Week 4 PFF Grades – Marshall 41, Old Dominion 35
Week 4’s performance by the Marshall Thundering Herd, as a unit, proved to be one of an up-and-down variety, to say the least.
Ultimately, however, Marshall was able to pull off a come-from-behind victory – overcoming a 21-3 first half deficit by outscoring Old Dominion 38-14 over the contest’s final 35 minutes en route to a 41-35 victory Saturday at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.
OFFENSE
QUARTERBACK
Despite throwing an interception and struggling with Rasheen Ali on handoffs early in the contest, Marshall sophomore Cam Fancher showcased his winning qualities throughout the final 35 minutes of the Thundering Herd’s six-point victory over Old Dominion, putting together arguably his best performance of the year in the win and notching a 72.6 PFF grade as a result.
For the contest, Fancher carved up the Monarchs for 278 yards passing and a pair of touchdowns while going 29-of-35 through the air. The Marshall signal-caller also ran for 102 yards on 15 carries to ultimately account for 380 of the Thundering Herd’s 464 total yards of offense in the contest.
RUNNING BACKS
Having been the position of focus all year throughout the season’s first three weeks, Rasheen Ali and Ethan Payne struggled as the pair combined for just 87 yards rushing and rushed for less than three yards a carry in all.
Ali posted a pair of touchdowns on 28 carries but only ran for 79 yards en route to a 62.1 PFF grade and notched just a 13.4 PFF grade in pass blocking situations. Payne posted the lowest PFF mark at 45.3 and graded out at 0.0 PFF in pass blocking situations.
Maurice Jones got a rep and notched a 60 PFF.
WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT END
From a wide receivers and tight ends standpoint, Mason Pierce, Darryle Simmons and Caleb Coombs had huge performances as the trio posted Marshall’s three highest PFF grades. Pierce easily had his best game at Marshall since transferring in over the offseason and was rewarded with the offense’s highest grade at 89.5 PFF after catching five passes for 74 yards. Simmons, who posted a 76.7 PFF, caught four balls for 30 yards while Coombs posted a 73.4 PFF after hauling in eight passes for 76 yards.
Caleb McMillan (60.2 PFF) caught a pass for 40 yards and Talik Keaton (61.5 PFF) got a rep of action while Chuck Montgomery (58.7 PFF), DeMarcus Harris (57.3 PFF), Cade Conley (55.3 PFF), Jayden Harrison (54.4 PFF) and Christopher Mottillo (49.7 PFF) rounded out the group’s grades with Conley’s four catches for 30 yards, Harrison’s two catches for 16 yards and Harris’ catch for 10 yards rounding out the production.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The offensive line posted their best collective PFF grades of the year as a unit, with just one lineman posting below a 69 PFF overall. Lloyd Willis (70.4 PFF), Ethan Driskell (70.2 PFF), Trent Holler (69.1 PFF) and Altrique Barlow (69 PFF) led the charge while Dalton Tucker posted a 54.2 PFF to round out the group. Willis, Holler and Barlow each had grades above 76 in pass protection reps over the course of the contest.
DEFENSE
DEFENSIVE LINE
Defensively, it was a struggle for the front line, who only received two grades above 60.7 PFF after a performance where Kadarius Calloway ran wild with 236 yards rushing and three touchdowns on just 11 carries. Jalil Rivera-Harvey posted just one tackle but had a 70.6 PFF mark, while TyQaze Leggs finished with five tackles and a 68.3 PFF grade.
Kylen McCracken’s 60.7 PFF mark and a 47.3 PFF grade from Brandon McElroy rounded out the front line’s effort. The pair had tackling grades of 27.8 and 18, respectively, via PFF.
LINEBACKERS
Despite the aforementioned rushing totals by Calloway, Marshall’s linebackers received high marks overall as each of the top five grades on the defensive side of the football were accumulated by the linebacking core.
Elijah Alston had a terrific performance from all standpoints as the multi-year letterwinner posted six tackles and a pass deflection while arguably making the biggest play of the contest by returning a pick 85 yards for a touchdown one play after an offensive miscue by the Thundering Herd to help Marshall greatly all the way around. Alston posted the defense’s highest grade at 93.7 PFF – including a blistering hot 97 PFF in coverage.
Eli Neal only had three tackles the entire game, but also picked off a pass and allowed just one reception for five yards when targeted. Neal posted an 85.9 PFF and a 91.1 PFF mark in pass coverage while combining with Alston for three quarterback hurries.
KeSean Brown, who led Marshall with seven tackles – including three by way of a solo stop – posted a 79.3 PFF mark while Sam Burton notched a 75.5 PFF via five tackles on his end and Mike Green a 72.5 PFF behind four tackles on his own.
Owen Porter posted a 65.7 PFF after making five tackles and a half sack along with Green while Jabari Ishmael (67 PFF in four reps), Stephen Dix, Jr. (62.6 PFF), and J’Coryan Anderson (60 PFF) rounded out the linebacking core.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Despite being a pair of a defense that held Old Dominion to just 95 yards passing in the contest, the defensive backfield had just two players grade out above a 61 PFF.
Dyoni Hill led the way with his 69.9 PFF after making a pair of tackles and notching two pass deflections, while Ishmael Ibraheem posted a 67.3 PFF but only played 14 reps in the contest.
J.J. Roberts (61 PFF), Micah Abraham (60.6 PFF), Jahsen Wint (58.3 PFF), Josh Moten (55.8 PFF), AG McGhee (53.1 PFF), Kerion Martin (48.2 PFF) and Jacobie Henderson (41.5 PFF) rounded out the defensive backfield’s performance as a unit.