Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
2-2 , 0-0
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Western Michigan
1-3 , 0-0
Marshall Football Buckles Down In 27-20 Win Over Western Michigan
9/28/2024 8:40:00 PM | Football
Herd defense comes up big late as Herd ‘refuses to lose’ in fourth quarter
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall Football got a pair of late stops from its defense and a balanced offensive attack to earn a 27-20 win over Western Michigan in front of 18,723 fans at Joan C. Edwards Stadium on Saturday.
With the win, Marshall moves to 2-2 on the season. The win over Western Michigan was the Herd's last non-conference game of 2024.
"I'm really proud of the players' effort and their refusal to lose," Marshall Football coach Charles Huff said. "That's what we talked about all week – there will be two teams: one who wants to win and one who refuses to lose. We went through what that looked like – battling adversity and finding a way regardless of the circumstances to battle through."
In the fourth quarter, Marshall's defense stood tall when it mattered most while protecting the lead.
Marshall defensive end Mike Green had a big tackle for loss on a third-and-1 with Western Michigan looking to tie the game late and the subsequent fourth down pass sailed out of the back of the end zone, preserving the win for the Herd.
"All week, Coach Huff did a good job emphasizing the ability to respond - when things are going wrong, what are you going to do next," Green said. "They had some good drives and on the last drive, they were marching down the field, and I told the guys, 'We just need three plays to stop them on fourth down.' When you emphasize the ability to respond, that helps the defense lock into different level. That led to the success we had on the last drive."
Earlier in the quarter, Marshall's defense also came up with a pair of huge defensive plays to turn the momentum in a tie game.
Jabari Ishmael forced a Hayden Wolff fumble that Jaden Yates recovered to give the Herd possession, ending a Western Michigan drive in Marshall territory. It came after a key open-field tackle for loss by J.J. Roberts that forced the Broncos into the third-and-long situation.
Marshall took full advantage of the momentum shift with a pair of long A.J. Turner runs getting the Herd into WMU territory before quarterback Stone Earle found wide receiver Christian Fitzpatrick for a 34-yard touchdown that gave the Herd the lead again with 7:39 left.
Earle finished the game 15 of 25 for 177 yards and three touchdowns for Marshall. He also rushed for 53 yards.
Turner eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the third time in four games this season, ending the day with 124.
On the defensive side, Marshall got 15 tackles from Roberts and 10 from Jaden Yates. Green finished with eight tackles, including 1.5 for loss, with five quarterback hurries.
Marshall took a 17-3 lead into the locker room after an impressive drive late in the first half that featured a 67-yard run by A.J. Turner, which later set up a 7-yard TD pass from Earle to Carl Chester.
Turner's run was part of a first-half effort in which the Thundering Herd used a steady rushing attack within the Air Raid offense to produce 177 yards on the ground in the first two quarters of action.
It was part of a Marshall offensive effort that produced 420 yards of offense, including 243 on the ground.
For the second consecutive game, Marshall put the opening offensive drive in the end zone and it was a Payne that did the honors.
This time, it was tight end Toby Payne who got the Herd on the board first as he hauled in a 32-yard pass from Earle to get the scoring started less than two minutes into the game.
Marshall Football now looks to Sun Belt Conference action, which starts at 3:30 p.m. next Saturday when Appalachian State comes to Joan C. Edwards Stadium for Homecoming 2024.
For all the latest information about Marshall Football, follow @HerdFB on Twitter and @Herd_FB on Instagram.
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---HerdZone.com---
Team Stats
WMU 0, MAR 7
MAR - Payne,Toby 32 yd pass from Earle,Stone (Verhoff,Rece kick) 5 plays, 69 yards, TOP 01:43
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WMU 3, MAR 7
WMU - Zurak,Luka 45 yd field goal 6 plays, 42 yards, TOP 01:51
WMU 3, MAR 10
MAR - Verhoff,Rece 20 yd field goal 16 plays, 77 yards, TOP 08:48
WMU 3, MAR 17
MAR - Chester,Carl 7 yd pass from Earle,Stone (Verhoff,Rece kick) 6 plays, 86 yards, TOP 01:51
WMU 10, MAR 17
WMU - Nixon,Jaden 36 yd run (Zurak,Luka kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:19
WMU 10, MAR 20
MAR - Verhoff,Rece 28 yd field goal 12 plays, 58 yards, TOP 04:51
WMU 17, MAR 20
WMU - Bosma,Blake 3 yd pass from Wolff,Hayden (Zurak,Luka kick) 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:59
WMU 20, MAR 20
WMU - Zurak,Luka 45 yd field goal 4 plays, 6 yards, TOP 01:58
WMU 20, MAR 27
MAR - Fitzpatrick,Christian 34 yd pass from Earle,Stone (Verhoff,Rece kick) 3 plays, 70 yards, TOP 01:03
