CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2020 Marshall

7–⁠3 (4–⁠1 Conference USA), coached by Doc Holliday.

Schedule and results

Marshall in 2020, game by game: won vs. Eastern Kentucky 59–0; won vs. No. 24 App State 17–7; won at Western Kentucky 38–14; won at Louisiana Tech 35–17; won vs. Florida Atlantic 20–9; won vs. Massachusetts 51–10; won vs. Middle Tennessee 42–14; lost vs. Rice 0–20; lost vs. UAB 13–22; lost vs. No. 23 Buffalo 10–17+59−20Won 59–0 vs. Eastern Kentucky+59Eastern KentuckyWon 17–7 vs. No. 24 App State+10No. 24 App StateWon 38–14 at Western Kentucky+24Western KentuckyWon 35–17 at Louisiana Tech+18Louisiana TechWon 20–9 vs. Florida Atlantic+11Florida AtlanticWon 51–10 vs. Massachusetts+41MassachusettsWon 42–14 vs. Middle Tennessee+28Middle TennesseeLost 0–20 vs. Rice-20RiceLost 13–22 vs. UAB-9UABLost 10–17 vs. No. 23 Buffalo-7No. 23 Buffalo
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5vsEastern KentuckyW 59–⁠081%
Sep 19vs24App StateW 17–⁠738%
Oct 10atWestern KentuckyW 38–⁠1452%
Oct 17atLouisiana TechW 35–⁠1749%
Oct 24vsFlorida AtlanticW 20–⁠959%
Nov 7vsMassachusettsW 51–⁠1092%
Nov 14vsMiddle TennesseeW 42–⁠1487%
Dec 5vsRiceL 0–⁠2087%
Dec 18vsUABConference USA Championship GameL 13–⁠2265%
Dec 25Bowls & playoffvs23BuffaloCamellia BowlL 10–⁠1745%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Buffalo 17–⁠10 in the Camellia Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; first in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 14th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 83 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 4: 25
  2. Wk 8: 22
  3. Wk 9: 19
  4. Wk 10: 16
  5. Wk 11: 16
  6. Wk 12: 15
  7. Wk 13: 17
  8. Wk 14: 15

C-USA East champions4–⁠1 in the conference

Record
7–⁠3
Conference
4–⁠1 first in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked peak No. 15
Points
285–⁠130
Coach
Doc Holliday
Elo
1549 +26 this season
SP+ rating
9.5 No. 30 of 130; offense No. 64, defense No. 16
SRS
3.9 No. 29 of 77 in FBS
Returning
52% of last season’s EPA, No. 90 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 96 roster talent No. 89 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Tim Cramsey
Defensive coordinators
Brad Lambert and J.C. Price
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense77th of 127
  • Defense18th of 127
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted74th of 127
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted32nd of 127
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0843%1.2077th of 127
Defense0.0140%0.9818th of 127
Opponent-adjusted0.09 off
0.06 def		43% off
42% def		—74th off
32nd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.9own 3012% allowed
Defense2.4own 2716% caused

CORE rating 4.9, 48th of 127 (offense -1.1, defense -6.0).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsGrant Wells QB2,091 yds
Passing touchdownsGrant Wells QB18 TD
Rushing yardsBrenden Knox RB887 yds
Rushing touchdownsBrenden Knox RB9 TD
Receiving yardsCorey Gammage WR409 yds
Receiving touchdownsCorey Gammage WR4 TD
TacklesTavante Beckett LB82 tkl
SacksDarius Hodge DL6.5 sacks
InterceptionsNazeeh Johnson S2 INT

Top recruits in the 2020 class

Jhari Patterson WR★★★No. 703
Charles Bell VI S★★★No. 836
J.J. Davis RB★★★No. 1043
Josh Hardeman S★★★No. 1599
Chancellor Bright WR★★★No. 1699

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2020 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.818
Running backs22.50.823
Receivers43.00.829
Offensive line22.50.798
Defensive line32.70.804
Defensive backs53.00.830
Whole class172.80.820

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2021

The 2021 draft
Rd 4Josh Ball OTDallas Cowboys

Roster 110

The 2020 roster

110 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2020 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster

2020 Conference USA standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Marshall4–⁠17–⁠3
UAB3–⁠16–⁠3
UTSA5–⁠27–⁠5
Florida Atlantic4–⁠25–⁠4
Louisiana Tech4–⁠25–⁠5
Western Kentucky4–⁠35–⁠7
Charlotte2–⁠22–⁠4
North Texas3–⁠44–⁠6
Rice2–⁠32–⁠3
Middle Tennessee2–⁠43–⁠6
Southern Miss2–⁠43–⁠7
UTEP0–⁠43–⁠5
Florida International0–⁠30–⁠5

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.