Marshall University Athletics
Marshall 48, Akron 17
9/20/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
Jack Lengyel, an Akron alumnus who coached Marshall from 1971-74 following the 1970 MU team plane crash, participated in the coin toss today at InfoCision Stadium as an honorary captain.
Marshall game captains, as chosen by Coach Doc Holliday and his staff, are QB Rakeem Cato, C Chris Jasperse, LB Neville Hewitt and CB Corey Tindal. It is Cato's third selection in four games this season and the second for Jasperse. Hewitt and Tindal are first-time captains in 2014.
WR Tommy Shuler's first-quarter reception stretched his streak of games with at least one catch to 32 (streak began in 2011 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl).
With four completions on the first Marshall drive, QB Rakeem Cato passed Byron Leftwich for No. 2 on Herd career completions list. Cato has 955 now. Leftwich had 939. Chad Pennington's record is 1,026.
WR Tommy Shuler (3-for-22 rec at 7:22 of first qtr.) passed Cody Slate (2,619 receiving yds, 2006-09) for No. 8 on Herd career receiving yards list. Shuler has 2,672 through four games. No. 7 on list is Troy Brown, at 2,746.
QB Rakeem Cato has reached 1,000 for a fourth straight season. He joins Chad Pennington as the only Herd QBs to have four seasons of at least 1,000 air yards. For the season, he has 1,163.
The first-quarter fumble recovery by CB Antavis Rowe and interception by S Tiquan Lang of Herd were Akron's first two turnovers of the season.
In four games this season, Marshall has outscored opponents 55-0 in the first quarter.
Herd offense had eight plays of 10 or more yards in first quarter, and then another with Devon Johnson's 22-yard TD run to open second quarter.
RB Remi Watson's 80-yard TD run is Marshall's longest play of the season and ranks tied for ninth for the longest run in Herd history. It is the longest since Darius Marshall went 80 yards to score against Bowling Green in 2009.
PK Justin Haig's 6 PATs moved him to 161 for Herd career, past former Memphis kicker Stephen Gostkowski for No. 5 in Conference USA history.
First half - In four games, Marshall has outscored opponents 103-6 in first halves (field goals by Miami of Ohio and Akron).
At halftime - Marshall has 73 scrimmage plays of 10 or more yards in 3 1/2 games this season. Last season, the total in 14 games was 267 plays of 10 or more yards.
Second half -
QB Rakeem Cato's 11- and 13-yard scoring runs mark the third time in his career he has run for two TDs (East Carolina, home, 2013; Rhode Island, home, 2014).
This is Remi Watson's first 100-yard rushing game in his Marshall career.
RB Devon Johnson has his third 100-yard rushing game of the season.
Marshall has topped 40 points in each of the first four games in 2014 - the first time it has done that since 1938 under Coach Cam Henderson, with wins over Carson-Newman (44-0), Ohio Wesleyan (62-0), Miami of Ohio (41-0) and Oklahoma City (66-0).
Marshall is the only FBS team with 40 or more points in its first four games in 2014. The only team that can join the Herd with that feat this weekend is Oregon, which plays late Saturday night at Washington State (10:30 ET)
Akron's Manny Morgan rushed for 11-yd TD with 8:03 left in game - the first rushing TD allowed by Herd defense after 231 minutes, 57 seconds this season.
