# 2021 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

The 2021 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at the Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia, and competed in the East Division of Conference USA (CUSA). The team was coached by first-year head coach Charles Huff.
On October 30, 2021, Marshall announced they would become a member of the Sun Belt Conference. On March 29, it was announced they would officially join on July 1, 2022, making this the final season competing in C-USA.

## Schedule

Marshall announced its 2021 football schedule on January 27, 2021. The 2021 schedule consists of 6 home and 6 away games in the regular season.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 4 | 3:30 p.m. | at Navy* | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | CBSSN | W 49–7 | 30,131 |
| September 11 | 6:30 p.m. | North Carolina Central* | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | ESPN+ | W 44–10 | 24,521 |
| September 18 | 6:00 p.m. | East Carolina* | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV (rivalry) | CBSSN Facebook | L 38–42 | 24,833 |
| September 23 | 7:30 p.m. | at Appalachian State* | Kidd Brewer StadiumBoone, NC | ESPN | L 30–31 | 28,377 |
| October 2 | 7:00 p.m. | at Middle Tennessee | Johnny "Red" Floyd StadiumMurfreesboro, TN | Stadium | L 28–34 | 15,806 |
| October 9 | 2:00 p.m. | Old Dominion | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBSSN Facebook | W 20–13 $^{OT}$ | 24,172 |
| October 15 | 7:00 p.m. | at North Texas | Apogee StadiumDenton, TX | CBSSN | W 49–21 | 13,123 |
| October 30 | 3:30 p.m. | FIU | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | Stadium | W 38–0 | 18,466 |
| November 6 | 6:00 p.m. | at Florida Atlantic | FAU StadiumBoca Raton, FL | CBSSN Facebook | W 28–13 | 21,803 |
| November 13 | 3:30 p.m. | UAB | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBSSN | L 14–21 | 19,329 |
| November 20 | 3:30 p.m. | at Charlotte | Jerry Richardson StadiumCharlotte, NC | Stadium | W 49–28 | 13,211 |
| November 27 | 3:30 p.m. | Western Kentucky | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBSSN | L 21–53 | 19,134 |
| December 18 | 9:15 p.m. | vs. No. 23 Louisiana* | Caesars SuperdomeNew Orleans, LA (New Orleans Bowl) | ESPN | L 21–36 | 21,642 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||
    Schedule Source:

## Game summaries
### At Navy

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 7 | 7 | 21 | 49 |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, Maryland
* Date: Saturday, September 4, 2021
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: SW 5–10 mph
* Game attendance: 30,131
* Referee: Scott Hardin
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Chick Hernandez (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst), Sheehan Stanwick-Burch (sideline)
* Pregame line: Marshall –2.5
| Statistics | MRSH | NAVY |
| First downs | 23 | 24 |
| Plays–yards | 63–464 | 92–398 |
| Rushes–yards | 30–101 | 76–337 |
| Passing yards | 363 | 61 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 21–33–2 | 5–16–2 |
| Time of possession | 18:41 | 41:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 20/30, 333 yards, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 14 carries, 59 yards, 4 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Talik Keaton | 5 receptions, 100 yards |
| Navy | Passing | Maasai Maynor | 2/6, 27 yards |
| Navy | Rushing | James Harris II | 11 carries, 80 yards |
| Navy | Receiving | Mychal Cooper | 2 receptions, 30 yards |

### North Carolina Central

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Thundering Herd | 6 | 24 | 7 | 7 | 44 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 11, 2021
* Game time: 6:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 81 °F (27 °C) • Wind: None
* Game attendance: 24,521
* Referee: Patrick Foy
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Jake Griffith (play-by-play), Dave Wilson (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –43.5
| Statistics | NCCU | MRSH |
| First downs | 9 | 38 |
| Plays–yards | 60–177 | 100–700 |
| Rushes–yards | 28–71 | 42–237 |
| Passing yards | 106 | 463 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 14–32–0 | 42–58–2 |
| Time of possession | 27:24 | 32:36 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NC Central | Passing | Davius Richard | 14/32, 106 yards, 1 TD |
| NC Central | Rushing | Jamal Currie-Elliott | 9 carries, 34 yards |
| NC Central | Receiving | Tyler Barnes | 3 receptions, 40 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 34/47, 347 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Knowledge McDaniel | 7 carries, 67 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Jayden Harrison | 4 receptions, 81 yards |

