# 2020 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

The 2020 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia, and competed in the East Division of Conference USA (CUSA). They were led by eleventh-year head coach Doc Holliday.
The game against Middle Tennessee marked the 50th anniversary of the crash of Southern Airways Flight 932, which took place on November 14, 1970, and killed 75 people, 70 of whom were connected to the Marshall football program.

## Preseason
### CUSA media days

The CUSA Media Days will be held virtually for the first time in conference history.
Media poll (East Division) :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Charlotte |
| 2 | FIU |
| 3 | Florida Atlantic |
| 4 | Marshall |
| 5 | Middle Tennessee |
| 6 | Old Dominion |
| 7 | Western Kentucky |

## Schedule

Marshall announced its 2020 football schedule on January 8, 2020. The 2020 schedule originally consisted of 6 home and 6 away games in the regular season.
The Thundering Herd had games scheduled against Boise State, East Carolina, Ohio, Old Dominion, and Pittsburgh, which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic These were partially replaced with games against Appalachian State, Eastern Kentucky, and UMass.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 5 | 1:30 p.m. | Eastern Kentucky* | | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | ESPN | W 59–0 | 12,001 |
| September 19 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 23 Appalachian State* | | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBS | W 17–7 | 12,050 |
| October 10 | 7:30 p.m. | at Western Kentucky | | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | Stadium | W 38–14 | 4,428 |
| October 17 | 6:00 p.m. | at Louisiana Tech | | Joe Aillet StadiumRuston, LA | CBSSN | W 35–17 | 7,140 |
| October 24 | 2:30 p.m. | Florida Atlantic | No. 22 | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | Stadium | W 20–9 | 12,002 |
| November 7 | 2:30 p.m. | UMass* | No. 16 | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | ESPN+ | W 51–10 | 11,711 |
| November 14 | 12:00 p.m. | Middle Tennessee | No. 16 | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBSSN | W 42–14 | 12,224 |
| December 5 | 12:00 p.m. | Rice | No. 21 | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | ESPN+ | L 0–20 | 10,429 |
| December 18 | 7:00 p.m. | UAB | | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV (C-USA Championship Game) | CBSSN | L 13–22 | 8,324 |
| December 25 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. Buffalo* | | Cramton BowlMontgomery, AL (Camellia Bowl) | ESPN | L 10–17 | 2,512 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 24 released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### Eastern Kentucky

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Colonels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thundering Herd | 21 | 17 | 14 | 7 | 59 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 5, 2020
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 77 °F (25 °C) • Wind: ENE 3 mph
* Game attendance: 12,000
* TV announcers (ESPN): Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst), Katie George (sideline)
* Pregame line: Marshall –25.5
| Statistics | EKU | MRSH |
| First downs | 7 | 34 |
| Plays–yards | 47–166 | 83–627 |
| Rushes–yards | 31–86 | 54–282 |
| Passing yards | 80 | 345 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 10–16–1 | 22–29–0 |
| Time of possession | 25:37 | 34:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Kentucky | Passing | Parker McKinney | 7/10, 71 yards, 1 INT |
| Eastern Kentucky | Rushing | Quentin Pringle | 6 carries, 39 yards |
| Eastern Kentucky | Receiving | Keyion Dixon | 3 receptions, 34 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 16/23, 307 yards, 4 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Knowledge McDaniel | 14 carries, 93 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Talik Keaton | 2 receptions, 68 yards, 1 TD |

### Appalachian State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 23 Mountaineers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 19, 2020
* Game time: 3:45 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Clear and Sunny • Temperature: 69 °F (21 °C) • Wind: SSW 8 mph
* Game attendance: 12,050
* Referee: M. Vandervelde
* TV announcers (CBS): Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Aaron Murray (analyst), Sherree Burruss (sideline)
* Pregame line: App State –4.5
| Statistics | APP | MRSH |
| First downs | 26 | 22 |
| Plays–yards | 72–364 | 70–379 |
| Rushes–yards | 33–96 | 45–216 |
| Passing yards | 268 | 163 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 22–39–1 | 11–25–1 |
| Time of possession | 28:01 | 31:59 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| App State | Passing | Zac Thomas | 22/38, 268 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| App State | Rushing | Camerun Peoples | 12 carries, 57 yards |
| App State | Receiving | Thomas Hennigan | 5 receptions, 88 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 11/25, 163 yards, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 28 carries, 138 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Xavier Gaines | 2 receptions, 68 yards |

