Marshall University Athletics
Staff Directory
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- Running Backs
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Rod McDowell is in his second season as Marshall’s running backs coach after being hired by head coach Tony Gibson in January 2025.
Marshall’s running backs saw success in his first season with the Herd, featuring a balanced attack, led by Jo’Shon Barbie, who returns to the Herd backfield for the 2026 season.
Barbie overcame injuries throughout the middle of the season to rush for 249 yards and five touchdowns, which was second-best on the team. He came back from injury and scored a pair of touchdowns, including the game-winner, in the Herd’s 40-37 overtime win over Texas State.
Barbie was part of a four-headed monster at running back for McDowell that rushed for 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns while earning nearly five yards per carry.
McDowell joined Gibson’s staff with the Herd after three seasons at Jacksonville State in the same capacity.
In his last two seasons at Jacksonville State, the Gamecocks finished No. 3 in the nation in rushing offense, averaging 251 yards on the ground in 2024 and 236.7 on the ground in 2023.
The 2024 season featured running back Tre Stewart, who rushed for 1,638 yards and 25 touchdowns while averaging 117 yards per game – all of which were top-10 in FBS.
McDowell went to ULM in 2021 from his alma mater Clemson, where he spent the 2019 season as an offensive graduate assistant before serving in an offensive player development role in 2020. In his two years on the Clemson staff, he led the Tigers to a combined record of 24-3 (.889), including a 16-1 record (.941) in Atlantic Coast Conference games, back-to-back ACC Championships, consecutive trips to the College Football Playoff and No. 2 and No. 3 rankings in the final polls, respectively.
A four-year letterman from 2010-13, McDowell accounted for 1,983 career all-purpose yards and 14 touchdowns. As a senior in 2013, he rushed for 1,023 yards and five TDs while earning All-ACC Third-Team honors.
A native of Sumter, South Carolina, McDowell graduated from Clemson with a bachelor’s degree in sociology in 2013.
