2002 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

Last updated

2002 Marshall Thundering Herd football
Marshall Thundering Herd logo.svg
MAC champion
MAC East Division champion
GMAC Bowl champion
MAC Championship Game, W 49–45 vs. Toledo
GMAC Bowl, W 38–15 vs. Louisville
Conference Mid-American Conference
DivisionEast
Ranking
CoachesNo. 19
APNo. 24
Record11–2 (7–1 MAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMark McHale (1st season)
Co-offensive coordinatorLarry Kueck (2nd season)
Defensive coordinatorBill Wilt (1st season)
Home stadium Marshall University Stadium
Seasons
  2001
2003  
2002 Mid-American Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
East Division
No. 24 Marshall x$  7 1   11 2  
UCF  6 2   7 5  
Miami (OH)  5 3   7 5  
Ohio  4 4   4 8  
Akron  3 5   4 8  
Kent State  1 7   3 9  
Buffalo  0 8   1 11  
West Division
Toledo xy  7 1   9 5  
Northern Illinois x  7 1   8 4  
Bowling Green  6 2   9 3  
Ball State  4 4   6 6  
Western Michigan  3 5   4 8  
Central Michigan  2 6   4 8  
Eastern Michigan  1 7   3 9  
Championship: Marshall 49, Toledo 45
  • $ Conference champion
  • x Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2002 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia, and competed in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The team was coached by seventh-year head coach Bob Pruett. Marshall won its fifth MAC title in six years and its fifth consecutive bowl game.

Contents

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
August 317:00 pmNo. 2 (I-AA) Appalachian State *No. 19 ESPN Plus W 50–1731,042 [1]
September 127:45 pmat No. 11 Virginia Tech *No. 16 ESPN L 21–4765,049
September 207:00 pm UCF
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
ESPN2 W 26–2132,900
October 52:00 pmat Kent State W 42–2115,337
October 124:30 pm Buffalo
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
W 66–2128,200
October 194:30 pm Troy State *Dagger-14-plain.png
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
ESPN PlusW 24–727,121
October 261:00 pmat Central Michigan W 23–1814,564
November 23:30 pmat Akron L 20–3413,762
November 128:00 pm Miami (OH)
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
ESPNW 36–3426,851
November 233:30 pmat Ohio W 24–2121,110
November 304:30 pm Ball State
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
ESPN2W 38–1423,824
December 72:30 pm Toledo
ESPN2W 49–4524,582
December 188:00 pmvs. Louisville *ESPN2W 38–1540,646
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Appalachian State

1234Total
Mountaineers737017
No. 19 Thundering Herd320141350

Virginia Tech

1234Total
No. 16 Thundering Herd0002121
No. 11 Hokies101062147

UCF

1234Total
Golden Knights770721
Thundering Herd3176026

Kent State

1234Total
Thundering Herd71414742
Golden Flashes1407021

Buffalo

1234Total
Bulls0071421
Thundering Herd21317766

Troy State

1234Total
Trojans00077
Thundering Herd1070724

Central Michigan

1234Total
Thundering Herd1373023
Chippewas093618

Akron

1234Total
Thundering Herd737320
Zips71710034

Miami (OH)

1234Total
RedHawks31410734
Thundering Herd10712736

While Stan Hill and his Marshall teammates were celebrating a dramatic win, Miami (Ohio) defensive coordinator John Wauford was being led off the field in handcuffs by state police.

Moments after Hill scored on a 1-yard run with 5 seconds left for a 36-34 victory Tuesday night, Wauford allegedly shoved a Marshall fan and was arrested. The fan, Robert A. Flaugher of Pickerington, Ohio, hit his head on the artificial turf and was taken on a stretcher to a hospital with a concussion, according to a report filed by State Police in Huntington. Flaugher was in stable condition at St. Mary's Medical Center, said a nursing supervisor who did not want her name released.

Wauford was charged with battery, a misdemeanor. He was transported to Cabell County Magistrate Court and posted bail. The amount wasn't immediately released. Miami officials refused to comment on the incident, and did not make players or coaches available to media.

Marshall fans stormed the field after Stan Hill's winning score. Playing in place of the injured Byron Leftwich and making his first career start, Hill also threw four touchdown passes.

Ben Roethlisberger twice brought Miami back from double-digit deficits, and Luke Clemens' 17-yard TD run gave the RedHawks a 34-29 lead with 6:33 left.

After a dropped pass in the end zone by Darius Watts - who caught three TD passes from Hill - a pair of interference calls against Miami put the ball at the 1, setting up Hill's run.

External link: http://www.muredhawks.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/111202aaa.html

Ohio

1234Total
Thundering Herd0314724
Bobcats706821

Ball State

1234Total
Cardinals700714
Thundering Herd101414038

Toledo

1234Total
Rockets017151345
Thundering Herd141471449

A month's worth of limping on a sore shin didn't deter Byron Leftwich, and neither did getting flattened by Toledo's David Gardner. Leftwich got up from the third-quarter hit to throw two late touchdowns, including a 40-yarder to Darius Watts with 49 seconds left, as Marshall beat the Rockets 49-45 in the Mid-American Conference championship game.

Marshall atoned for a loss at Toledo in the 2001 championship game, in which the Rockets overcame a 23-0 deficit to win 41-36.

Leftwich completed 32 of 42 passes for 404 yards and four TDs to overshadow the four rushing touchdowns by Toledo redshirt freshman Trinity Dawson, who finished with a career-high 130 yards. Leftwich became the conference's all-time leading passer with 11,654, surpassing the 11,299 yards set by Tim Lester from 1996 to 1999.

External link:

Louisville

1234Total
Cardinals070815
Thundering Herd71071438

Roster

2002 Marshall Thundering Herd football team roster
PlayersCoaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
WR 87Oscar AlcantaraSr
WR 83Brad BatesSo
OL 77Josh BlakeySo
OL 56Toby BullockFr
RB 8Bradon CareyJr
WR 82 Josh Davis So
QB 4Stan HillSo
WR 80Curtis JonesSr
QB 7 Byron Leftwich Sr
TE 90 Jason Rader Jr
G 75 Steve Sciullo Sr
WR 40 Darius Watts Jr
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
DB 3Moriah AndersonSo
LB 5Kevin AtkinsSo
LB 1Gladstone CokeJr
FS 19 Chris Crocker Sr
DE 50 Johnathan Goddard So
DE 99Jamus MartinSo
DE 55Maurice McKinneyJr
LB 53Ashley McNeelyFr
LB 42Ryan KobbeSr
LB 47Henry MooreSr
LB 44Carlos MorganSo
DB 15Yancey SatterwhiteSr
LB 12Scott WilksFr
DB 28Renaldo WilliamsSo
LB 33Dionte' WilsonSo
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
K 9Jesse CortezFr
P/K 36Curtis HeadSr
K 16Nick KellySo
LS 68Cory DennisonSr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injury icon 2.svg Injured
  • Redshirt.svg Redshirt

Roster
Last update: 2002-10-22

Team players drafted in the NFL

The following players were selected in the 2003 NFL draft.

PlayerPositionRoundPickFranchise
Byron Leftwich Quarterback17 Jacksonville Jaguars
Chris Crocker Defensive Back384 Cleveland Browns
Steve Sciullo Guard4122 Indianapolis Colts

[2]

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
AP 19191616RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV24
Coaches 21221817RVRVRVRVRVRV25RVRVRVRVRV2419
BCS Not releasedNot released

References

  1. "Marshall flies by ASU". The News and Observer. September 1, 2002. Retrieved December 1, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  2. "2003 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com . Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.