### At Western Kentucky

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 38 |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
at Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, Kentucky
* Date: Saturday, October 10, 2020
* Game time: 7:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Partly Cloudy • Temperature: 68 °F (20 °C) • Wind: E 6 mph
* Game attendance: 4,428
* Referee: Billy Williams
* TV announcers (Stadium): Chris Hassel (play-by-play), A. J. Hawk (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –7.0
| Statistics | MRSH | WKU |
| First downs | 17 | 15 |
| Plays–yards | 61–344 | 64–294 |
| Rushes–yards | 40–182 | 25–85 |
| Passing yards | 162 | 209 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 16–22–0 | 21–39–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:41 | 25:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 16/22, 162 yards |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 15 carries, 107 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Broc Thompson | 4 receptions, 94 yards |
| WKU | Passing | Kevaris Thomas | 9/18, 148 yards, 1 TD |
| WKU | Rushing | Kevaris Thomas | 7 carries, 30 yards, 1 TD |
| WKU | Receiving | Xavier Lane | 4 receptions, 74 yards |

### At Louisiana Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 35 |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
at Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, Louisiana
* Date: Saturday, October 17, 2020
* Game time: 6:02 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Partly Cloudy • Temperature: 70 °F (21 °C) • Wind: S 10 mph
* Game attendance: 7,140
* Referee: Chris Bynum
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Aaron Murray (analyst), AJ Ross (sideline)
* Pregame line: Marshall –13.5
| Statistics | MRSH | LT |
| First downs | 25 | 17 |
| Plays–yards | 71–402 | 58–267 |
| Rushes–yards | 47–175 | 24–7 |
| Passing yards | 227 | 260 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 19–24–1 | 26–34–1 |
| Time of possession | 35:11 | 24:29 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 19/24, 227 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 32 carries, 125 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Artie Henry | 3 receptions, 72 yards, 1 TD |
| La Tech | Passing | Luke Anthony | 18/25, 180 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| La Tech | Rushing | Israel Tucker | 4 carries, 20 yards |
| La Tech | Receiving | Adrian Hardy | 9 receptions, 102 yards, 1 TD |

### Florida Atlantic

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| No. 22 Thundering Herd | 7 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 20 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, October 24, 2020
* Game time: 2:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Cloudy• Temperature: 52 °F (11 °C) • Wind: S 6 mph
* Game attendance: 12,002
* Referee: Rodney Burnette
* TV announcers (Stadium): Chris Hassel (play-by-play), A. J. Hawk (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –19.0
| Statistics | FAU | MRSH |
| First downs | 17 | 19 |
| Plays–yards | 68–234 | 64–385 |
| Rushes–yards | 37–86 | 30–134 |
| Passing yards | 148 | 251 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 18–30–1 | 18–31–2 |
| Time of possession | 33:12 | 26:48 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| FAU | Passing | Nick Tronti | 18/30, 148 yards, 1 INT |
| FAU | Rushing | Malcolm Davidson | 8 carries, 62 yards, 1 TD |
| FAU | Receiving | Jordan Merrell | 5 receptions, 48 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 18/31, 251 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 25 carries, 101 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 6 receptions, 79 yards |

### UMass

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Minutemen | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| No. 16 Thundering Herd | 14 | 17 | 13 | 7 | 51 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, November 7, 2020
* Game time: 2:35 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Clear and Sunny• Temperature: 74 °F (23 °C) • Wind: Calm
* Game attendance: 11,711
* Referee: Rodney Burnette
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Mark Martin (play-by-play), Jake Griffith (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –45.0
| Statistics | MASS | MRSH |
| First downs | 12 | 33 |
| Plays–yards | 55–190 | 73–495 |
| Rushes–yards | 29–41 | 41–267 |
| Passing yards | 149 | 228 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 17–26–0 | 21–32–0 |
| Time of possession | 26:53 | 33:07 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UMass | Passing | Will Koch | 12/18, 99 yards, 1 TD |
| UMass | Rushing | Ellis Merriweather | 10 carries, 31 yards |
| UMass | Receiving | Taylor Edwards | 1 reception, 37 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 21/30, 228 yards, 3 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 14 carries, 118 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Receiving | Artie Henry | 5 receptions, 71 yards |

