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MARSHALL SPORTS
Kitchens, Herd vex vaunted Houston
Marshall defensive end Michael Janac sacks Houston quarterback Case Keenum during the first half of the C-USA matchup on Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008, at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.
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HUNTINGTON — Not again. Not this night.
Marshall University football more than stood tall for more than two quarters, powering to an impressive 16-3 lead over 8-point favorite Houston. Then came a 13-play Cougars drive, reaching Marshall’s end zone doorstep.
A touchdown pulls Houston, a second half team, within one possession and unsteady psyches began to doubt.
Instead, Maurice Kitchens capped the game of his Thundering Herd career, scooping a Bryce Beall fumble and racing 80 yards, setting up Mark Cann’s 5-yard touchdown toss to Emmanuel Spann. What could have been 16-10 suddenly was 23-3 and Marshall didn’t relent, upsetting the Cougars, 37-23, before an enthused Joan C. Edwards Stadium crowd of 20,716 and ESPN2 audience.
“It was just a matter of who was going to get to the ball first,” Kitchens said. “I heard the crowd get real loud and I was like ‘what’s going on?’ Then the ball hits the ground and shoot, if nobody else is going to pick it up I will.
“And I was thinking to myself, ‘get up and go’.”
Kitchens, a senior middle linebacker, also intercepted a Case Keenum pass and sacked the nation’s total offense leader. Marshall (4-4, 3-1 Conference USA) simply produced many more big plays compared to the league’s West Division power.
Three game streaks resoundingly were snapped for both the Herd and Houston (4-4, 3-1).
Snapping its three-game skid, Marshall stands alone atop C-USA’s East Division, erasing more than three weeks of frustration, speculation and general chippyness. Houston had scored at least 41 points during its three-game conference win streak.
“I’m very proud of our football team,” Marshall head coach Mark Snyder said. “I’m proud of our coaches. We had a little three-game skid going there and felt like we got our ‘Mo’ back again and got our swagger back.
“The kids played extremely hard, extremely well for three quarters. We still haven’t put four quarters together but we put three quarters together against a very good offense and a very good defense.”
Strong safety Ashton Hall following Kitchens’ difference-maker with an interception and 39-yard return to Houston’s 3. Cann bulled in on fourth and goal, delighting fans braving blustery conditions and extending the margin to 30-3 with 2:52 remaining in the third quarter.
Keenum, tops in NCAA Division I-A averaging 407.2 yards a game, suffered his poorest outing of 2008 in the face of relentless Herd pressure. He managed a season-low 317 yards on 22-of-41 passing with two touchdowns against two interceptions. Keenum was sacked four times.
Blowing off wind gusts approaching 20 mph, Cann was steady in his most poised performance.
The redshirt freshman completed 15 of 25 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns and added another on a 1-yard sneak.
Darius Passmore occasionally spelled Cann in the shotgun formation, moving the chains from the en vogue ‘Tiger’ formation. The senior receiver took direct snaps, then either ran or handed off to tailbacks Chubb Small or Darius Marshall, who led a 249-yard rushing performance with 102 on 15 carries. Small gained 81 yards on 19 handoffs and Passmore rushed for 42 yards and added 71 on three receptions.
“It’s fun and at the same time it gives the defense something to think about,” Passmore said. “We kind of caught them off balance with that tonight. They weren’t expecting that.”
The Herd established a season high in points. Houston, averaging more than 544 yards a game, was limited to season lows of 423 total yards and 317 passing, decisively losing the line of scrimmage battle.
Marshall struck first, ball-controlling its way down the field in 13 plays and 5:32. Craig Ratanamorn’s 28-yard field goal provided a 3-0 edge, the junior’s third true kick in five attempts this season.
Kitchens’ fourth career interception and third this season continued Herd momentum. The senior middle linebacker’s heady read on a Keenum line drive and 16-yard return returned possession at Houston’s 43.
Converting turnover to touchdown, Cann found tight end Cody Slate from 9 yards for a 10-0 advantage early in the second quarter. Slate’s 7-yard, high-degree-of-difficulty grab on third and 6 keyed the drive.
Surprising early dominance again played out on the ensuing two possessions. Consecutive tackles for loss by defensive tackle Michael Janac highlighted a Houston three-and-out. On the next play from scrimmage, Passmore just was tripped up at the Cougars 10, sprinting down the UH sideline on a deep Cann pass.
Instead of extending the lead to 17-0, the Herd settled for a 13-0 advantage on Ratanamorn’s 25-yarder.
Houston finally countered, driving 64 yards on 12 plays. The Cougars advanced to the Herd 6, but Marshall bowed, forcing a 23-yard Ben Bell field goal, trimming the second quarter deficit to 13-3.
Each squad failed to reach the end zone following first and goal scenarios, equaling a wash in missed TD opportunities.
A 10-play, 67-yard march proved an impressive Herd answer, ending in Ratanamorn’s third first half field goal. The junior’s 36-yard kick (all from the right hash) provided a rather surprising 16-3 halftime lead.
The Herd received a raucous ovation from fans blocking out brisk conditions.
“I have to take my hat off to those 20-some thousand fans who showed up tonight and all of those supportive letters that no one hears about,” Snyder said. “… There were a lot of folks out there shooting e-mails and things of that nature to these kids.
“We posted them all over the locker room. Kids are fragile but I think that really helped, and I want to give a shout-out to those people also.”
Marshall now enjoys at a third weekend off in four weeks to prepare for the regular season’s stretch run. The Herd travels to East Division rival East Carolina (4-3, 2-1) on Nov. 8. Kickoff in Greenville, N.C., is 3:30 p.m.
