To some degree, we're all probably left to wonder "what if" after a regular season that included a win at then-No. 10 Notre Dame and a 4-0 November. Don't get me wrong, there's some element of disappointment at regular-season's end. But more so, I'm choosing to look at the positives, the things we can build on moving forward. Here are some:
8 wins
*That's one better than Huff's first season and the most since 2019. Arguably, we beat the two best teams on our schedule: Notre Dame and James Madison. (Although Troy may be better than JMU.)
Strong finish
*It was the Herd's first undefeated November since 2013 (Herd went 5-0 that year). It's been discussed quite a bit in this forum how the Herd repeatedly folded down the stretch over the past several years. This is a huge positive going into the bowl game and next spring.
Notre Dame win
*Y'all know the game's impact. We'll be talking about it the rest of our lives. It should pay off in recruiting.
Exceeded preseason Sun Belt prediction
*Herd was picked to finish No. 4 in the SBC East preseason poll, behind 1. App State (lol), 2. Coastal, 3. Ga State. We finished third (or second, depending on how you look at it). We went 5-1 vs. the SBC East. That was the best in-division record in the East.
Defeated what we think will be our two biggest SBC rivals
*Herd 26, James Madison 12 (There will be some who'll say "But JMU didn't have their starting QB." Well, we didn't have our superstar RB (Ali) and it was RS freshman Cam Fancher's first career start. So those things tend to even out.)
*Herd 28, App State 21
Development of Cam Fancher
*Still a long way to go, but gotta admit: It's been fun watching him get better each week. Huge positive that should make us a tad more optimistic about 2023, though not fully sold yet.
Defense + running game
*I'm an old-school, Ohio football guy. I love winning with stingy defense and running the ball down opponents' throats. Go look at the SBC stats. The teams that play good defense and can run the ball are going bowling.
We live in a year-to-year world in college football now with the portal. I believe there are enough players with eligibility remaining who could help us keep building next year (if they stay). Looking back, Huff did a solid job re-recruiting his roster and keeping most key players from bolting after last season. I can think of two significant contributors who left -- QB Grant Wells, DT Jamare Edwards. That's not bad if you're Marshall, a school that P5 programs keep an eye on for talent because they know we have it regularly.
Would love to hear what you think should be added or subtracted from the list.
8 wins
*That's one better than Huff's first season and the most since 2019. Arguably, we beat the two best teams on our schedule: Notre Dame and James Madison. (Although Troy may be better than JMU.)
Strong finish
*It was the Herd's first undefeated November since 2013 (Herd went 5-0 that year). It's been discussed quite a bit in this forum how the Herd repeatedly folded down the stretch over the past several years. This is a huge positive going into the bowl game and next spring.
Notre Dame win
*Y'all know the game's impact. We'll be talking about it the rest of our lives. It should pay off in recruiting.
Exceeded preseason Sun Belt prediction
*Herd was picked to finish No. 4 in the SBC East preseason poll, behind 1. App State (lol), 2. Coastal, 3. Ga State. We finished third (or second, depending on how you look at it). We went 5-1 vs. the SBC East. That was the best in-division record in the East.
Defeated what we think will be our two biggest SBC rivals
*Herd 26, James Madison 12 (There will be some who'll say "But JMU didn't have their starting QB." Well, we didn't have our superstar RB (Ali) and it was RS freshman Cam Fancher's first career start. So those things tend to even out.)
*Herd 28, App State 21
Development of Cam Fancher
*Still a long way to go, but gotta admit: It's been fun watching him get better each week. Huge positive that should make us a tad more optimistic about 2023, though not fully sold yet.
Defense + running game
*I'm an old-school, Ohio football guy. I love winning with stingy defense and running the ball down opponents' throats. Go look at the SBC stats. The teams that play good defense and can run the ball are going bowling.
We live in a year-to-year world in college football now with the portal. I believe there are enough players with eligibility remaining who could help us keep building next year (if they stay). Looking back, Huff did a solid job re-recruiting his roster and keeping most key players from bolting after last season. I can think of two significant contributors who left -- QB Grant Wells, DT Jamare Edwards. That's not bad if you're Marshall, a school that P5 programs keep an eye on for talent because they know we have it regularly.
Would love to hear what you think should be added or subtracted from the list.
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