Grading the Herd’s week four performance

Marshall football proceeds with one of its with spring practices last season in the background of an official Marshall practice ball.

Luke Creasy

Marshall football proceeds with one of its with spring practices last season in the background of an official Marshall practice ball.

OFFENSE: D+

This was the first time that Isaiah Green looked like a freshman quarterback. Green threw for 270 yards but nearly a third of that yardage came on one play: an 82-yard touchdown pass to Marcel Williams. Green also threw a pair of interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. It didn’t help at all that Green got no support from the run game, which averaged a paltry 2.5 yards per carry. The offensive line also did a poor job in pass protection. Marshall has little time to fix its issues, with Conference USA play starting Saturday at Western Kentucky.

DEFENSE: C

NC State quarterback Ryan Finley torched the Marshall defense for 377 yards and a touchdown but that shouldn’t necessarily be surprising. Finley is one of the top quarterbacks in college football and is widely expected to be selected within the first two rounds of the 2019 NFL Draft. Wide receiver Kelvin Harmon took advantage of his matchup on the outside. He caught six passes for 150 yards against Chris Jackson. Against a defensive front seven loaded with fourth and fifth year players, running back Reggie Gallaspy scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and Finley didn’t see much pressure in the pocket.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B+

Jaquan Yulee forced a fumble on a kickoff that was returned for a touchdown by Artis Johnson, while Justin Rohrwasser made a pair of extra points and a pair of field goals. This grade would have been an A, except Robert LeFevre averaged 35 yards per punt and had none of his five punts downed inside the 20.