Marshall University Athletics
Kereon Merrell
Photo by: Adam Gue
Merrell, Rohrwasser Win Conference USA Weekly Honors
10/28/2019 5:58:00 PM | Football
Thundering Herd duo wins two of league’s three awards
IRVING, Tx. – Marshall defensive back Kereon Merrell and kicker Justin Rohrwasser each earned Conference USA weekly honors from the league office on Monday. Merrell captured C-USA's Defensive Player of the Week nod, while Rohrwasser locked down the Special Teams honor.
Merrell had a huge hand in staking the Thundering Herd to a two-touchdown, first-quarter lead in the Marshall's 26-23 victory over WKU. The senior picked off a pass near midfield (his first career interception) and the Thundering Herd cashed that in for a touchdown on the ensuing drive. On the very next drive, Merrell fell on a loose ball in the WKU backfield near midfield (his second career fumble recovery) and Marshall scored three plays later to take a 14-0 lead just over eight minutes into Saturday's action. Eight of the Vienna, Georgia, native's 10 tackles were solos and he helped Marshall limit WKU to just a 5-for-13 clip on third down. This season, Merrell is Marshall's fifth-leading tackler with 42 stops.
Rohrwasser had a huge day for the Thundering Herd, booting four field goals, including a game-winning, career-long 53-yarder as time expired to lift Marshall to a 26-23 win over WKU. During the game, he connected on a (then-) career-long 46-yarder in the second quarter, followed by kicks from 31 and 43 yards prior to the game-winner. The Clifton Park, New York, native also made two extra points for a 14-point day. His 53-yard field goal is tied for the fourth-longest made kick in school history, and tied for the third-longest made kick in Joan C. Edwards Stadium history. The 53-yarder is the longest in 217 games at Marshall, since Curtis Head made a kick of the same distance against Buffalo in 2002. Rohrwasser tied a school record with those four field goals, equaling the four made by four others, most recently Justin Haig (MVP vs. Louisiana Tech in the 2014 C-USA Championship Game). He is a perfect 11-for-11 on field goals this season, and has made 12 consecutive field goals dating back to last season.
Rohrwasser was also named a "Star of the Week" by the Lou Groza Award on Monday, an honor that is given annually to the nation's top place-kicker.
The Thundering Herd will be back in action Saturday when MU (5-3 overall, 3-1 C-USA) travels to Rice (0-8, 0-4) for a 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT kick in Houston. Chris Hassel, AJ Hawk and Kristen Balboni will call all of the game's action, which will be carried by Facebook.
Merrell had a huge hand in staking the Thundering Herd to a two-touchdown, first-quarter lead in the Marshall's 26-23 victory over WKU. The senior picked off a pass near midfield (his first career interception) and the Thundering Herd cashed that in for a touchdown on the ensuing drive. On the very next drive, Merrell fell on a loose ball in the WKU backfield near midfield (his second career fumble recovery) and Marshall scored three plays later to take a 14-0 lead just over eight minutes into Saturday's action. Eight of the Vienna, Georgia, native's 10 tackles were solos and he helped Marshall limit WKU to just a 5-for-13 clip on third down. This season, Merrell is Marshall's fifth-leading tackler with 42 stops.
Rohrwasser had a huge day for the Thundering Herd, booting four field goals, including a game-winning, career-long 53-yarder as time expired to lift Marshall to a 26-23 win over WKU. During the game, he connected on a (then-) career-long 46-yarder in the second quarter, followed by kicks from 31 and 43 yards prior to the game-winner. The Clifton Park, New York, native also made two extra points for a 14-point day. His 53-yard field goal is tied for the fourth-longest made kick in school history, and tied for the third-longest made kick in Joan C. Edwards Stadium history. The 53-yarder is the longest in 217 games at Marshall, since Curtis Head made a kick of the same distance against Buffalo in 2002. Rohrwasser tied a school record with those four field goals, equaling the four made by four others, most recently Justin Haig (MVP vs. Louisiana Tech in the 2014 C-USA Championship Game). He is a perfect 11-for-11 on field goals this season, and has made 12 consecutive field goals dating back to last season.
Rohrwasser was also named a "Star of the Week" by the Lou Groza Award on Monday, an honor that is given annually to the nation's top place-kicker.
The Thundering Herd will be back in action Saturday when MU (5-3 overall, 3-1 C-USA) travels to Rice (0-8, 0-4) for a 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT kick in Houston. Chris Hassel, AJ Hawk and Kristen Balboni will call all of the game's action, which will be carried by Facebook.
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