Nation's top rebounder Kevin Marfo to join Texas A&M as grad transfer
The Texas Aggie basketball team received a huge surprise on a quiet Saturday afternoon when Quinnipiac graduate transfer Kevin Marfo announced that he would be attending Texas A&M University to play for Buzz Williams and the staff. Marfo made his announcement via a live video feed during an interview with @allfactsmedia on Twitter.
The 6-foot-8, 245-pound junior emerged as one of the top, physical posts in the country last season, leading the nation in total rebounding averaging over 13.3 boards per contest. He originally signed and attended George Washington University, but transferred to Quinnipiac and sat out a redshirt season before suiting up for the Bobcats in 2018-2019.
After announcing his intent to transfer after the 2020 season, Marfo was pursued by over 40 power five schools. His final list included hometown St. John’s along with Penn State, VCU, Minnesota, and Texas A&M. But, it was the Aggies who were left standing after today, and in an unusual move, he made his decision without stepping foot in College Station. But there was a good reason for that.
“Coach Buzz Williams; his resume’ speaks for itself,” said Marfo in his interview with @allfactsmedia.” It’s the way he carries himself. He’s someone I can relate to. He’s my type of guy.
”For me to reach my goals, I have to go to somebody who has done that before at different schools who have done it with players like me.”
Marfo draws a lot of comparisons to Josh Nebo, and rightfully so. Both men are big, physical posts who don’t mind doing the necessary dirty work under the basket. Both men transferred and sat out a year during their careers and are physically and mentally mature for the college game. But just for comparison sake, Nebo averaged 6.2 rebounds to Marfo’s 13.3.
Marfo also gets to the free-throw line. He made 125 free throws in 2020 at a 71% clip, which is more than any Aggie basketball player successfully converted last season (Nebo, 100). In fact, Marfo led the nation in free throw attempts-to-field goal attempt ratio. Bottom line: he gets to the free-throw line and converts his attempts.
The addition of Marfo gives the Aggies that big, physical presence inside. He’ll also serve as a mentor to sophomore Jonathan Aku, who is still learning and developing his game. Marfo’s inside presence will also give the Texas A&M staff more flexibility on how they plan to utilize Savion Flagg and Emmanuel Miller on the court.
Today’s announcement leaves the Aggies with one available scholarship spot for next season. The staff is still pursuing several options, including high school guard Donovan Williams and freshman Temple Junior College big-man Carlton Linguard.