### East Carolina

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Pirates | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 | 42 |
| Thundering Herd | 10 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 38 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 18, 2021
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C) • Wind: None
* Game attendance: 24,833
* Referee: Luke Richard
* TV announcers (CBS Sports Facebook): Michael Grady (play-by-play), Corey Chavous (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –9.5
| Statistics | ECU | MRSH |
| First downs | 27 | 24 |
| Plays–yards | 91–563 | 76–647 |
| Rushes–yards | 40–168 | 36–214 |
| Passing yards | 395 | 433 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 31–51–0 | 24–40–2 |
| Time of possession | 30:19 | 29:41 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| East Carolina | Passing | Holton Ahlers | 30/48, 368 yards, 2 TD |
| East Carolina | Rushing | Keaton Mitchell | 14 carries, 135 yards, 1 TD |
| East Carolina | Receiving | Shane Calhoun | 8 receptions, 114 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 24/39, 433 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 24 carries, 189 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 8 receptions, 180 yards |

### At Appalachian State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 6 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 30 |
| Mountaineers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 31 |
at Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, North Carolina
* Date: Thursday, September 23, 2021
* Game time: 7:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 53 °F (12 °C) • Wind: NW 3 mph
* Game attendance: 28,377
* Referee: Kevin Vicknair
* TV announcers (ESPN): Matt Barrie (play-by-play), Roddy Jones (analyst)
* Pregame line: App State –7.0
| Statistics | MRSH | APP |
| First downs | 20 | 39 |
| Plays–yards | 61–397 | 93–566 |
| Rushes–yards | 28–127 | 54–283 |
| Passing yards | 270 | 283 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 18–33–0 | 24–39–1 |
| Time of possession | 22:38 | 37:22 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 18/33, 270 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 17 carries, 83 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Xavier Gaines | 5 receptions, 104 yards, 1 TD |
| App State | Passing | Chase Brice | 24/39, 283 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| App State | Rushing | Nate Noel | 20 carries, 187 yards |
| App State | Receiving | Corey Sutton | 10 receptions, 127 yards, 1 TD |

### At Middle Tennessee

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 | 28 |
| Blue Raiders | 7 | 21 | 6 | 0 | 34 |
at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium • Murfreesboro, Tennessee
* Date: Saturday, October 2, 2021
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 78 °F (26 °C) • Wind: N 4 mph
* Game attendance: 15,806
* Referee: Kevin Vicknair
* TV announcers (Stadium): Chris Hassel (play-by-play), Sed Bonner (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –10.5
| Statistics | MRSH | MTSU |
| First downs | 28 | 16 |
| Plays–yards | 82–493 | 70–314 |
| Rushes–yards | 35–172 | 49–209 |
| Passing yards | 321 | 105 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 31–47–2 | 12–21–1 |
| Time of possession | 26:45 | 33:15 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 31/47, 321 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 19 carries, 113 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 7 receptions, 81 yards |
| Middle Tennessee | Passing | Chase Cunningham | 12/21, 105 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Middle Tennessee | Rushing | Chaton Mobley | 15 carries, 132 yards, 1 TD |
| Middle Tennessee | Receiving | Jaylin Lane | 1 reception, 34 yards, 1 TD |

