Season Preview: Marshall Thundering Herd
Following a Sun Belt-leading seventh-straight bowl appearance in 2023, Marshall will commence its 2024 campaign on Saturday, August 31, when it hosts Stony Brook at 5:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. CT on ESPN+. The matchup will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
Marshall’s non-conference schedule also includes trips to Virginia Tech (Sept. 7) and Ohio State (Sept. 21) and a home date with Western Michigan (Sept. 28). In addition to annual matchups with its East Division rivals, the Thundering Herd’s conference slate features a home game against ULM (Nov. 2) and a road trip to Southern Miss (Nov. 9) out of the West Division.
Marshall was picked to finish fifth in the Sun Belt East Division in last month’s 2024 Sun Belt Conference Football Preseason Coaches Poll.
Fourth-year head coach Charles Huff will lead a roster that returns a pair of All-Sun Belt selections from 2023 and had one player named to the 2024 Preseason All-Sun Belt teams.
Paramount among the Thundering Herd’s returners is redshirt senior defensive back J.J. Roberts (73 tackles, 2 interceptions), the team’s No. 2 tackler in 2023. Marshall went 6-7 overall in 2023, including a 24-17 win over autonomy five foe Virginia Tech. The Thundering Herd was a part of the conference-record 12-team Sun Belt contingent to compete in Bowl Season.
The Thundering Herd has competed in Bowl Season for seven-straight years—the 12th-longest active streak in the country and the second-longest among non-autonomy conference programs.
To listen to head coach Charles Huff, redshirt senior offensive lineman Logan Osburn and redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Mikel Green’s comments from the 2024 Sun Belt Football Media Days, visit the Sun Belt Conference YouTube page.
2024 SCHEDULE
8/31 Stony Brook
9/7 at Virginia Tech
9/21 at Ohio State
9/28 Western Michigan
10/5 App State*
10/12 at Georgia Southern*
10/17 Georgia State*
11/2 ULM*
11/9 at Southern Miss*
11/16 Coastal Carolina*
11/23 at Old Dominion*
11/30 at James Madison*
* Sun Belt Conference Game
2023 ALL-SUN BELT RETURNERS
Honorable Mention
OL – Logan Osburn, Marshall (RS Sr., OL – Ona, W.Va.)
DB – J.J. Roberts, Marshall (RS Sr., DB – Ona, W.Va.)
2024 PRESEASON ALL-SUN BELT SELECTIONS
Second Team
OL – Logan Osburn, Marshall (RS Sr., OL – Ona, W.Va.)