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SPORTS
MU Notebook: Herd players say most important game coming up
Moments following Marshall University football’s shocking 21-20 loss Sunday night at UCF, Thundering Herd players didn’t mask disappointment.
When asked about the closing seconds of the contest, capped by Brett Hodges’ game-winning 1-yard touchdown pass to Rocky Ross with 23 seconds remaining, Marshall players didn’t dodge the obvious.
“It was real,” Thundering Herd placekicker Craig Ratanamorm answered when asked if the closing moments appeared surreal.
Marshall (5-4, 3-2 Conference USA) led 20-7 in the second half, and let loose an opportunity to tie East Carolina for the East Division lead. Now the Thundering Herd takes a week off before facing Southern Miss (5-4, 3-2 C-USA), coming off a shoot out loss to West Division power Houston.
The Thundering Herd and Southern Miss square off at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 14 at Edwards Stadium. Between now and then, Marshall will reflect and attempt to build on opportunity lost in Orlando, Fla.
“It’s just a bad sign on both sides of the line right now,” said Thundering Herd weak side linebacker Mario Harvey, the team’s leading tackler. “The offense wanted to get in and score and as a defense, in the red zone we wanted to prevent them from scoring.
“In the film room we’re going to work harder to get better. This is a chance for us to get healthy and get in the film room and get better.
“The most important game is the next game.”
Marshall dictated for much of Sunday’s nationally-televised matchup on ESPN, but UCF rallied late, primarily behind third down and long conversions and success on fourth down.
“That’s our job though,” Marshall cornerback DeQuan Bembry said. “We’ve got to play man coverage, especially in the red zone, on third down and we have to be aggressive.
“I wouldn’t say we missed some plays, but it was missed assignments.”
Misfortune also led to the shocking defeat. Anderson connected with true freshman wide receiver Aaron Dobson for a 40-plus yard catch, placing the Thundering Herd in scoring position and an opportunity to lock down a coveted sixth win, but a holding penalty reversed the Herd.
“It hurt,” Anderson said. “That was a big play that was going to change field position, but it came back.
“It’s something you have to overcome but we weren’t able to do that.”
QB CLUB: Huntington’s Quarterback Club will conduct its weekly luncheon Tuesday at Pullam Square Plaza Hotel. Marshall University head football coach Mark Snyder will serve as featured speaker, along with Thundering Herd sports information director Randy Burnside.
Doors open at 11:30 a.m. and the event begins at noon.
Anthony Hanshew covers Marshall football for The Herald-Dispatch. He can be reached at 304-526-2766. His e-mail address is hanshew@herald-dispatch.com.
