Blue Raider Blues — Marshall Survives MTSU in the Joan Marshall 28, Middle Tennessee State 26

By The Herd’s Headset of The HerdLine Podcast:

There are a few teams that seem to give the Herd trouble no matter how good or bad their roster is.

Ohio.

Bowling Green.

And we can most certainly add Middle Tennessee State to that list.

For whatever reason, MTSU seems to find a way to play Marshall to the wire in just about every scenario, with a few outliers sprinkled in. And Saturday night at the Joan was no different.

Marshall attempted to give this game away multiple times.

But somehow, someway, the Herd found a way to win.

And at the end of the night, that’s what matters.

Here is how Trace and I graded Marshall’s performance.

🏟️ ATMOSPHERE

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Last night was the quintessential Marshall crowd.

When it mattered most, the atmosphere got rowdy and made the Joan a very tough environment for Middle Tennessee State.

But before we even get into the crowd, I want to start with the stadium upgrades.

I was personally blown away by how amazing the upkeep looked.

New coats of paint. Legacy banners remembering some of the greatest moments in Marshall history. Improvements everywhere you looked.

The porch looked fantastic.

The kids zone was a great idea.

Cheap concession options.

And perhaps one of the best intro videos I’ve ever seen, leaning into the celebration of the 75th anniversary while also acknowledging some of the all-time greats who have worn the green and white.

The fireworks were on point.

But the best part of the night?

That light show between the third and fourth quarters.

The place was electric.

The players were going crazy.

The fans were going crazy.

It was genuinely one of the best home-opening atmospheres I can remember at Marshall in a very long time.

Hats off to our AD, Gerald Harrison, and his team for putting these things in place.

It wasn’t one giant change that made the difference.

It was a bunch of small cosmetic and experiential improvements that came together to create something special.

The Joan felt like home Saturday night.

🏈 QUARTERBACK

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️½

We’ve got a problem.

It’s been a problem for years, but I don’t remember the problem being quite like this.

For the second straight game, Tony Gibson rolled out three different quarterbacks.

All three have legitimate strengths.

All three have legitimate weaknesses.

And as fans, we’re left wondering who is actually going to take control of this football team.

Carlos Del Rio-Wilson

Carlos is the SBC Preseason Player of the Year, so there are a lot of expectations surrounding him.

And physically, you can see why.

He is a powerful runner and a physically imposing presence. Of everyone in the quarterback room, I believe CDRW has the most raw talent.

But the issues are becoming apparent.

He doesn’t consistently work through his progressions.

His completion percentage looks good, but there are times when it feels like he’s getting the ball out quickly to the first option he sees rather than stepping up into the pocket and allowing the play to develop.

And if that first option isn’t there, he’s quick to tuck the ball and run.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

The problem is how he runs.

Carlos is big. He’s physical. And he plays like a running back.

But Saturday night, I saw him slide one time.

The rest of the time, he’s trying to hurdle people, run through people, and deliver punishment.

That style can work.

But it also creates a major injury risk.

And we saw that risk become reality Saturday night.

Khalil Wilkins

When Wilkins is on the field, he’s the fastest guy on either side of the football.

The dude can absolutely fly.

There is genuine potential for him to become a breakout player for the Herd down the road.

But his biggest issue right now is consistency throwing the football.

There were a few overthrown and underthrown passes Saturday night that, had they been delivered accurately, could have completely changed the game.

Maybe even cemented him as the starter today, rather than the starter of the future.

I’m high on Wilkins.

He’s got a lot of tangibles that can work extremely well.

But the passing accuracy has to improve.

Zion Turner

Zion, to me, isn’t the most physically talented guy in the quarterback room.

He’s not as fast as Wilkins.

He’s not as physical as CDRW.

His arm is good, but it’s not necessarily blowing anybody away.

But here’s where Zion shines.

His mind.

Zion has spent the last three seasons with Rod Smith — one year at Jacksonville State and the last two here at Marshall.

There is nobody else on this roster who understands Rod Smith’s system better than Zion.

And Saturday night, he looked calm.

He looked comfortable.

He checked down through his progressions.

He made smart throws.

He took what the defense gave him.

And when necessary, he could still tuck the ball and run.

His biggest strength isn’t his arm.

It isn’t his speed.

It isn’t his size.

It’s his understanding of the offense.

All three guys bring something to the table.

But we’re reaching the point where someone needs to break away from the pack.

Someone needs to prove they can take the reins and lead this team to a lot of football games this year.

Because continuing to rotate three quarterbacks isn’t a long-term solution.

🟢 OFFENSE

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️½

The offense was weird.

At times, they looked really good.

Other times, they completely sputtered.

The running game was improved from a week ago, but it’s still not where it needs to be for long-term success.

And a lot of that stems from the offensive line.

There needs to be more explosiveness off the ball to create lanes for the running backs.

Pressure was on most of the night, with one notable exception.

