Marshall
Marshall is 5-4 and No. 119 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 13.6 points below an average FBS team. Last game: lost 49-13 at Georgia Southern in Week 10.
Week 11: vs App State, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Marshall is No. 119
- Marshall's rating is −13.6: the machine's estimate that Marshall is 13.6 points worse than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 119 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at −8.8, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it down 4.8.
- The biggest weekly moves: −2.8 after Week 1 (L 0-45 at Penn State) and −1.8 after Week 5 (L 17-45 at James Madison).
- Its record is 5-4. The 4 losses were to No. 35 Penn State, No. 51 James Madison, No. 79 Georgia Southern, No. 102 Coastal Carolina, by 28.8 points on average. The 5 wins came by 5.8 points on average; the best was over No. 107 South Alabama. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 93 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 118 Old Dominion (−13.4); just below is No. 120 Rice (−13.6).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Tony Gibson is in his 2nd season at Marshall (since 2025). This season: 5-4. At Marshall overall: 10-11, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 170-285 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1972 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 8-10 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.0No. 94 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 11.0%No. 57 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 5.7%No. 73 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 341-1545 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 4.5No. 55 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 13.8%No. 70 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 18.9%No. 95 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 22.3No. 106 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.69No. 88 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 36.1%No. 101 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 41.2%No. 133 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 17No. 130 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 31.9No. 120 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 6.40No. 123 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 7.7No. 106 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 5.1No. 124 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 2.3%No. 136 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 10No. 81 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 39.5%No. 82 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Carlos Del Rio-Wilson92-148, 1080 yds, 6 TD, 5 INT
- Zion Turner69-118, 749 yds, 2 TD, 5 INT
- Khalil Wilkins9-17, 143 yds, 0 TD, 0 INT
Rushing
- Judah Price63 carries, 358 yds, 2 TD
- Joshon Barbie68 carries, 335 yds, 3 TD
- Khalil Wilkins44 carries, 323 yds, 1 TD
Receiving
- Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw28 catches, 397 yds, 4 TD
- Toby Payne30 catches, 269 yds, 0 TD
- Owen Sweeney22 catches, 255 yds, 1 TD
Tackles
- Caleb Clark-Glover63
- Cannon Lewis60
- Daytione Smith52
Sacks
- Kelvon Mcbride3
- Kenyatta Hardge II2
- Nate Blanc1.5
Interceptions
- Caleb Clark-Glover2
- Charles McCartherens1
- Cole Funderburk1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Carlos Del Rio-Wilson7 games148 attempts52%
- Zion TurnerMost passes in the last game7 games118 attempts42%
- Khalil Wilkins7 games17 attempts6%
Carrying
- Joshon Barbie8 games68 carries37%
- Judah Price8 games63 carries34%
- TJ Lester9 games44 carries24%
- Anthony Quinn Jr.2 games5 carries3%
Catching
- Toby Payne8 games30 catches18%
- Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw8 games28 catches16%
- Adrian Norton7 games23 catches14%
- Owen Sweeney9 games22 catches13%
Tackling
- Caleb Clark-Glover9 games63 tackles10%
- Cannon Lewis9 games60 tackles9%
- Daytione Smith9 games52 tackles8%
- Javae Gilmore9 games47 tackles7%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 L 0–45 at Penn State. The pass defense gave ground: Penn State got 12.0 yards an attempt, 4.6 over what it usually gains. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 2 W 28–26 vs Middle Tennessee. The run game struggled: 3.4 yards a carry, 2.3 less than Middle Tennessee usually allows.
- Week 3 W 30–24 at Missouri State. The pass defense gave ground: Missouri State got 11.0 yards an attempt, 4.3 over what it usually gains.
- Week 4 W 36–35 vs Gardner-Webb. Gardner-Webb is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against.
- Week 5 L 17–45 at James Madison. The run defense gave ground: James Madison got 8.9 yards a carry, 4.4 over what it usually gains. The most yards a carry it has allowed all season.
- Week 6 L 21–27 vs Coastal Carolina. The pass defense was the strength: Coastal Carolina got 4.1 yards an attempt, 3.8 under what it usually gains. The machine had Marshall by 0.9 (53%), so this was a loss it did not see coming; Marshall lost the turnover battle by 5.
- Week 8 W 20–13 vs South Alabama. The pass defense was the strength: South Alabama got 4.5 yards an attempt, 4.3 under what it usually gains.
- Week 9 W 36–23 at Old Dominion. The pass defense gave ground: Old Dominion got 7.2 yards an attempt, 1.6 over what it usually gains. The machine had Old Dominion by 2.0 (56%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Marshall won the turnover battle by 3.
- Week 10 L 13–49 at Georgia Southern. The run game was the strength: 6.4 yards a carry, 2.7 more than Georgia Southern usually allows. Lost the turnover battle by 2.