, before rushing for 775 yards on 150 attempts as a junior.
In 1971 he set a Mountaineers single-game rushing record with 291 yards against Temple — a mark that stood until 2004.
Marbury did not stick around for his senior season, electing to turn pro. He signed a contract with the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts, but his football career was over several years later.
Prior to his time at WVU, Marbury was a three-sport athlete at Monongah High School, excelling in football, track and basketball.
Marbury teamed with close friend and current Alabama football coach Nick Saban to lead Monongah to consecutive Class A state championships in 1968 and 1969. He finished with more than 6,000 rushing yards in his prep career, including 402 in a game against Kingwood.
He won the 1969 Kennedy Award, given to the state’s top football player.
Marbury twice claimed high-point honors at the state track meet as a junior and senior.
Marbury was incarcerated for a period in the 1970s, a stint he credited with turning his life around. He subsequently finished his degree at Fairmont State and earned a master’s degree from WVU.
He was hired at Fairmont State in 1993, beginning a 21-year career in which he served as off-campus coordinator and safety director and taught a course on “Race, Class and Gender.”
