Marshall University Athletics
Marshall Travels to UCF on Saturday
9/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 20, 2005
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -
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Marshall will open Conference USA play against a familiar foe in UCF on Saturday. Both schools are playing in their first season in Conference USA after stints in the Mid-American Conference and are looking to start their conference season off with a win. Kickoff at the Florida Citrus Bowl is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Television Information: The Marshall-UCF game is available through CSTV's All-Access package on the internet at Herdzone.com (broadband video streaming) and via the Conference USA package on pay-per-view (through InDemand). Contact your local cable provider for availability in your area. The game will be available for free on Dish Network Channel #445.
Marshall Alumni and Big Green Tailgate Information: The Marshall University Alumni Association, the Big Green Scholarship Foundation and the Central Florida Alumni Club are inviting fans to attend a tailgate party prior to the Herd's game against UCF on Saturday, Sept. 24. The party will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. at Tinker Field at the Citrus Bowl. The cost is $25 per person. Meal and beverages are included in the cost. Food will be provided by Sonny's Bar-B-Que. The menu will include pulled pork, chicken, baked beans, coleslaw and potato salad as well as a choice of lemonade, tea, water, soda or beer.
Fans who are interested in attending must call (304) 696-2901 or 1-800-682-5869 by Sept. 20 to R.S.V.P. The tailgate party will be limited to the first 500 people. If you have questions, please call the Marshall Alumni Office at 1-800-682-5869 or e-mail at pelphrey@marshall.edu.
Game Notes:UCF and Marshall have met the last three seasons as members of the MAC and Marshall has won all three of those meetings.
Marshall will be playing its first road contest of the year after opening the season by hosting William & Mary and Kansas State. UCF will also be playing its first home game of the season after starting the season off with road trips to South Carolina and USF and is in the midsts of a 17 game losing streak.
The Thundering Herd is being paced by sophomore running back Ahmad Bradshaw who is averaging 120 all purpose yards per game and leads Marshall with four touchdowns. Defensively, the Herd's Curtis Keys has led the way with 27 total tackles, including 10 solo stops.
UCF is paced by sophomore quarterback Steven Moffett who passed for 209 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score at USF.
Saturday's match-up will mark Marshall's third ever appearance in Orlando. In addition to the 2003 meeting with UCF, the 1947 Thundering Herd played Cattawba in the Tangerine Bowl.
Sunshine State Connections: Marshall has several impact players that hail from the state of Florida. Among them are quarterback Bernie Morris (Orlando), CB Willie Smith (Palm Beach Gardens), RB Chubb Small (Auburndale), LT Toby Bullock (Jacksonville), and DE Albert McClellan (Lakeland).
Marshall on the Road: Marshall will be playing its first road game in the Mark Snyder and C-USA era when it faces UCF. Traditionally, Marshall has been strong in its first conference road games of late. Since 1997 (Marshall's move to D-1A), the Herd is 7-1 in road conference openers. Marshall is also 11-2 in its opening conference road games since 1993.
Marshall's Snyder has UCF Ties: Marshall head coach Mark Snyder was a graduate assistant coach in 1989 and a part-time linebackers coach at UCF in 1990. During his stint at UCF, the Golden Knights posted a 17-7 overall record.
Mr. Versatility: Marshall sophomore running back Ahmad Bradshaw, a Doak Walker Award candidate, is averaging 65 yards rushing and 53 yards receiving per game and leads the Herd and C-USA with four total touchdowns.
QBs Performing Well: One of the questions surrounding the Herd this season was inexperience at quarterback and through the first two games of 2005, both Jimmy Skinner and Bernie Morris appear to be doing rather well. The duo has combined to complete 61.5% of their passes for 575 yards and three TDs in two outings. Skinner started against William & Mary, but gave way to Morris for most of the second half, while Morris started against K-State and was knocked out with a shoulder injury late in the second half and Skinner finished the game.
A Near Miss vs. the Wildcats: Marshall went toe-to-toe with Big 12 member Kansas State on Saturday, despite turning the ball over five times. Marshall lost three fumbles, two of them inside the K-State five yard-line and threw two interceptions, including one in the closing seconds deep in K-State territory. Despite the turnovers, Marshall managed to hold Kansas State scoreless in the second half and mount an amazing comeback drive in the closing minute of the game. In fact, Marshall out-gained Kansas State 336-334 (despite losing starting Quarterback Bernie Morris late in the first half to injury), and forced two K-State fumbles and an interception of its own.
Herd Gets Defensive: Kansas State score 21 points in a 12-minute span in the first half to take a 21-10 lead before MU shut down the Wildcat attack. The Herd did not allow Kansas State to score in the final 41 minutes of the contest.
A Record Crowd: Marshall faced Kansas State in front of a Joan C. Edwards Stadium record crowd of 36,914. That attendance total exceeded the previous record of 33,537 that saw the Herd down Kent State, 49-33, in 2003.
