Marshall: 2022 Myrtle Beach Bowl Champions

 

CONWAY — Marshall capped off its first season as a member of the Sun Belt with a bang.

The Thundering Herd handled Connecticut, 28-14, in the third-annual Myrtle Beach Bowl at Coastal Carolina’s Brooks Stadium on Dec. 19.

With the win, Marshall ended the season on a five-game winning streak, the first time the Herd has done that since 2002.

“This 2022 team will always be remembered,” Marshall head coach Charles Huff said. “One, for the first Sun Belt team. They’ll be remembered for a team that found a way to go 4-0 in November (and) create an opportunity for us to party in December. They’ll always be remembered as the 2022 Myrtle Beach (Bowl) champions, and for the rest of their lives, they’ll be called champions.”

Marshall finished the season at 9-4 with the win, while UConn dropped to 6-7 with the loss. It was the Huskies’ first bowl appearance since 2015, and it was Marshall’s first bowl victory since 2018.

Quarterback Cam Fancher led Marshall with two touchdown passes, completing 9-of-18 passes for 59 yards. Running back Rasheen Ali, who was named the bowl game MVP, led the Herd’s ground game with 81 yards on 12 carries and a score, and tight end Devin Miller and wide receiver Corey Gammage each caught a touchdown pass.

For UConn, Zion Turner went 5-for-18 for 99 yards and two interceptions, and running back Victor Rosa led the ground game with 57 yards on 13 touches and two scores. Keelan Marion was the high man in receiving yards with two catches for 69 yards for the Huskies.

After Hancher fumbled on fourth down on Marshall’s opening drive in Huskie territory and UConn recovered, Turner fumbled on the very next play and Marshall recovered. This set up a 9-yard touchdown pass from Fancher to Gammage to put the Herd up 7-0 with 11:15 to go in the first quarter.

After four consecutive punts, Marshall scored again when defensive lineman Damion Barber Jr. picked off Turner and returned it 34 yards for a score to put the Herd up 14-0 with 3:23 to go in the first quarter. It was the first pick six for Marshall since Steven Gilmore, the brother of former South Carolina Gamecocks great Stephon Gilmore, had one in the win over Notre Dame on Sept. 10.

UConn squandered its first opportunity to get on the board when kicker Noe Ruelas missed a 45-yard field goal with 8:25 to go before half.

Marshall extended its lead when Fancher found Miller for a 10-yard touchdown pass to put the Herd up 21-0 with 7:05 to go before half.

UConn had another chance to put points on the board late in the second quarter, but the Huskies turned it over on downs when a pass from Tucker fell incomplete in the back of the end zone.

Ali padded Marshall’s lead with a 2-yard touchdown run to put the Herd up 28-0 with 9:51 to go in the third quarter.

UConn finally got on the board with 5:35 to go in the third quarter when Rosa found pay dirt from 14 yards out to cut the lead to 28-7. Rosa found the end zone again on UConn’s next drive, this time on a 24-yard run to cut the Herd to 28-14 as the third quarter clock expired.

UConn defensive back Malik Dixon-Williams picked off Fancher early in the fourth quarter to give the Huskies the ball back, but a sack and multiple penalties on UConn, including an unsportsmanlike conduct call on UConn head coach Jim Mora, left the Huskies with a 4th-and-13 try, and Turner’s pass to Kevens Clercius was broken up by Gilmore to give Marshall the ball back at its own 45-yard-line with 9:57 to go in the game.

After a Marshall punt, two costly penalties on the Herd got UConn into Marshall territory, but Herd defensive back Micah Abraham picked Turner off in the end zone to give Marshall the ball back at its own 20-yard-line with 5:09 to go in the game.

From there, Marshall was able to run the clock out and win the game thanks to UConn only having one timeout left.

Marshall: 2019 College Insider Postseason Tournament Champions

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- C.J. Burks scored 28 points as Marshall romped past Green Bay 90-70 on Thursday night for the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament championship.

Burks also had seven rebounds, six assists and three steals in being named the most valuable player. He had a steal on back-to-back possessions and his fast-break dunk gave Marshall a 72-62 midway through the second half.

Taevion Kinsey added 21 points for the Thundering Herd (23-14). Jon Elmore had 17 points on just 5-of-18 shooting. Marshall was 1 for 12 from 3-point range to start the game and finished 3 of 26.

Tank Hemphill had 21 points for the Phoenix (21-17). Sandy Cohen III added 13 points -- all in the first half -- and JayQuan McCloud had 11.

Green Bay led by as many as 13 points in the first half, but Marshall pulled within 42-40 at the break. Cohen made a 3-pointer early in the first half to move into second on Green Bay's single-season scoring list, passing Virginia coach Tony Bennett.

Marshall: 2018 Gasparilla Bowl Champions

TAMPA, Fla. -- It was a family affair as Marshall ended the season with another bowl victory.

Isaiah Green completed 17 of 25 passes for 221 yards, cousin Keion Davis ran for two touchdowns and Marshall beat South Florida 38-20 in the Gasparilla Bowl on Thursday night.

"It's fun to get to play my senior year with my cousin, sharing the experience," said Davis, who was the game MVP.

Marshall, 6-0 in bowl games under head coach Doc Holliday, gained 503 years. The Thundering Herd (9-4) had 282 rushing yards and 221 through the air.

"It was my first time contributing to a (bowl) win," Green said. "It feels good to be able to show people that just because I'm a freshmen doesn't mean I can't play this game like I'm not a freshman."

Green also had a touchdown run in the first quarter, while Davis' second TD -- from 16 yards out -- put the Thundering Herd ahead 38-20 with 6 1/2 minutes to play.

Davis had 94 yards on 14 carries, while Brenden Knox gained 93 yards on 12 rushes -- all during the first half.

Knox left with a broken hand, giving Davis extended playing time. Davis entered with 308 rushing yards and one TD in eight games.

"Keion is a special player," Holliday said. "He makes things happen every time he gets the opportunity to play."

Blake Barnett, slowed by shoulder and ankle injuries, replaced Chris Oladokun for South Florida 10 minutes into the game and completed 11 of 23 passes for 212 yards. Barnett, a transfer from Arizona State who also started one game for Alabama in 2016, sat out two of the Bulls' previous three games.

USF (7-6) lost the bowl game played on its regular-season home field to end the season by losing six in a row after a 7-0 start.

"We know this, there's work that needs to be done in the program, and we've got to go get it done," coach Charlie Strong said.

Green scored on an 10-yard dash and Anthony Anderson had an one-yard TD run over a 37-second span as Marshall took a 14-0 lead with 4:43 left in the first. The second score was set up by Darius Hodge's fumble recovery and 29-yard return after Barnett couldn't handle a high snap.

After USF wide receiver Tyre McCants took a direct snap and threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Randall St. Felix, the Thundering Herd went up 21-7 during the final minute of the first on Knox's eight-yard TD run.

St. Felix had six receptions for a school-bowl record 165 yards.

Marshall has outscored its opponent 101-39 in the first quarter this season.

Davis' 5-yard run made it 28-7 with 90 seconds left in the second.

USF got to 28-10 on Coby Weiss' 22-yard field goal four seconds before halftime.

South Florida settled for a 31-yard field goal by Weiss on a second-half opening 14-play drive.

"We were in position to make some plays and we didn't make them," Strong said. "We had our opportunities."

Marshall countered with Justin Rohrwasser's 28-yard field before Barnett connected on a 33-yard scoring pass with St. Felix that cut the Bulls deficit to 31-20 late in the third.

UP NEXT

Marshall: Green will be back next season to anchor a promising offense as the Thundering Herd try to win eight or more games for the fifth time in six years.

South Florida: Barnett returns in 2019 and being healthy could be key in the Bulls' bid for their first American Athletic Conference championship.

Marshall: 2017-18 Conference USA Men's Basketball Champions

FRISCO, Texas -- The long wait is over for Marshall after all those long shots by Jon Elmore.

Elmore scored 20 of his 27 points after halftime, with a Conference USA championship-game-record seven 3-pointers, and the Thundering Herd are going to their first NCAA tournament since 1987 after a 67-66 win over Western Kentucky on Saturday night.

"We earned it. We fought all year long," said Elmore, with a cut-down net draped over his shoulder.

After coming so close last year, losing in the C-USA title game, Elmore kept hitting long 3s in the second half for the Herd (24-10). He made six of his 3s after the break, including 11 straight points in a span of just more than two minutes.

"We talked about it before the season this year. We were thinking back about just how the season ended, just the feeling in the locker room," Elmore said. "Everybody's heads were down, people were crying, you could have heard a pin drop in there. ... We didn't want that again."

This time, tournament MVP Elmore described what he called an awesome scene with 70-year-old coach and Marshall alumnus Dan D'Antoni jumping around with his players.

"You can tell I'm happy. I'm happy for these kids, I'm happy for this school," said D'Antoni, the self-proclaimed country boy who wears T-shirts under his jacket while coaching. "A long time coming."

The Herd had a 67-55 lead when Elmore made his last 3 with 3:40 left. Western Kentucky (24-10) then scored the game's last 11 points before missing two shots in the final 20 seconds. Jannson Williams got the final rebound and managed to call timeout while falling to the court with 7.3 seconds left.

The Hilltoppers, with 10 wins against teams who have won at least 20 games, missed a chance to get back to their first NCAA tournament since 2013. Instead, they wait to see if they get an NIT bid.

"If you leave anything NCAA tournament in the committee's hands, you're in trouble. You have to win. Marshall won. They took it out of anybody's hands," WKU coach Rick Stansbury said. "I'm comfortable and confident that our team has done enough and deserves an NIT berth for sure."

Ajdin Penava added 16 points and nine rebounds for Marshall, who went into the tournament as the No. 4 seed.

Justin Johnson led WKU with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Josh Anderson and Lamonte Bearden both had 13 points.

BIG PICTURE


Marshall: The Herd were in the Southern Conference when they went to their last NCAA tournament 31 years ago. ... D'Antoni is a Marshall alumnus, and the brother of Houston Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni, who was at the game since his NBA team was in town to play the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.

Western Kentucky: Freshman guard Taveion Hollingsworth took a shot to the face while going for a rebound on the opening possession, and Stansbury said it's likely that the freshman broke his nose again. Hollingsworth, who was averaging 13.5 points a game, was 0-for-5 shooting and had two free throws while playing 35 minutes.

"He's a tough young man," Stansbury said.

SPREAD IT AROUND

Marshall became the 11th different school to win the C-USA title game in the league's 23 years.

UP NEXT

The Hilltoppers wait to see if they will play another game this season.

For the first time in 31 years, the Thundering Herd will be watching on Selection Sunday knowing they're in the NCAA tournament and waiting to see who will be their first-round opponent.

Marshall: 2017 New Mexico Bowl Champions

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Leading up to the New Mexico Bowl, Marshall wide receiver Tyre Brady kept hearing about Colorado State's explosive offense. Doubters were overlooking the Thundering Herd's own weapons, he thought.

So when Brady's chance came in the second quarter, the junior separated himself from Rams coverages and sprinted to a 76-yard touchdown reception for the first of three big scoring plays that allowed Thundering Herd hold off the Rams 31-28 on Saturday in the New Mexico Bowl.

"Every time when you play for yourself, you force things, you press things," said Brady, who had 165 yards receiving. "But when you play for your teammates, things just fall into place the right way."

He was joined by Keion Davis, who rushed for 141 yards, including a 68-yard touchdown run . Tyler King added a 90-yard rushing touchdown for the Herd (8-5).

Chase Litton threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns, overshadowing the much-hyped Colorado State quarterback Nick Stevens, who was sacked five times.

"I think it's the entire defense played tremendous," Marshall coach Doc Holliday said. "That's an excellent offensive football team".

The Thundering Herd are 11-2 in bowl games -- 5-0 under Holliday.

For Colorado State (7-6), it was another disappointing postseason. The Rams have lost four straight bowl games, and lost four of their last five this season after a 6-2 start.

"Yeah, it's pretty much a microcosm of our season," Colorado State head coach Mike Bobo said. "Played pretty good at times, then giving up big plays, explosive plays for touchdowns. Those kill you defensively."

Stevens threw for 320 yards and ran for two touchdowns for the Rams, but was sacked five times. Olabisi Johnson had 119 yards receiving, but Stevens was unable to connect consistently with standout Michael Gallup.

"I got to hit Gallup in those shots. I think it's a different ballgame," Stevens said. "There were a number of them that he was open, and protection was solid."

Colorado State's offense began to surge in the fourth quarter with 14 points, but Marshall's defense was able to hold the Rams.

Colorado State is 6-11 in bowl games.

THE TAKEAWAY

Colorado State: The Rams continued to struggle despite having being ranked 10th in the FBS in yards per game with 501.1. Stevens and Gallup failed to challenge Marshall's stingy defense and couldn't respond to Marshall's big plays despite a late game scoring surge.

"This hurts but we'll regroup and get ready for next year," Bobo said.

Marshall: Marshall's defense also kept constant pressure on Colorado State's high-octane offense preventing the Rams from threatening with an air attack most of the game.

UP NEXT


Colorado State: Bobo has led the Rams to three bowl games in each of his first three seasons. He recently signed a contract extension where he will earn $2 million by 2020. But at the same time, he's only won seven games each season and lost all his bowl games so 2018 may be key season for him.

Marshall The Herd are losing 13 seniors, including key tight end Ryan Yurachek. The four-year players in that group won 34 games and a conference championship and went to three bowl games. But many key players are set to return.

Marshall Thundering Herd: 2015 St. Petersburg Bowl Champions

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Chase Litton went 23 for 34 for 218 yards and one touchdown as Marshall won its 10th game this season by beating Connecticut 16-10 in the St. Petersburg Bowl on Saturday.

Nick Smith had three field goals for Marshall (10-3), including a 32-yarder with 1:44 to play that was part of a 13-play, 80-yard march that lasted 6:35. The Thundering Herd went 13-1 a year ago and 10-4 in 2013.

Bryant Shirreffs completed 10 of 17 passes for 86 yards and gained 75 yards on 19 carries for UConn (6-7), which came up short in a bid to have a winning record for the first time since 2010.

UConn stopped Marshall on fourth-and-2 at the 17 on the initial drive of the second half after the Thundering Herd opted to skip a field goal try that could have made it 16-7.

The Thundering Herd also failed to increase a 13-7 lead on their next possession when Smith missed a 43-yard field goal attempt with less than 3 minutes left in the third.

The Huskies got within 13-10 on Bobby Puyol's 52-yard field goal with 2 seconds left in the third.

Marshall took a 7-0 lead 7 minutes into the game when Litton, who played in high school in Tampa, threw a 16-yard TD pass to Ryan Yurachek. Deandre Reaves' 26-yard punt return set up Marshall at the UConn 20.

Reaves also had nine receptions for 88 yards.

Connecticut tied it at 7 late in the first on an 8-yard run by Ron Johnson that completed a 13-play, 75-yard drive.

Marshall responded with a 13-play, 65-yard drive that concluded with Smith's 21-yard field goal that gave the Thundering Herd a 10-7 advantage 8 minutes before halftime.

Smith made it 13-7 with a 29-yard field goal on the final play of the first half that finished off a 15-play, 85-yard drive.

Connecticut sophomore cornerback Jamar Summers got his eighth interception of the season, including six in the last five games, early in the fourth.

Marshall: 2014 Boca Raton Bowl Champions

BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) Quarterback Rakeem Cato and receiver Tommy Shuler have played together since high school, so they were able to communicate without a lot of conversation Tuesday in their final game for Marshall.

''We don't need to talk,'' Shuler said. ''Just a head nod.''

What does a head nod mean?

''I'm open.''

He was, time and time again. Shuler and Cato capped their careers with record-setting performances in the inaugural Boca Raton Bowl to help Marshall beat Northern Illinois 52-23.

Cato tied an NCAA mark for touchdown passes, threw for three scores and was voted the most valuable player. Shuler had 18 receptions for 185 yards and broke the Conference USA record for career catches with 322.

Cato and Shuler were high school teammates in nearby Miami, and they gave a large throng of family and friends plenty to cheer about.

''To do that playing your final game in your backyard is special,'' Marshall coach Doc Holliday said. ''They're just tremendous players, and they're great friends.''

Marshall finished 13-1, with its lone loss to Western Kentucky, 67-66 in overtime. Northern Illinois finished 11-3.

''Give credit to Marshall; they made a ton of plays,'' Huskies coach Rod Carey said. ''I didn't think we played real well, and that's too bad because we've had an unbelievable season.''

Cato extended his streak of throwing at least one touchdown pass to 46 consecutive games. That tied the NCAA all-division record set by Central Washington's Mike Reilly.

As usual, Cato's favorite target was Shuler.

''Anybody who knows Shuler, against a man-to-man matchup, he's going to hurt you,'' Cato said. ''I'm going to continue to go at him until they show me something different, and they didn't show me anything different.''

Cato finished the season with a school-record 40 touchdown passes. He threw for scores of 6 yards to Shuler, 11 yards to Angelo Jean-Louis and 27 yards to Deon-Tay McManus.

All of those touchdowns came in the second half. Cato completed 25 of 37 passes for 281 yards and ran 5 yards for a score.

''Cato made the plays when he needed to,'' Huskies safety Dechane Durante said.

The game drew a crowd of less than 15,000 in Florida Atlantic's 30,000-seat stadium, but both coaches praised the inaugural event.