### Old Dominion

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Monarchs | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| Thundering Herd | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 20 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, October 9, 2021
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 79 °F (26 °C) • Wind: None
* Game attendance: 24,172
* Referee: Jonathan Noli
* TV announcers (CBS Sports Facebook): Chris Hassel (play-by-play), Ben Leber (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –21.0
| Statistics | ODU | MRSH |
| First downs | 19 | 24 |
| Plays–yards | 73–314 | 78–390 |
| Rushes–yards | 50–208 | 32–91 |
| Passing yards | 106 | 299 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 10–23–2 | 30–46–2 |
| Time of possession | 29:56 | 30:04 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Old Dominion | Passing | D. J. Mack Jr | 9/22, 106 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Old Dominion | Rushing | Blake Watson | 26 carries, 168 yards |
| Old Dominion | Receiving | Ali Jennings | 1 reception, 33 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 30/46, 299 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 21 carries, 77 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Shadeed Ahmed | 7 receptions, 77 yards, 1 TD |

### At North Texas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 28 | 0 | 7 | 49 |
| Mean Green | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 21 |
at Apogee Stadium • Denton, Texas
* Date: Friday, October 15, 2021
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 70 °F (21 °C) • Wind: N 22 mph
* Game attendance: 13,123
* Referee: Patrick Foy
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Jason Horowitz (play-by-play), Donte Whitner (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –11.0
| Statistics | MRSH | UNT |
| First downs | 24 | 18 |
| Plays–yards | 72–477 | 78–411 |
| Rushes–yards | 40–154 | 46–277 |
| Passing yards | 323 | 134 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 24–32–1 | 17–32–2 |
| Time of possession | 32:14 | 27:46 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 24/32, 323 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 20 carries, 109 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Xavier Gaines | 5 receptions, 77 yards, 1 TD |
| North Texas | Passing | Austin Aune | 16/31, 121 yards, 2 INT |
| North Texas | Rushing | DeAndre Torrey | 20 carries, 179 yards, 2 TD |
| North Texas | Receiving | Jason Pirtle | 5 receptions, 35 yards |

### FIU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thundering Herd | 3 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, October 30, 2021
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Rain • Temperature: 55 °F (13 °C) • Wind: N/A
* Game attendance: 18,466
* Referee: Rodney Burnette
* TV announcers (Stadium): Noah Coslov and Max Starks
* Pregame line: Marshall –21.5
| Statistics | FIU | MRSH |
| First downs | 15 | 24 |
| Plays–yards | 66–288 | 77–456 |
| Rushes–yards | 31–108 | 46–246 |
| Passing yards | 180 | 210 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 18–35–1 | 24–31–0 |
| Time of possession | 29:13 | 30:47 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| FIU | Passing | Max Bortenschlager | 14/28, 128 yards, 1 INT |
| FIU | Rushing | D'Vonte Price | 10 carries, 51 yards |
| FIU | Receiving | Rivaldo Fairweather | 4 receptions, 59 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 20/25, 184 yards |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 26 carries, 133 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Shadeed Ahmed | 5 receptions, 52 yards |

### At Florida Atlantic

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
| Owls | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
at FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, Florida
* Date: Saturday, November 6, 2021
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 73 °F (23 °C) • Wind: N/A
* Game attendance: 21,803
* Referee: Patrick Foy
* TV: CBS Sports Facebook
* Pregame line: Marshall –1.5
| Statistics | MRSH | FAU |
| First downs | 20 | 21 |
| Plays–yards | 63–447 | 78–441 |
| Rushes–yards | 25–96 | 47–243 |
| Passing yards | 351 | 198 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 26–38–1 | 15–31–0 |
| Time of possession | 29:41 | 30:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 26/38, 351 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 18 carries, 90 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Willie Johnson | 5 receptions, 140 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | N'Kosi Perry | 15/29, 198 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Johnny Ford | 13 carries, 138 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Willie Wright | 2 receptions, 69 yards |

