NCAAF Game Recap - Marshall at South Florida
Thu Dec 20, 2018 8:00 PM EST

Hou
14
Army
70
F
UAB
37
NIU
13
F
SDSU
0
Ohio
27
F
Marsh
38
SoFL
20
F
FLInt
35
Toled
32
F
WestMI
18
BYU
49
F
Mem
34
Wake
37
F
Buff
32
Troy
42
F
LT
31
Hawaii
14
F

Dec 20, 2018, 8:00 PM EST

Final

1

2

3

4

T

Marshall (9-4)

21

7

3

7

38

South Florida (7-6)

7

3

10

0

20

Green, Davis helps Marshall beat South Florida 38-20
Fri Dec 21, 2018 12:39 AM

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) It was a family affair as Marshall ended the season with another bowl victory.

Isaiah Green completed 17 of 25 passes for 221 yards, cousin Keion Davis ran for two touchdowns and Marshall beat South Florida 38-20 in the Gasparilla Bowl on Thursday night.

"It's fun to get to play my senior year with my cousin, sharing the experience," said Davis, who was the game MVP.

Marshall, 6-0 in bowl games under head coach Doc Holliday, gained 503 years. The Thundering Herd (9-4) had 282 rushing yards and 221 through the air.

"It was my first time contributing to a (bowl) win," Green said. "It feels good to be able to show people that just because I'm a freshmen doesn't mean I can't play this game like I'm not a freshman."

Green also had a touchdown run in the first quarter, while Davis' second TD - from 16 yards out - put the Thundering Herd ahead 38-20 with 6 1/2 minutes to play.

Davis had 94 yards on 14 carries, while Brenden Knox gained 93 yards on 12 rushes - all during the first half.

Knox left with a broken hand, giving Davis extended playing time. Davis entered with 308 rushing yards and one TD in eight games.

"Keion is a special player," Holliday said. "He makes things happen every time he gets the opportunity to play."

Blake Barnett, slowed by shoulder and ankle injuries, replaced Chris Oladokun for South Florida 10 minutes into the game and completed 11 of 23 passes for 212 yards. Barnett, a transfer from Arizona State who also started one game for Alabama in 2016, sat out two of the Bulls' previous three games.

USF (7-6) lost the bowl game played on its regular-season home field to end the season by losing six in a row after a 7-0 start.

"We know this, there's work that needs to be done in the program, and we've got to go get it done," coach Charlie Strong said.

Green scored on an 10-yard dash and Anthony Anderson had an one-yard TD run over a 37-second span as Marshall took a 14-0 lead with 4:43 left in the first. The second score was set up by Darius Hodge's fumble recovery and 29-yard return after Barnett couldn't handle a high snap.

After USF wide receiver Tyre McCants took a direct snap and threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Randall St. Felix, the Thundering Herd went up 21-7 during the final minute of the first on Knox's eight-yard TD run.

St. Felix had six receptions for a school-bowl record 165 yards.

Marshall has outscored its opponent 101-39 in the first quarter this season.

Davis' 5-yard run made it 28-7 with 90 seconds left in the second.

USF got to 28-10 on Coby Weiss' 22-yard field goal four seconds before halftime.

South Florida settled for a 31-yard field goal by Weiss on a second-half opening 14-play drive.

"We were in position to make some plays and we didn't make them," Strong said. "We had our opportunities."

Marshall countered with Justin Rohrwasser's 28-yard field before Barnett connected on a 33-yard scoring pass with St. Felix that cut the Bulls deficit to 31-20 late in the third.

UP NEXT

Marshall: Green will be back next season to anchor a promising offense as the Thundering Herd try to win eight or more games for the fifth time in six years.

South Florida: Barnett returns in 2019 and being healthy could be key in the Bulls' bid for their first American Athletic Conference championship.

---

More AP college football: https://apnews.com/tag/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

Passing

Marsh Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
I. Green 25 17 68.0 0 221 42 0 95.6
X. Gaines 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 39.6
SoFL Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
B. Barnett 23 11 47.8 1 212 33 0 94.8
T. McCants 1 1 100.0 1 38 38 0 158.3

Rushing

Marsh Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
K. Davis 14 94 6.7 52 2
B. Knox 12 93 7.8 43 1
SoFL Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
J. Ford 11 50 4.5 18 0
J. Cronkrite 11 26 2.4 9 0

Receiving

Marsh Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
T. Brady 5 88 17.6 42 0
X. Gaines 3 51 17.0 27 0
SoFL Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
R. St. Felix 6 165 27.5 38 2
S. Clerveaux 3 51 17.0 25 0

Fumbles

SoFL F FL
B. Barnett 1 1

Returning

Marsh KR Avg KRTD LgKR PR Avg TD LgPR
K. Davis 4 19.3 0 33 0 0 0
M. Williams 0 0 0 2 18.5 0 28
SoFL KR Avg KRTD LgKR PR Avg TD LgPR
B. Sanders 3 21.7 0 27 0 0 0

Punting

Marsh Punt Yds Avg LgPu
R. LeFevre 3 134 44.7 53
SoFL Punt Yds Avg LgPu
T. Schneider 6 278 46.3 60

Takeaways

Team Stats Comparison

Marsh SoFL
Points For 38 20
Total Yards 503 360
Rushing Yards 282 92
Passing Yards 221 268
Passing Completions / Attempts 17/26 15/31
Turnovers 0 1
Interceptions Thrown 0 0
Fumbles - Lost 0/0 1/1
First Downs 24 19
Penalties - Yards 8/75 5/25
Time Of Possession 14:14 46:46
Third Down Conversions/Attempts 8/15 4/15
Fourth Down Conversions/Attempts 0/1 2/3
Punts - Average Yards 4/42 6/46

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter Marsh SoFL
Marsh 09:40 TD Isaiah Green 10 yd run (Justin Rohrwasser kick) 7 0
Marsh 10:17 TD Anthony Anderson 1 yd run (Justin Rohrwasser kick) 14 0
SoFL 12:17 TD Randall St. Felix 38 yd pass from Tyre McCants (Coby Weiss kick) 14 7
Marsh 14:35 TD Brenden Knox 8 yd run (Justin Rohrwasser kick) 21 7
2nd Quarter Marsh SoFL
Marsh 13:30 TD Keion Davis 5 yd run (Justin Rohrwasser kick) 28 7
SoFL 14:56 FG Coby Weiss 22 yd FG 28 10
3rd Quarter Marsh SoFL
SoFL 05:47 FG Coby Weiss 31 yd FG 28 13
Marsh 09:41 FG Justin Rohrwasser 28 yd FG 31 13
SoFL 11:44 TD Randall St. Felix 33 yd pass from Blake Barnett (Coby Weiss kick) 31 20
4th Quarter Marsh SoFL
Marsh 08:36 TD Keion Davis 16 yd run (Justin Rohrwasser kick) 38 20

Game Information

Stadium: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Attendance: 14,135
Game Time:
Weather: