Marshall University Athletics
Herd Rolls Past Chips, 42-21
10/20/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Herd Rolls Past Chips, 42-21
10/20/2001
- Game Statistics
Byron Leftwich threw for a career-high 471 yards and three touchdowns as Marshall beat Central Michigan 42-21 Saturday.
Leftwich surpassed 450 yards for the second straight week in which he has picked apart two of the Mid-American Conference's top pass defenses. He completed 30 of 44 passes.
Marshall (5-1, 4-0 MAC) scored 42 consecutive points and amassed 647 total yards against the Chippewas (2-4, 1-3). It was the most yards for the Herd since compiling 631 last year against Buffalo.
It marked the second time in Marshall history that a quarterback surpassed 400 yards passing in consecutive games. Michael Payton did it against Appalachian State and Western Carolina in 1992. Payton holds the school record of 496 yards against VMI in 1991.
Leftwich, a junior, threw for 455 yards last week at Buffalo.
He rushed for 25 yards Saturday to finish with 496 all-purpose yards, breaking Payton's mark of 493 set against VMI.
Marshall's Franklin Wallace ran for scores of 6 and 12 yards to put the Herd ahead 21-7 midway through the third quarter.
Marshall needed just three plays combined for its next two touchdowns.
From the Central Michigan 47, Leftwich found an open Darius Watts across the middle. Watts stopped on the 10, changed directions, put his hand down to balance himself and ran by Tedaro France into the end zone.
Late in the quarter, Leftwich hit an open Josh Davis across the middle at the Marshall 35. A block from Watts put Davis into the clear and he ran up the left sideline untouched for an 86-yard score and a 35-7 lead.
Davis caught 10 passes for 175 yards while Watts, who entered the game fourth in Division I-A with 678 yards, had nine catches for 183 yards.
Central Michigan's Terrence Jackson rushed 27 times for 107 yards, his third-straight 100-yard game.
