Written by Erik Slaby
Tampa, FL – On a rainy, windy and cool evening here at Raymond James Stadium, the Marshall Thundering Herd defeated the University of South Florida Bulls 38-20 in the 2018 Bad Boys Mowers Gasparilla Bowl. With this victory, this is Marshall head coach Doc Holliday’s sixth straight bowl victory. He is undefeated in bowl games. Holliday spoke after the game about the victory.
“I’m just proud of the players, proud of the way they prepared for the game,” said Holliday. “I really appreciate what this bowl and ESPN does, it’s great to get a chance to come down here to Tampa and play in such a great bowl at such a great venue. I know our players enjoyed it, I sure enjoyed it and just proud of the way our players went out and played.”
Early on in the first half, it seemed as it would be a defensive affair as both teams struggled to get anything going offensively. Three of the first four drives ended in punts and one of the drives ended with a turnover on downs after Marshall failed to convert a 4th down attempt, deep in USF territory. However, on Marshall’s third drive of the game, they began to show life offensively.
Marshall went on a seven play, 81-yard drive that was capped off by a 10-yard touchdown run by Marshall quarterback Isaiah Green. The drive was highlighted by a 27 yard catch by tight end Xavier Gaines. USF seemed to miss several tackles on that drive which seemed to give Marshall confidence as the drive continued. After scoring that touchdown, Marshall scored on their next two possessions, closing out the first quarter with a 21-7 lead. Marshall added another touchdown midway through second quarter to take a 21-point lead before USF managed to kick a field goal in the waning seconds of the half.
In the second half, both teams traded field goals to make the score 31-13. USF was able to move the ball a bit better than they had in the first half but they still got bogged down in the red zone. Late in the third quarter though, USF scored on a 33-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Blake Barnett to wide receiver Randall St. Felix. This cut the Marshall lead down to 31-20 and one could feel the USF crowd getting back into it and the Marshall fans starting to get nervous.
Luckily for the Marshall fans, the USF offense was not able to get anything going the rest of the game. Like they had most of the game, the USF offense made several self-inflicted mistakes with drops and miscommunication between the receivers and Barnett that limited their offensive success. The Marshall offense sealed the victory midway through the fourth quarter with a 16-yard touchdown run from running back Keion Davis.
Marshall was led offensively by Davis, who finished with 14 carries for 98 yards and two touchdowns. For his performance, he was named the game’s MVP. Fellow running back Brenden Knox also contributed with 12 carries for 93 yards and a touchdown. Green completed 17 of 25 passes for 221 yards. He also rushed for 36 yards and a touchdown. Marshall as a team, rushed for 282 yards against a USF defense that struggled to tackle.
USF was led by Barnett who completed 11 of 23 passes for 212 yards and one touchdown. Wide receiver Tyre McCants also added a 38-yard touchdown pass on a trick play to St. Felix. St. Felix led all receivers with six catches for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Barnett spoke after the game about St. Felix’s impressive performance.
“What he did tonight, everyone knew he was capable of,” said Barnett. “So that was really exciting. We get the ball in his hands and then let him make plays. He had a great season all year, and he capped it of on that. It’s exciting and big time from a freshman.”
With this victory, Marshall finishes this season with a 9-4 record and gets some momentum heading into the offseason and next season. USF finishes this season with a 7-6 record, closing the season on a six-game losing streak after starting the season 7-0. Hopefully, this loss provides a great teaching opportunity for USF head coach Charlie Strong to coach his team up and improve this offseason.
