Marshall football looking for second C-USA title under Doc Holliday in 2020
By Zach Bigalke
Can offense become more dynamic in 2020?
In the Conference USA race, few offenses return more production from last season than the Thundering Herd. According to Bill Connelly’s returning production calculations at ESPN, Marshall brings back 78 percent of their offense from last year.
After ranking 88th in scoring last season at only 25.6 points per game, though, one can ask whether experience is all that Marshall needs to take that next leap.
Aside from guards Dalton Tucker and Zack Harris, the rest of the two-deep for the offensive line is comprised of juniors and seniors who provide plenty of experience. The unit ranked in the top 20 nationally last season in tackles for loss allowed, though many of those takedowns in the backfield were on a quarterback scrambling to make things happen in the passing game.
The Herd certainly have a strong running game to build upon, especially with Brenden Knox back in Huntington for another season in the backfield. Knox led all C-USA rushers last season as he averaged 106.7 yards per outing, finishing the year with 1,387 yards to rank 16th nationally. Entering his redshirt junior season, Knox will be a critical component of Marshall’s hopes of a more vibrant offense in 2020.
Focusing on Marshall quarterback Isaiah Green
In ten starts as a freshman, Isaiah Green showed glimpses of growing into the next great Marshall quarterback. Green went 7-3 as a starter, throwing for an average of 246 yards per game on 19-of-33 passing and finishing the year with 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
The hope for the Thundering Herd was that Green would grow as a sophomore. Instead, the quarterback endured a sophomore slump as his numbers regressed across the board.
Despite starting all 13 games for the Thundering Herd, Green threw for 21 fewer yards than his freshman campaign that spanned three fewer games. He finished with the same number of touchdowns but tossed 11 interceptions along the way.
For Marshall to break back into contention in the C-USA East race, the offense needs Green to be more efficient. Green benefits from the return of pretty much everyone of consequence in the passing game except tight end Armani Levias, who led the team last year in receptions and yards. A stat line of 240 completions on 400 passing attempts would yield somewhere around 3,100 yards and 20 touchdowns, which would fortify the ground game as well as defenses stay honest.