''This will be a huge bowl,'' Holliday said. ''The community has embraced this bowl, and when all is said and done, it's going to be one of the best bowls in America.''

Marshall tried a bit of trickery early in the game, when Shuler took the ball and lobbed it into the end zone to Cato for an 11-yard touchdown. But the play was negated by a penalty.

''If Tommy wouldn't have made such a bad pass, we would've had it,'' Holliday said with a grin.

The tandem did better with Cato throwing. All seven of his completions in the first half went to Shuler.

''He made tough catches and easy catches and made people miss,'' Carey said.

Cato wore No. 31 instead of his familiar No. 12 to honor teammate Evan McKelvey, who sustained a season-ending knee injury in October.

Deandre Reaves scored Marshall's first touchdown on a 93-yard kickoff return. Devon Johnson ran for 131 yards and a score for the Thundering Herd, who totaled 505 yards

The Huskies' Drew Hare threw for 225 yards and a score, and they added 200 on the ground. They outgained Marshall in the first half but trailed 24-13 because they settled for field goal tries three times and missed one.

Northern Illinois pulled off a successful onside kick to start the second half but lost the ball four plays later when Arnold Blackmon stopped Cameron Stingily for no gain on fourth and 1 at midfield.

The Thundering Herd mounted touchdown drives of 56, 68 and 70 yards on consecutive possessions in the second half to lead 38-20.

The win gave the Thundering Herd bowl victories in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2001-02.

Marshall: 2013 Military Bowl Champions

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Rakeem Cato threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns, and Marshall used two fourth-quarter scores to rally past Maryland 31-20 Friday in the Military Bowl.

The Thundering Herd (10-4) trailed 20-17 before Cato brought them back. After directing a 63-yard march to put Marshall up 24-20 with 12:05 left, Cato clinched it with an 8-yard touchdown throw to Gator Hoskins with 3:42 to play.

Cato completed 28 of 44 passes — with no interceptions — to help Marshall reach double digits in wins for the first time since 2002. The Thundering Herd came in averaging 43 points per game, but its underappreciated defense played a huge role in this one.

Maryland (7-6) scored only one touchdown after halftime, and A.J. Leggett followed Cato's final TD pass with an interception to set off a celebration among the huge gathering of Marshall fans among the crowd of 30,163.

Making its first bowl appearance under third-year coach Randy Edsall, Maryland closed out its association with the Atlantic Coast Conference by falling to the runner-up in Conference USA. The Terrapins will join the Big Ten next year.

Brandon Ross rushed for 116 yards for Maryland, and C.J. Brown went 14 for 24 for 197 yards.

After a whirlwind first half that produced 30 points and 24 first downs, the teams settled into a defensive struggle in the third quarter. Each of the first four possessions ended in punts, but on the last one Marshall pinned the Terrapins on their own 1.

In the same situation earlier in the game, Maryland ran three times for 2 yards and punted. This time, the Terrapins put together a 17-play drive that included a pair of fourth down conversions and lasted for 7 minutes, 44 seconds. The 99-yard march ended with a 2-yard pass from Brown to tight end Dave Stinebaugh, giving Maryland a 20-17 lead with 14:56 left.

Marshall was quick to respond. Cato completed two third-down passes, and Essray Taliaferro ran in from the 7 to make it 24-20.

Brown subsequently came up short on a third-and-5 bootleg, providing Cato the opportunity to put the game away. Although the Terrapins got the stop they needed, Cato came up big during the next series.

After completing a 28-yard pass to Hoskins on third-and-11, Cato connected with Hoskins again in the end zone. It was Hoskins' second touchdown of the game and 15th of the season, most in the nation for tight ends.

Cato went 16 for 25 for 193 and two touchdowns in the first half to help the Thundering Herd grab a 17-13 lead.

After pinning the Terrapins near their own goal line, Marshall went up 7-0 with a 37-yard drive that ended with Cato's 1-yard touchdown pass to Tommy Shuler.

Maryland answered with a 29-yard touchdown throw from Brown to Levern Jacobs, but the Thundering Herd promptly regained the lead with a lengthy march that produced an 8-yard touchdown pass from Cato to Hoskins.

The back-and-forth duel continued in the second quarter. After Maryland kicked a field goal, Marshall got one of its own for a 17-10 lead.

And then, finally, the trend ended when the Terrapins punted.

Near the end of the half, Maryland moved 81 yards in 10 plays to set up Brad Craddock for his second field goal.

The game was Maryland's last as a member of the ACC. The Terrapins will compete in the Big Ten in 2014.