Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
2-2 , 0-0
Middle Tennessee
1-3 , 0-0
Marshall Football Takes Down Middle Tennessee, 42-28
9/21/2025 1:24:00 AM | Football
After lengthy delay, Del Rio-Wilson and defense leads Herd’s fourth-quarter rally
Box Score | Coach Gibson Post-Game Presser
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Marshall quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson accounted for five touchdowns and the Herd scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to earn a 42-28 win over Middle Tennessee on Homecoming at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium.
"I'm just very, very proud of this football team with everything we had to overcome tonight," Marshall head coach Tony Gibson said. "We got down, but we really finished the game. It was 21-0 in the fourth quarter and we made a lot of plays in that quarter."
With the win, Marshall moves to 2-2 overall on the season.
Del Rio-Wilson accounted for five touchdowns in the contest with four coming through the air. He finished 18 of 22 for 261 yards while rushing for another 22 with a score.
No pass was bigger than a 24-yard scoring strike to De'Andre Tamarez with 10:12 left in the game that gave the Herd a lead after trailing entering the fourth quarter.
Del Rio-Wilson later hit Demarcus Lacey on a big third-down pass to continue a drive that ended in Michael Allen's 11-yard touchdown run to solidify the win.
"This whole week, I told the wide-outs, if you've got 1-on-1s, I'm trusting you," Del Rio-Wilson said. "We've got some players out there – some dogs – and they told me, 'If you trust me and you like it, I've got you.' That goes back to the chemistry and the bond we built. I know if I put that ball up, they are going to get it."
Marshall trailed 28-21 going into the final period, but the Herd turned a Middle Tennessee penalty on a punt into a Toby Payne touchdown from Del to start the quarter – his 2nd of the day – to knot the game and seize momentum.
"It was for sure a momentum-changer for the whole game," Payne said. "We set the tone on offense, the defense came back and got a stop. It was awesome to see that. We played really good team football right there."
The Herd took a 21-20 lead into the locker room after jumping out early and settling in on the defensive end following a wild first half that featured a two-plus hour weather delay and lots of explosive plays.
Marshall started the game strong as Marvae Myers deflected a pass from Middle Tennessee quarterback Nick Vattiato and Daytione Smith intercepted the ball, giving the Herd possession inside MT territory.
The Herd cashed in as Del Rio-Wilson found Payne for his first 3-yard touchdown reception with 8:47 left in the first quarter to give Marshall an early advantage.
Following the extra point, the game went into a lightning delay that lasted 2 hours and 12 minutes.
There was some electric offense following the delay with the teams combining for three touchdowns in a 7-play stretch. After Middle Tennessee knotted the game following a two-play drive, Del Rio-Wilson hit Demarcus Lacey for a 68-yard touchdown to give the Herd a 14-7 lead again. However, the Blue Raiders again struck quickly in two plays to tie the game back up.
Marshall took a 21-14 lead on Del Rio-Wilson's 2-yard touchdown plunge that was set up by a 20-yard completion to Payne.
Middle Tennessee got a pair of field goals by Jacob Hathaway that covered 50 and 38 yards to set the halftime score.
Marshall now hits the road for its first game in Sun Belt Conference play – an 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT contest on Sept. 27 against Louisiana at Cajun Field.Â
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---HerdZone.com---
Team Stats
MAR 7, MTS 0
MAR - Payne,Toby 3 yd pass from Del Rio-Wilson,Carlos (Quinn,Lorcan kick) 7 plays, 40 yards, TOP 03:15
MAR 7, MTS 7
MTS - Cox,Nahzae 3 yd pass from Vattiato,Nicholas (Hathaway,Jacob kick) 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 00:50
MAR 14, MTS 7
MAR - Lacey,Demarcus 68 yd pass from Del Rio-Wilson,Carlos (Quinn,Lorcan kick) 3 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:06
MAR 14, MTS 14
MTS - Walker,Amorion 41 yd pass from Vattiato,Nicholas (Hathaway,Jacob kick) 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 00:48
MAR 21, MTS 14
MAR - Del Rio-Wilson,Carlos 2 yd run (Quinn,Lorcan kick), 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:58
MAR 21, MTS 17
MTS - Hathaway,Jacob 50 yd field goal 7 plays, 49 yards, TOP 02:46
MAR 21, MTS 20
MTS - Hathaway,Jacob 38 yd field goal 11 plays, 45 yards, TOP 05:06
MAR 21, MTS 28
MTS - Vattiato,Nicholas 3 yd run (Tipton,Hunter pass), 5 plays, 67 yards, TOP 02:29
MAR 28, MTS 28
MAR - Payne,Toby 4 yd pass from Del Rio-Wilson,Carlos (Quinn,Lorcan kick) 12 plays, 65 yards, TOP 06:00
MAR 35, MTS 28
MAR - Tamarez,De'Andre 24 yd pass from Del Rio-Wilson,Carlos (Quinn,Lorcan kick) 7 plays, 56 yards, TOP 03:05
MAR 42, MTS 28
MAR - Allen,Michael 11 yd run (Quinn,Lorcan kick), 6 plays, 67 yards, TOP 03:48
