UConn comes in after getting bowl eligible in their last home game with a win against Liberty and now departed Head Coach Hugh Freeze. They've played a more difficult schedule this year according to the computers (#68 toughest schedule according to the ESPN Football Power Index --- ours is #101) with games against #2 Michigan, #23 NC State, Syracuse, Mountain West Champ Fresno State, Liberty, Army, and Utah State. They also beat a down Boston College team, holding them to 3 points.
Offensively, the Huskies run the ball pretty well and if we exclude the sacks and sack yardage, both Marshall and UConn are averaging 5.22 yards per rush. They had mediocre success running the ball against the two elite run defenses they faced (Michigan & NC State --- the only two run defenses they played in the Top 55). However, against #57 run defense Liberty they went for over 200 yards and 5.5 ypc. Against better teams they've decided to avoid the pass altogether and stick with patience in the run game to avoid turnovers. Their 20 pass attempts per game is the least in the country excluding the three Military Institutions.
Defensively, Linebacker Jackson Mitchell is a stud and someone we'll have to account for. He has 133 tackles on the year, 4.5 sacks, and 5 fumble recoveries. Defensive lineman Eric Watts adds 7 sacks. Despite playing one of the more difficult non-P5 schedules in the country and not getting a whole lot of production from their offense, their defense has held up pretty well and their Red Zone defense is very comparable to ours.
On paper UConn looks A LOT like Old Dominion and the comp stacks up when you compare the stat rankings. However, Old Dominion has been able to show some explosiveness in the passing game where UConn is content sludging along and punting vs. putting it in the air. I see this one as another game where we eventually rock them to sleep and you look up at the end of the game and it's 23-10 in favor of the Herd.
Offensively, the Huskies run the ball pretty well and if we exclude the sacks and sack yardage, both Marshall and UConn are averaging 5.22 yards per rush. They had mediocre success running the ball against the two elite run defenses they faced (Michigan & NC State --- the only two run defenses they played in the Top 55). However, against #57 run defense Liberty they went for over 200 yards and 5.5 ypc. Against better teams they've decided to avoid the pass altogether and stick with patience in the run game to avoid turnovers. Their 20 pass attempts per game is the least in the country excluding the three Military Institutions.
Defensively, Linebacker Jackson Mitchell is a stud and someone we'll have to account for. He has 133 tackles on the year, 4.5 sacks, and 5 fumble recoveries. Defensive lineman Eric Watts adds 7 sacks. Despite playing one of the more difficult non-P5 schedules in the country and not getting a whole lot of production from their offense, their defense has held up pretty well and their Red Zone defense is very comparable to ours.
On paper UConn looks A LOT like Old Dominion and the comp stacks up when you compare the stat rankings. However, Old Dominion has been able to show some explosiveness in the passing game where UConn is content sludging along and punting vs. putting it in the air. I see this one as another game where we eventually rock them to sleep and you look up at the end of the game and it's 23-10 in favor of the Herd.
| Marshall (8-4) |
| ||||
| PPG | 24.2 (95th) | 19.8 (115th) | |||
| Points Allowed | 16.17 (7th) | 26.08 (61st) | |||
| Total Offense | 405.8 (52nd) | 302.2 (124th) | |||
| Rush Offense | 205.6 (21st) | 194.9 (32nd) | |||
| Pass Offense | 200.2 (104th) | 107.2 (127th) | |||
| Offensive Pass Effic | 128.63 (88th) | 111.02 (117th) | |||
| 3rd Down Offense | 38% (82nd) | 38% (81st) | |||
| Total Defense | 292.8 (10th) | 386.9 (76th) | |||
| Rush Defense | 88.8 (6th) | 166.3 (89th) | |||
| Pass Defense | 204.0 (31st) | 220.6 (63rd) | |||
| Defensive Pass Effic | 107.73 (4th) | 127.46 (60th) | |||
| 3rd Down Defense | 23% (1st) | 42% (107th) | |||
| Turnover Margin Per Game | +0.67 (17th) | +0.17 (55th) | |||
| Penalty Yards Per Game | 62.25 (109th) | 55.42 (79th) |