When Zion Turner was in the game, the pass protection significantly improved.

That’s something to watch moving forward.

Zay Turner-Bradshaw had a monster game.

Only two receptions.

But 79 yards and two touchdowns.

And one of those touchdowns may have saved the entire game.

After the fumble in the end zone, Turner-Bradshaw was there to fall on the football and give Marshall six points.

Adrian Norton brought in seven receptions for 43 yards and had a very solid showing.

Owen Sweeny made two very nice catches in open space.

But here’s my biggest frustration:

The ball wasn’t thrown around nearly enough.

Toby Payne finished with just one reception.

I have said it before, and I’ll say it again:

This wide receiver room is special.

They just need an average quarterback to consistently get the football down the field.

The talent is there.

The question is whether Marshall can consistently put that talent in position to make plays.

Moving forward, the play calling needs to open up significantly.

And ultimately, that starts with knowing who your quarterback is.

That’s why next week is so interesting.

🛡️ DEFENSE

Trace: ⭐️⭐️½

Headset: ⭐️⭐️

Believe it or not…

The defense looked better than it did last year.

That’s not exactly saying much considering the 2025 defense could have been mistaken for Swiss cheese.

But Saturday night, the defense tightened up just enough when they absolutely had to.

And that’s what matters.

The effort was there.

I was impressed with both of our edge rushers, McBride and Ward. Those guys are physically dominant and created problems throughout the night.

The pass defense, however, wasn’t great.

MTSU quarterback Gagliano finished with 243 passing yards and two touchdowns.

But a lot of those yards came from a simple inability to tackle in space.

There were so many broken tackles.

So many plays that were extended because of missed tackles.

And at times, it was incredibly frustrating to watch.

This wasn’t a great defensive performance.

But it was an improvement.

And Brad Lambert is already making a difference.

It’s not perfect.

It’s not close to where it needs to be.

But compared to what we watched a season ago?

There are signs of progress.

🦵 SPECIAL TEAMS

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There wasn’t a ton that was notable in the special teams department.

Except for one guy.

Freshman punter Cooper Hembach.

Watching this kid kick the football is a genuine pleasure.

He punted six times for 293 total yards, averaging 48.8 yards per punt, with a long of 54 yards.

He also put one inside the 20.

And the most encouraging part?

He’s gotten better since Penn State.

That’s what you want to see from a freshman.

He’s improving.

He’s developing.

And if he continues on this trajectory, Marshall may have something special at punter.

🧠 COACHING

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The offensive play calling was frustrating at times.

There’s no way around it.

But they found a way to win.

And as much as we get frustrated with the play calling, we have to give credit where credit is due.

Marshall had a starting offensive lineman go down with an injury early.

Carlos Del Rio-Wilson went down with an injury.

The Herd played three quarterbacks.

The defense was forced to spend a lot of time on the field.

There were plenty of opportunities for this thing to completely unravel.

But it didn’t.

They found a way to overcome the obstacles and get the win.

And that’s worth something.

A season ago, coaching was a major reason Marshall lost a game against Missouri State under very similar circumstances.

Saturday night?

Coaching found a way to win.

Was it sloppy?

Absolutely.

Was it frustrating?

Absolutely.

But winning is still winning.

There is plenty to improve.

But there is also plenty that has improved in one season.

⭐️ OVERALL GRADE

Trace: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Headset: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

FINAL GRADE: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5

Marshall didn’t play a perfect game.

They didn’t even play a particularly clean game.

But they did something that this team struggled to do last season:

They found a way to win a game they very easily could have lost.

The Herd showed flashes offensively.

The defense showed improvement.

Special teams had a standout freshman punter.

The atmosphere at the Joan was fantastic.

And the coaching staff managed to navigate injuries, quarterback uncertainty, and a frustrating game script to walk away with a victory.

There are still a LOT of questions.

But there are also signs that this team is moving in the right direction.

Three stars feels right.

Not because Marshall was bad.

But because this team has shown us enough to believe it can be better.

🏁 FINAL THOUGHTS

Now the Herd sets its sights on Missouri State.

And if you’ve been following Marshall for any amount of time, you know exactly why this one matters.

Missouri State is a tough team that is new to the FBS, embarrassed the Herd last season, and is looking to make another statement by beating Marshall on Saturday.

There are a lot of unanswered questions going into this game.

Who is the quarterback?

Can the offensive line hold up?

Can the running game continue to improve?

Can the defense actually get off the field?

Can the wide receivers finally be utilized the way we believe they can?

But one thing is certain:

This team needs an immaculate week of practice.

Going on the road against Missouri State isn’t going to be easy.

The Herd has a lot to clean up.

A lot to figure out.

And a lot to prove.

But if we see this team continue to improve week after week, Marshall could be building something pretty interesting.

For now?

The Herd survived MTSU.

Next week, it’s time to see if they’ve actually learned from it.