2018_Marshall_Thundering_Herd_football_team
2018 Marshall Thundering Herd football team
American college football season
The 2018 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at the Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia, and competed in the East Division of Conference USA (C-USA). They were led by ninth-year head coach Doc Holliday. They finished the season 9–4, 6–2 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for second place in the East Division. They were invited to the Gasparilla Bowl where they defeated South Florida.
| 2018 Marshall Thundering Herd football | |
|---|---|
 | |
Gasparilla Bowl champion | |
Gasparilla Bowl, W 38–20 vs. South Florida | |
| Conference | Conference USA |
| Division | East Division |
| Record | 9–4 (6–2 C-USA) |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive coordinator | Tim Cramsey (1st season) |
| Offensive scheme | Pro spread |
| Defensive coordinator | Adam Fuller (1st season) |
| Base defense | 4–3 |
| Home stadium | Joan C. Edwards Stadium |
Seasons | |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee x | 7 | – | 1 | 8 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marshall | 6 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIU | 6 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Charlotte | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Florida Atlantic | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Old Dominion | 2 | – | 6 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Kentucky | 2 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UAB x$ | 7 | – | 1 | 11 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Texas | 5 | – | 3 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana Tech | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southern Miss | 5 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UTSA | 2 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UTEP | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rice | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship: UAB 27, Middle Tennessee 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Award watch lists
Listed in the order that they were released
| Award | Player | Position | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rimington Trophy[1] | Levi Brown | C | JR |
| Fred Biletnikoff Award[2] | Tyre Brady | WR | SR |
| Butkus Award[3] | Juwon Young | LB | JR |
| Jim Thorpe Award[4] | Malik Gant | S | JR |
| Bronko Nagurski Trophy[5] | Ryan Bee | DL | JR |
| Outland Trophy[6] | Ryan Bee | DL | JR |
| Paul Hornung Award[7] | Keion Davis | RB/KR | JR |
| Wuerffel Trophy[8] | Chase Hancock | LB | SR |
| Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award[9] | Alex Thomson | QB | JR |
Preseason All-CUSA team
Conference USA released their preseason all-CUSA team on July 16, 2018, with the Thundering Herd having five players selected.[10]
|
Offense Levi Brown – OL Tyre Brady – WR |
Defense Chase Hancock – LB Malik Gant – DB |
Special teams Matt Beardall – LS |
Preseason media poll
Conference USA released their preseason media poll on July 17, 2018, with the Thundering Herd predicted to finish in second place in the East Division.[11]
| East Division | ||
| Predicted finish | Team | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida Atlantic | |
| 2 | Marshall | |
| 3 | Middle Tennessee | |
| 4 | FIU | |
| 5 | Western Kentucky | |
| 6 | Old Dominion | |
| 7 | Charlotte | |
Marshall announced its 2018 football schedule on January 23, 2018. The 2018 schedule consists of 6 home and away games in the regular season. The Thundering Herd will host CUSA foes Middle Tennessee, Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, and UTSA, and will travel to Western Kentucky (WKU), Old Dominion, Southern Miss, and FIU.[12]
The Thundering Herd will host two of the four non-conference opponents, Eastern Kentucky of the Ohio Valley Conference at the FCS level and NC State of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and will travel to Miami of Ohio of the Mid-American Conference and South Carolina of the Southeastern Conference.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | 3:30 p.m. | at Miami (OH)* | ESPN+ | W 35–28 | 15,827 | |
| September 8 | 6:30 p.m. | Eastern Kentucky* | ESPN+ | W 32–16 | 24,304 | |
| September 22 | 7:00 p.m. | NC State* |
| CBSSN | L 20–37 | 32,349 |
| September 29 | 7:30 p.m. | at Western Kentucky | Stadium | W 20–17 | 20,811 | |
| October 5 | 7:30 p.m. | Middle Tennessee |
| CBSSN | L 24–34 | 25,979 |
| October 13 | 3:30 p.m. | at Old Dominion | Stadium | W 42–20 | 20,118 | |
| October 20 | 2:30 p.m. | Florida Atlantic |
| CBSSN | W 31–7 | 23,825 |
| November 3 | 3:00 p.m. | at Southern Miss | Stadium | L 24–26 | 20,375 | |
| November 10 | 2:30 p.m. | Charlotte |
| ESPN+ | W 30–13 | 19,418 |
| November 17 | 2:30 p.m. | UTSA |
| Stadium | W 23–0 | 18,502 |
| November 24 | 12:00 p.m. | at FIU | Stadium | W 28–25 | 14,862 | |
| December 1[lower-alpha 1] | 12:00 p.m. | at Virginia Tech* | ESPN3 | L 20–41 | 31,336 | |
| December 20 | 8:00 p.m. | at South Florida* | ESPN | W 38–20 | 14,135 | |
| ||||||
- The game between Marshall and South Carolina, originally scheduled for September 15, 2018, was canceled in anticipation of Hurricane Florence. Seeking bowl eligibility, Virginia Tech scheduled Marshall, as both teams had a game cancelled due to the hurricane and neither had made their respective conference championship games. The game was contingent upon the Hokies defeating rival Virginia, which they did.[13]
- Schedule Source:[14]
At Miami (OH)
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
| RedHawks | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
Eastern Kentucky
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colonels | 0 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 16 |
| Thundering Herd | 13 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 32 |
NC State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolfpack | 3 | 20 | 14 | 0 | 37 |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 20 |
At Western Kentucky
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 20 |
| Hilltoppers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
Middle Tennessee
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Raiders | 3 | 7 | 14 | 10 | 34 |
| Thundering Herd | 3 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
At Old Dominion
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 42 |
| Monarchs | 0 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 20 |
Florida Atlantic
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owls | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 31 |
At Southern Miss
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Golden Eagles | 3 | 14 | 3 | 6 | 26 |
Charlotte
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49ers | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| Thundering Herd | 10 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 30 |
UTSA
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roadrunners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thundering Herd | 10 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 23 |
At FIU
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Panthers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 25 |
At Virginia Tech
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 6 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 20 |
| Hokies | 10 | 21 | 3 | 7 | 41 |
At South Florida (Gasparilla Bowl)
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thundering Herd | 21 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 38 |
| Bulls | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 20 |
- "Rimington Trophy Press Release". May 30, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
- "2018 Biletnikoff Award Watch List". July 19, 2018. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
- "Butkus Award - 2018 Collegiate Watchlist". The Butkus Award. July 23, 2018. Archived from the original on August 20, 2010. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- "Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Names 2018 Preseason Watchlist" (Press release). July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- "2018 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Preseason Watch List". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- "22018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- "43 PLAYERS NAMED TO 2018 PAUL HORNUNG AWARD WATCH LIST". July 26, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
- "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List". July 26, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
- "Watch List for 2018 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award ® Presented by A. O. Smith Announced". August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- "FB: 2018 Preseason Awards". July 16, 2018.
- "FB: Preseason Media Poll". July 17, 2018.
- "MCGILL: HERD FOOTBALL SCHEDULE HAS ATTRACTIVE HOME GAMES" (Press release). Marshall University Department of Athletics. January 23, 2018. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
- "Hokies schedule Herd to keep bowl streak alive". ESPN.com. November 18, 2018.
- "2018 Marshall Thundering Herd Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
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