Sudden impact: Kanious Vaughn, Marcus Bellon making mark for Miners

When asked to pick a couple of early August standouts on the UTEP football team, Dana Dimel didn't surprise by picking two junior college transfers.
That's a big part of the DNA of the Miners, though second-year junior receiver Marcus Bellon and first-year sophomore defensive end Kanious Vaughn, both from Southern California junior colleges, represent different parts of that spectrum.
UTEP defensive end Kanious Vaughn competes in a drill Tuesday at Glory Field
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Kanious Vaughn, sophomore end
Vaughn is the instant-impact transfer, a 6-foot-2, 223-pound pass rusher who has stepped right into the second team on a line loaded with depth. Vaughn's backing up star senior Praise Amaewhule and will be seeing plenty of snaps in the Jacksonville State opener.
While he says everything about the transition from Saddleback College to Division I is complicated, he's enjoying it.
"From JUCO it's a lot more difficult, the plays are 10 times harder, but the coaches are teaching us what we need to know, keeping it slow," Vaughn said. "I'm learning it day by day.
"I think I'm playing really well on the pass rush side. I have a little work to do on the run side since I'm a little on the lightweight side. But so far it's going well. The whole team is doing well, we're physical and with the o-line we're competing every day."
Vaughn's resume isn't big, probably part of the reason he didn't receive power conference looks out of Saddleback, but it's impressive. He played in five games last year because of an injury but had 11 sacks in those five games, including five in one game against Golden West.
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He was eligible to come to UTEP after that one year at Saddleback and made an immediate impression in the spring that has carried over to fall.
"He only played in the last five games of his junior college career as a true freshman and he led the league in sacks," Dimel said. "We're seeing that from him right now. He's hard to block, a really good pass rusher and he's good in the run because he uses his hands extremely well.
"He's been super active in camp and a really important part of our defense."
Indeed, Dimel routinely cites defensive line depth as the strongest point of the Miners and Vaughn said he is excited to be part of that. His transition to El Paso has been interesting but so far quite productive.
"The heat is killing me but I'm coming along," Vaughn said. "My teammates are cool, they are helpful, they are always here whenever I have questions."
UTEP receiver Marcus Bellon competes in a drill Tuesday morning at Glory Field
Marcus Bellon, junior receiver
While players such as Vaughn have been the backbone of UTEP's turnaround in the past three seasons, Bellon is in some ways a more typical "give a year to get a year" junior college transfer.
Brought in out of Santa Barbara Community College last year to fix the Miners' punt return game, Bellon had a little longer transition. He broke out as a punt returner before midseason, but as a receiver the bulk of his production came on one 52-yard touchdown catch against Louisiana Tech (he finished with five catches on the season for 83 yards).
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What he showed was a knack for game-breaking plays — his punt return for a touchdown was the dagger in the upset of Boise State — and that's now showing in the passing game. After Tyrin Smith and Kelly Akharaiyi, UTEP has a four-way battle going on for the other starting spot between Bellon, Jeremiah Ballard, Jostein Clarke and Emari White, and Bellon is making a strong case as he's earned the nickname "Marcus Ballin'".
"You always say that first-year JUCO guy is just learning, then in the second year he's going to be a lot better," said Dimel, who compared Bellon's game to Smith's. "You're seeing that with Marcus. He understands the system so much better and he's making himself a playmaker. He uses his speed, his intelligence and his craftiness to get himself open.
"He's a really good compliment in our passing game."
Bellon feels a growing comfort level at UTEP.
"It's been good so far," Bellon said. "I'm trying to make every day consistent. The receiving corps has stepped up from last fall camp and the spring. It's been good.
"I'd say I'm definitely up to speed. I know the playbook like the back of my hand, I have a great relationship with our quarterbacks. I've been able to build that up over the last year. I'm definitely up to speed."
As for what he brings, Bellon lives for big plays.
"Turning a 4-yard route into a 70-yard touchdown is what I like to do," Bellon said. "Make people miss, take the heart out of teams."
He'll have a chance to do that as a receiver this year.