### UAB

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blazers | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, November 13, 2021
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 43 °F (6 °C) • Wind: N/A
* Game attendance: 19,329
* Referee: Jonathan Noli
* TV announcers (CBSSN): John Sadak (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –4.5
| Statistics | UAB | MRSH |
| First downs | 17 | 16 |
| Plays–yards | 65–338 | 60–269 |
| Rushes–yards | 47–88 | 21–37 |
| Passing yards | 250 | 232 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 13–18–0 | 22–39–1 |
| Time of possession | 37:43 | 22:17 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UAB | Passing | Dylan Hopkins | 13/18, 250 yards |
| UAB | Rushing | DeWayne McBride | 25 carries, 108 yards, 2 TD |
| UAB | Receiving | Gerrit Prince | 5 receptions, 100 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 22/39, 232 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 16 carries, 41 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 8 receptions, 67 yards, 1 TD |

### At Charlotte

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 14 | 21 | 7 | 49 |
| 49ers | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 28 |
at Jerry Richardson Stadium • Charlotte, North Carolina
* Date: Saturday, November 20, 2021
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 54 °F (12 °C) • Wind: S 3 mph
* Game attendance: 13,211
* Referee: Patrick Foy
* TV announcers (Stadium): Josh Appel (play-by-play), Patrick Russell (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –14.5
| Statistics | MRSH | CLT |
| First downs | 29 | 23 |
| Plays–yards | 72–588 | 73–364 |
| Rushes–yards | 44–321 | 32–119 |
| Passing yards | 267 | 245 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 21–28–0 | 25–41–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:03 | 30:57 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 21/28, 267 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 23 carries, 203 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 3 receptions, 78 yards, 1 TD |
| Charlotte | Passing | Chris Reynolds | 19/34, 176 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Charlotte | Rushing | Shadrick Byrd | 14 carries, 61 yards |
| Charlotte | Receiving | Grant DuBose | 6 receptions, 70 yards |

### Western Kentucky

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 6 | 23 | 24 | 53 |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, November 27, 2021
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 44 °F (7 °C) • Wind: N/A
* Game attendance: 19,134
* Referee: Jonathan Noli
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Alex Del Barrio (play-by-play), Sed Bonner (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –1.0
| Statistics | WKU | MRSH |
| First downs | 25 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 82–485 | 79–325 |
| Rushes–yards | 34–157 | 40–126 |
| Passing yards | 328 | 199 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 25–48–0 | 26–39–1 |
| Time of possession | 30:34 | 29:26 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Western Kentucky | Passing | Bailey Zappe | 25/48, 328 yards, 4 TD |
| Western Kentucky | Rushing | Noah Whittington | 14 carries, 69 yards |
| Western Kentucky | Receiving | Daewood Davis | 3 receptions, 105 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Passing | Luke Zban | 16/25, 123 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 24 carries, 99 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 7 receptions, 44 yards |

### vs Louisiana

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 23 Ragin' Cajuns | 10 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 36 |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
at Caesars Superdome • New Orleans, Louisiana
* Date: Saturday, December 18, 2021
* Game time: 9:15 p.m. EST (8:15 p.m. local CST)
* Game attendance: 21,642
* Referee: Mike Cutton
* TV announcers (ESPN): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Mike Golic Jr. (analyst), and Taylor McGregor (sideline)
* Pregame line: Louisiana –6.0
| Statistics | UL | MRSH |
| First downs | 22 | 13 |
| Plays–yards | 83–498 | 56–278 |
| Rushes–yards | 51–220 | 30–179 |
| Passing yards | 278 | 99 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 20–32–0 | 15–26–2 |
| Time of possession | 37:26 | 22:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Louisiana | Passing | Levi Lewis | 19/31, 270 yards, TD |
| Louisiana | Rushing | Emani Bailey | 17 carries, 94 yards, 2 TD |
| Louisiana | Receiving | Michael Jefferson | 3 receptions, 108 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 15/26, 99 yards, INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Rasheen Ali | 20 carries, 160 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 9 receptions, 50 yards |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 7 | 259 | Nazeeh Johnson | S | Kansas City Chiefs |