# 1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

The 1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 12–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the SoCon. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs for the fifth straight season, where they defeated Jackson State in the first round, Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals, and McNeese State in the semifinals, before losing to Montana in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

## Regular season

Marshall was quarterbacked by true freshman and future NFL starter Chad Pennington after starting sophomore quarterbacl Mark Zban re-injured his knee delivering a touchdown pass to future NFL starter Jermaine Wiggins. Starting running back Chris Parker set the Marshall single season rushing record with 1,833 rushing yards.

## Postseason

Marshall advanced to the 1995 NCAA I-AA playoffs with an at large bid, but held home field advantage for the first two games, defeating Jackson State and Northern Iowa in Huntington before going on the road against McNeese State in the semifinal game. Marshall defeated McNeese State and advanced to the I-AA National Championship game, which was held at Marshall's stadium against the Montana Grizzlies. This was the fourth consecutive I-AA National Championship game hosted by Marshall. Marshall lost the championship game, 22–20.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | at NC State* | No. 2 | Carter–Finley StadiumRaleigh, NC | L 16–33 | 44,259 |
| September 9 | Tennessee Tech* | No. 3 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | W 45–14 | |
| September 16 | No. 13 Georgia Southern | No. 4 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | W 37–7 | 19,983 |
| September 30 | at Chattanooga | No. 3 | Chamberlain FieldChattanooga, TN | W 35–32 | 8,576 |
| October 7 | VMI | No. 3 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | W 56–21 | 19,702 |
| October 14 | at Western Carolina | No. 3 | E. J. Whitmire StadiumCullowhee, NC | W 42–3 | 3,858 |
| October 21 | No. 2 Appalachian State | No. 3 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | L 3–10 | 26,982 |
| October 28 | at The Citadel | No. 7 | Johnson Hagood StadiumCharleston, SC | W 21–19 | 11,833 |
| November 4 | East Tennessee State | No. 7 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | W 52–0 | 18,749 |
| November 11 | at Furman | No. 7 | Paladin StadiumGreenville, SC | W 31–6 | 10,688 |
| November 18 | No. 7 Hofstra* | No. 6 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV | W 30–28 | 17,080 |
| November 25 | Jackson State* | No. 6 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA First Round) | W 38–8 | 13,035 |
| December 2 | No. 18 Northern Iowa* | No. 6 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal) | W 41–24 | 14,472 |
| December 9 | at No. 1 McNeese State* | No. 6 | Cowboy StadiumLake Charles, LA (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal) | W 25–13 | 18,018 |
| December 16 | No. 8 Montana* | No. 6 | Marshall University StadiumHuntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game) | L 20–22 | 32,106 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game |||||||