Marshall Thundering Herd 2009 Football Betting Preview

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Marshall 2008 Record: (4-8, 3-5)
Marshall 2008 Bowl: none
Marshall Coach: Mark Snyder (16-31 at Marshall, 16-31 overall)
Marshall Offensive Coordinator: John Shannon
Marshall Defensive Coordinator: Rick Minter
Marshall Returning Stats Leaders:

• Rushing: Darius Marshall, RB, 1,095 yards
• Passing: Mark Cann, QB, 1,767 yards
• Receiving: Cody Slate, TE, 510 yards
• Tackles: Mario Harvey, LB, 107
• Sacks: Mario Harvey, LB, 4.5
• Interceptions: DeQuan Bembry, CB, 1; Brandon Burns, LB, 1; T.J. Drakeford, CB, 1; Ashton Hall, S, 1; Mario Harvey, LB, 1

Notable Marshall Returning Players: QB Brian Anderson, WR Courtney Edmonson, RB Terrell Edwards, G Josh Evans, DE Michael Janac, DT Delvin Johnson, DT Johnny Jones, DE Albert McClellan, G Chad Schofield, OT Ryan Tillman, OT C.J. Wood

Marshall Key Losses: G Matt Altobello, LB Maurice Kitchens, C Brian Leggett, WR Dairus Passmore, RB Chubb Small, S C.J. Spillman

It was another disappointing season in Huntington as Marshall struggled to a 4-8 record, their fourth consecutive losing season. Head coach Mark Snyder is feeling the heat and I believe that the former star Herd defensive back needs a winning season to hold onto his job. Luckily for him, Marshall returns 16 starters from last season’s team and the Thundering Herd might live up to their name this year.

On offense, eight starters return, led by junior tailback Darius Marshall, who ran for 1095 yards and 5 touchdowns last season, earning him 2 nd team C-USA honors. The appropriately named Marshall will be running behind a solid offensive line that has three starters back from 2008. Both tackles were named to the C-USA freshman team last season and guard Josh Evans earned the same honor during his freshman year. Thus, there is a lot of talent on hand to block for what should be a strong rushing attack. I have some concern about the passing attack as last year’s starter, sophomore Matt Cann, will have to fend off a large number of contenders for his job. Cann did throw for 1,767 yards and 14 touchdowns against 13 interceptions as a freshman so he has the potential to be a solid signal caller if he can earn his way onto the field again. Whoever wins the quarterback job will have an inexperienced receiving corps at his disposal, led by senior tight end Cody Slate, who made 40 catches for 510 yards and 8 touchdowns. Unfortunately no wide receiver had more than 17 catches last fall, leaving the passing game as a huge question mark. Overall, the offense appears to be stronger than the 2008 edition and I expect the Herd to surpass last year’s 20 points per game output in 2009.

The defense also appears to be a bright spot. Snyder made a great hire last fall when he brought in former Cincinnati head coach Rick Minter to run his defense and the Thundering Herd allowed a touchdown less per game! Snyder is also a former defensive coordinator at Ohio State, so there is a lot of coaching acumen focused on stopping the opposition. The 2009 defense looks very good, starting with a veteran defensive line. Senior end Albert McClellan was a 1st team C-USA choice after making 58 tackles and 2.5 sacks and junior end Michael Janac also contributed 46 tackles and 2.5 sacks. I expect the line to anchor a very solid run defense and the pass rush should also be improved. The linebackers also appear to be solid with two senior starters returning. Middle linebacker Mario Harvey had 107 tackles and 4.5 sacks last fall and should anchor a very athletic unit. I think that Marshall’s run defense should be among the C-USA’s best this year. The secondary also improved measurably under Minter last fall, holding opponents to a 58 percent completion rate after allowing 64 percent the year before. The Thundering Herd returns two sophomore starters at cornerback who combined for 127 tackles and two picks in 2008. While I am concerned about the general lack of interceptions, a year of experience should help both measurably. Also, one of the new projected starters at safety is senior Ashton Hall, who made 48 tackles and snagged a pick as a nickel back and backup in 2008 so the new safeties do have a lot of experience. That experience leads me to believe that Marshall’s pass defense should be very solid once more. Overall, this appears to be a very strong defense which should rank among the best in the conference.

The schedule is fairly tenable, beginning with the conference schedule. The Herd’s draw of UTEP, SMU and Tulane from the West is about as good as they could have hoped for and their division schedule features home games against ECU, UAB and USM! The non-conference schedule features two BCS opponents and if Marshall defeats either WVU or Virginia Tech, it will be a big upset. I think that the Thundering Herd should have an improved offense and a very good defense this fall. Furthermore, the schedule is very friendly and I think that Snyder has a great chance at finally producing a winning season at his alma mater. While I don’t think that Marshall is a competitor in the C-USA East, I believe that they should finish the year with at least six wins and go to their first bowl game during Snyder’s tenure.

Marshall Big Games: Sept. 26th @ Memphis, Oct. 3rd vs. ECU, Nov. 1st @ UCF, Nov. 14th vs. USM, Nov. 28th @ UTEP

Marshall’s Strength:

The defense has the potential to be very impressive. The front line returns all four starters, but it is not like those four dominated the conference or anything. End Michael Jancac was playing his best football late in the year and the junior could be in for a breakout season. With tackles Delvin Johnson and Johnny Jones manning the middle, and the return of Montel Glasco who missed all of 2008, most teams should have a tough time dealing with the Thundering Herd’s front line. The wildcard is senior Albert McClellan. In 2006 McClellan was a consistent pass rusher, but a major knee injury put a stop to that. His 2008 campaign was not very effective, but he certainly has the skills to wreak havoc in the backfield now that he had a year to prove that his knee is fine. Mario Harvey and Brandon Burns are capable linebackers and three starters are back from the secondary. Free safety C.J. Spillman will be missed, but Ashton Hall is ready to take over the leadership role.

Marshall’s Weakness:

There are plenty of positives to talk about regarding the Marshall offense. Darius Marshall is back after rushing for 1,095 yards and five touchdowns and Terrell Edwards is ready to back him up and replace the oxymoron that was short yardage specialist Chubb Small. The offensive line also returns four starters from a unit that allowed the fewest sacks in the conference. But that whole passing and catching part of football is pretty important since the invention of the forward pass. Quarterback Mark Cann was the guy last year, but he threw 13 interceptions and the position battle is wide open. Brian Anderson and Jake Laudenslayer both have strengths and Coach Snyder might have to hold out until August before he names a starter. And whoever the quarterback is will have to survive without Darius Passmore. The receiver caught 56 passes for 945 yards and seven touchdowns last year. Tight end Cody Slate is a superb option, but the Herd have to find a new deep threat among a group of receivers that failed to catch over 20 passes last season.

Our Prediction for the 2009 Thundering Herd:

Is the defense good enough to carry Marshall to a bowl game? Is the offensive line good enough to carry the offense? There are more questions than answers right now, but this team does have potential. Marshall, the running back not the school, should have a big year, but the opposition will have a much easier time stopping him if there is no threat of a passing offense.

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