Time and again, the Marshall defense came up huge as the Thundering Herd was able to post a critical 28-21 victory over Appalachian State thanks in large part to the D, who missed just four tackles and allowed only two touchdowns despite seeing the Mountaineers advance inside, or start inside, Marshall territory on a whopping 10 of App State's 12 offensive series on the day in a truly clutch performance by the Marshall defense.
Highlights of the Thundering Herd's grades are below!
DEFENSIVE LINE:
On the D-line, both Immanuel Bush and TyQaze Leggs were tremendous forces as the duo posted PFF grades of 72 PFF and 71.6, respectively. Bush, who played 34 snaps, posted two tackles, a quarterback hurry and a batted ball while Leggs was fantastic, posting a whopping eight tackles off of the line including three quarterback hurries and a pair of sacks in 48 snaps.
Anthony Watts (66.5 PFF) and Sam Burton (64.9 PFF) also played well, with Watts making five tackles and Burton adding in two stops including a sack. Koby Cumberlander (62.4 PFF), Damion Barber (62.3 PFF) and Owen Porter (61.7 PFF) all posted grades above 60 with Barber and Porter combining for nine tackles and Porter adding in five quarterback hurries with Barber posting one himself.
Esisas Carpenter (61.1 PFF), Emmanuel Balogin (58.3 PFF), Elijah Alston (53 PFF), and Isaiah Gibson (50.5 PFF) rounded out the line play for the Thundering Herd.
LINEBACKERS:
As with the defensive line, the linebacking core was stingy through Saturday's contest, with the return of Abraham Beauplan to the lineup at home helping Marshall tremendously in that area. Beauplan, who continues to work his way back from a midseason injury, posted the team's highest PFF grade, notching six tackles and allowing just one completion for four yards in 35 snaps for an 84.6 PFF mark. Dan Foster, Jr. played in only three snaps but made a tackle and notched a 73.9 PFF mark.
Charlie Gray (67.1 PFF) and Eli Neal (66.7 PFF) were huge all game long. In addition to being durable -- playing in all 80 and 77 defensive snaps, respectively -- the pair were all over the field, with Neal leading Marshall with 10 tackles to go along with two quarterback hits and a quarterback hurry and Gray posting six tackles to go along with a quarterback hit and a hurry. The pair allowed six combined receptions in eight targets, but those completions went for a modest 54 yards. Neal made possibly the biggest defensive play of the game, stopping Appalachian State quarterback Chase Brice on a fourth-and-1 quarterback read option in the backfield for a turnover on downs to give Marshall the football back and preserve a 28-21 lead that the Herd would ultimately hold on to.
Jace Bobo (52.0 PFF, two tackles) rounded out the performance for the backers. Bobo allowed a pass reception for 14 yards.
DEFENSIVE BACKS:
After struggling with finishing tackles through much of the season, the defensive backfield was terrific in all phases as each of the seven defensive backs who played did not miss a single tackle Saturday evening and were also stingy throughout the contest.
E.J. Jackson's 75.2 PFF grade was second on the entire defense, and his six tackles not only led the defensive backfield but his 86 PFF tackling grade was the best among all Marshall players. Jackson also didn't allow a single reception his way. Alongside him, Steven Gilmore (74.1 PFF) was just as good, making five tackles with a pass deflection and only allowing one completion in four targets for 11 yards all game, while Kerion Martin's 72.2 PFF grade was also well-earned as Martin made four huge tackles, a quarterback hit, and a batted ball which came on another critical fourth down play in Marshall territory where the Herd turned Appalachian State away.
Jadarius Green-McKnight's two tackles and a pass deflection led to a 69.9 PFF grade for the safety while Micah Abraham notched a 69.7 PFF, making a critical interception in the end zone on a pass that Brice forced into double coverage on the first play following a Marshall turnover. Daytione Smith continued to play effectively while seeing extra playing time in place of the injured Isaiah Norman, allowing just two completions for 27 yards in six targets and forcing a pass incompletion on the final offensive play for Appalachian State that sealed the victory for the Herd en route to a 64.8 PFF grade.
D'yoni Hill's 44.8 PFF grade in seven defensive reps rounded out the Thundering Herd's defensive efforts. Out of all of the defensive backs, Jackson, Gilmore and Abraham played in all 80 snaps.
| Defense | Run Defense | Tackling | Pass Rushing | Coverage |
| 78.2 | 87.1 | 89.3 | 63.0 | 68.9 |
| Player | Total Def. Grade | Run Defense | Tackle | Pass Rush | Coverage |
|---|
| Abraham Beauplan | 84.6 | 83.0 | 81.7 | 60.0 | 71.5 |
| E.J. Jackson | 75.2 | 73.9 | 86.0 | 81.2 | 69.4 |
| Steven Gilmore | 74.1 | 66.2 | 81.7 | No Grade | 74.6 |
| Dan Foster, Jr. | 73.9 | 65.5 | 73.1 | No Grade | 60.4 |
| Kerion Martin | 72.2 | 73.4 | 80.2 | 69.0 | 65.8 |
| Immanuel Bush | 72.0 | 68.9 | 30.0 | 67.9 | 60.3 |
| TyQaze Leggs | 71.6 | 73.3 | 79.7 | 64.4 | 59.5 |
| Jadarius Green-McKnight | 69.9 | 73.6 | 74.8 | 59.8 | 62.1 |
| Micah Abraham | 69.7 | 71.6 | 80.3 | No Grade | 68.0 |
| Charlie Gray | 67.1 | 75.0 | 61.4 | 62.0 | 60.0 |
| Eli Neal | 66.7 | 69.3 | 83.9 | 70.9 | 58.1 |
| Anthony Watts | 66.5 | 72.2 | 75.8 | 59.4 | 58.6 |
| Sam Burton | 64.9 | 67.0 | 75.2 | 59.3 | No Grade |
| Daytione Smith | 64.8 | 63.8 | 76.3 | 58.9 | 63.3 |
| Koby Cumberlander | 62.4 | 65.4 | No Grade | 55.5 | 60.4 |
| Damion Barber | 62.3 | 58.1 | 72.4 | 67.7 | No Grade |
| Owen Porter | 61.7 | 64.4 | 48.8 | 56.0 | 62.2 |
| Esisas Carpenter | 61.1 | 60.0 | No Grade | 60.0 | No Grade |
| Emmanuel Balogin | 58.3 | 60.0 | No Grade | 57.0 | No Grade |
| Elijah Alston | 53.0 | 65.0 | No Grade | 61.1 | 42.9 |
| Jace Bobo | 52.0 | 69.9 | 76.5 | 58.2 | 41.9 |
| Isaiah Gibson | 50.5 | 51.2 | 70.2 | 55.8 | No Grade |
| D'yoni Hill | 44.4 | 60.4 | No Grade | No Grade | 45.1 |
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