Marshall University Athletics
MCGILL: Early downs key to Herd's third down success
10/23/2020 11:40:00 PM | Football, Word on the Herd
Marshall is ranked in he to three nationally in two important categories
By Chuck McGill
HerdZone.com
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall is the best third down team in college football.
The Thundering Herd, undefeated in four games (two Conference USA) and ranked No. 22 in this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll entering Saturday's home game against Florida Atlantic (1-0, 0-0), ranks No. 2 nationally in third down conversion percentage on offense and No. 3 nationally in the same category on defense.
No other FBS team is ranked in the top 10 of both categories.
The credit, according to Marshall's coordinators, actually belongs to the team's performance on first and second down.
"If you're third and 2 or 3, it's a huge disadvantage versus being in third and 10," said Brad Lambert, the Herd's defensive coordinator. "We're playing pretty good on third down but the down and distance has been favorable for us, so that's the real key and that's what you're trying to do is be successful on first and second down."
In third down situations – excepting third and goal – the Herd's yardage distance to move the chains is 5.71 yards for the offense and 7.09 yards for the defense. That disparity was on full display in last Saturday's win against Louisiana Tech. Marshall was 13 for 16 (81.25 percent) on third downs on offense – the second-best percentage in school history – and the defense held LA Tech to a 1-for-10 performance on third downs.
The key: Marshall needed an average of 3.87 yards to move chains on third down. LA Tech faced an average distance of 8.89 yards.
"The offensive line is doing a great job of protecting in those situations and (quarterback) Grant (Wells) is doing a great job of sticking true to his reads, locating the ball," said Tim Cramsey, Marshall's offensive coordinator. "Getting deep into it we did some good things early in the season where we're third-and-9 or third-and-10, and we lined up unbalanced and ran the ball for a first down. That cuts down a little bit on third down defenses. You don't see as much exotic stuff.
"The bottom line is the offensive line is doing a good job protecting and we're doing a good job of throwing and catching."
Against LA Tech, the longest distance the Marshall offense had to go to get a first down on third down was third and 8 (once), while the offense saw four third downs with 1-yard to go. LA Tech earned its only third down conversion on a third and 1, but otherwise faced five situations of third and 8 or longer.
For the season, Marshall is 33-for-55 on third downs offensively and has held the opposition to a 10-for-47 performance on third down. The Herd trails only Alabama on third down conversion percentage on offense, and Oklahoma State and Notre Dame on defense.
Cramsey also said the offense is limiting what he calls "drive-killers," significant errors that put the offense in challenging situations.
"We have very, very few penalties on the offensive side of the ball," Cramsey said. "Are you playing clean football? When I talk 'drive-killers' I talk turnovers, negative plays, sacks and penalties. In the four games we have 15 of those. Traditionally, you're going to get eight or nine per game and we're playing closer to three or four per game.
"You're going to have a much higher percentage if you're third and 5 or less than you are if you're third and 6 or more."
Chuck McGill is the Assistant Athletic Director for Fan/Donor Engagement and Communications at Marshall University and an eight-time winner of the National Sports Media Association West Virginia Sportswriter of the Year award. In addition to HerdZone.com's Word on the Herd, McGill is the editor of Thundering Herd Illustrated, Marshall's official athletics publication. Follow him on Twitter (@chuckmcgill) and Instagram (wordontheherd).