### Middle Tennessee

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blue Raiders | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| No. 16 Thundering Herd | 7 | 14 | 21 | 0 | 42 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, November 14, 2020
* Game time: 12:06 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 48 °F (9 °C) • Wind: WSW 3 mph
* Game attendance: 12,224
* Referee: Joe Lehring
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play), Aaron Murray (analyst), Jenny Dell (sideline)
* Pregame line: Marshall –23.5
| Statistics | MTSU | MRSH |
| First downs | 18 | 26 |
| Plays–yards | 68–303 | 75–520 |
| Rushes–yards | 23–56 | 38–184 |
| Passing yards | 247 | 336 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 30–45–0 | 25–37–0 |
| Time of possession | 24:46 | 35:14 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Middle Tennessee | Passing | Asher O'Hara | 29/44, 241 yards, 1 TD |
| Middle Tennessee | Rushing | Asher O'Hara | 11 carries, 39 yards, 1 TD |
| Middle Tennessee | Receiving | Jarrin Pierce | 9 receptions, 90 yards, 1 TD |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 25/37, 336 yards, 5 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 16 carries, 70 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Willie Johnson | 8 receptions, 137 yards, 2 TD |

### Rice

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 20 |
| No. 21 Thundering Herd | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, December 5, 2020
* Game time: 12:05 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 43 °F (6 °C) • Wind: WNW 6 mph
* Game attendance: 10,429
* Referee: Ken Antee
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Jake Griffith (play–by–play) and Dave Wilson (analyst)
* Pregame line: Marshall –24.5
| Statistics | RICE | MRSH |
| First downs | 17 | 19 |
| Plays–yards | 63–213 | 63–245 |
| Rushes–yards | 46–127 | 28–80 |
| Passing yards | 86 | 165 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 10–14–0 | 18–35–5 |
| Time of possession | 36:26 | 23:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Rice | Passing | JoVoni Johnson | 10/14, 86 yards |
| Rice | Rushing | Ari Broussard | 19 carries, 62 yards |
| Rice | Receiving | Jake Bailey | 7 receptions, 57 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 18/35, 165 yards, 5 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 20 carries, 76 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Talik Keaton | 7 receptions, 48 yards |

### UAB (Conference USA Championship)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blazers | 3 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 22 |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 13 |
at Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia
* Date: Saturday, December 18, 2020
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 34 °F (1 °C) • Wind: W 3 MPH
* Game attendance: 8,324
* Referee: Jon Noli
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Aaron Taylor (analyst) and Jenny Dell (sideline)
| Statistics | UAB | MRSH |
| First downs | 21 | 10 |
| Plays–yards | 74–468 | 51–268 |
| Rushes–yards | 52–216 | 27–130 |
| Passing yards | 252 | 138 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 12–22–0 | 8–24–1 |
| Time of possession | 41:26 | 18:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UAB | Passing | Tyler Johnston III | 12/22, 252 yards, 2 TD |
| UAB | Rushing | Spencer Brown | 30 carries, 149 yards |
| UAB | Receiving | Trea Shropshire | 5 receptions, 180 yards, TD |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 8/23, 138 yards, 2 TD |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 17 carries, 67 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Xavier Gaines | 1 reception, 70 yards, TD |

### Buffalo (Camellia Bowl)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Bulls | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
at Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, Alabama
* Date: Saturday, December 25, 2020
* Game time: 2:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 41 °F (5 °C) • Wind: W 13 mph
* Game attendance: 2,512
* Referee: Edwin Lee (The American)
* TV announcers (ESPN): Bill Roth (play-by-play), Dustin Fox (analyst) and Lauren Sisler (sideline)
* ESPN game summary
| Statistics | MRSH | UB |
| First downs | 16 | 21 |
| Plays–yards | 59–248 | 70–295 |
| Rushes–yards | 37–134 | 43–155 |
| Passing yards | 114 | 140 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 13–22–0 | 16–27–1 |
| Time of possession | 24:33 | 35:27 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 13/20, 114 yards |
| Marshall | Rushing | Sheldon Evans | 18 carries, 79 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 6 receptions, 88 yards |
| Buffalo | Passing | Kyle Vantrease | 16/27, 140 yards, 1 INT |
| Buffalo | Rushing | Kevin Marks | 35 carries, 138 yards, 1 TD |
| Buffalo | Receiving | Jovany Ruiz | 7 receptions, 61 yards |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | — | —* | RV | 25 | RV | RV | RV | 22 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 15 T | 17 | 15 | RV | RV | RV | RV |
| Coaches | — | —* | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 15 | RV | RV | RV | RV |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 21 | 21 | —* | | | Not released |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 4 | 138 | Josh Ball | OT | Dallas Cowboys |