1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football
1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football
NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game, L 22–20 vs. Montana
Conference	Southern Conference
Ranking
Sports Network	No. 6
Record	12–3 (7–1 SoCon)
Head coach	Jim Donnan (6th season);
Offensive coordinator	Chris Scelfo (3rd season)
Captain	Jerome Embry, Jayson Grayson, Billy Lyon, Tim Martin, Chris Parker, William Pannell
Home stadium	Marshall University Stadium
	Seasons ← 1994 1996 →

1995 Southern Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Appalachian State $^	8	–	0	–	0	12	–	1	–	0
No. 6 Marshall ^	7	–	1	–	0	12	–	3	–	0
No. 15 Georgia Southern ^	5	–	3	–	0	9	–	4	–	0
Furman	5	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
East Tennessee State	4	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
VMI	3	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Chattanooga	2	–	6	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Western Carolina	2	–	6	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
The Citadel	0	–	8	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 12–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the SoCon. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs for the fifth straight season, where they defeated Jackson State in the first round, Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals, and McNeese State in the semifinals, before losing to Montana in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

Regular season

Marshall was quarterbacked by true freshman and future NFL starter Chad Pennington after starting sophomore quarterbacl Mark Zban re-injured his knee delivering a touchdown pass to future NFL starter Jermaine Wiggins. Starting running back Chris Parker set the Marshall single season rushing record with 1,833 rushing yards.

Postseason

Marshall advanced to the 1995 NCAA I-AA playoffs with an at large bid, but held home field advantage for the first two games, defeating Jackson State and Northern Iowa in Huntington before going on the road against McNeese State in the semifinal game. Marshall defeated McNeese State and advanced to the I-AA National Championship game, which was held at Marshall's stadium against the Montana Grizzlies. This was the fourth consecutive I-AA National Championship game hosted by Marshall. Marshall lost the championship game, 22–20.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 31	at NC State*	No. 2	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	L 16–33	44,259	^[1]
September 9	Tennessee Tech*	No. 3	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	W 45–14
September 16	No. 13 Georgia Southern	No. 4	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	W 37–7	19,983
September 30	at Chattanooga	No. 3	Chamberlain Field Chattanooga, TN	W 35–32	8,576
October 7	VMI	No. 3	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	W 56–21	19,702	^[2]
October 14	at Western Carolina	No. 3	E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	W 42–3
October 21	No. 2 Appalachian State	No. 3	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	L 3–10	26,982	^[3]
October 28	at The Citadel	No. 7	Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC	W 21–19	11,833
November 4	East Tennessee State	No. 7	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	W 52–0
November 11	at Furman	No. 7	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 31–6	10,688	^[4]
November 18	Hofstra*	No. 6	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	W 30–28
November 25	Jackson State*	No. 6	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 38–8	13,035	^[5]
December 2	No. 18 Northern Iowa*	No. 6	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 41–24
December 9	at No. 1 McNeese State*	No. 6	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	W 25–13	18,018	^[6]
December 16	No. 8 Montana*	No. 6	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game)	L 20–22	32,106	^[7]
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

References

^ "Wolfpack builds steam, wins". The Charlotte Observer. September 1, 1995. Retrieved February 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Marshall thumps VMI". Asheville Citizen-Times. October 8, 1995. Retrieved February 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Appalachian wins battle". The State. October 22, 1995. Retrieved November 28, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Marshall pummels Furman". The State. November 12, 1995. Retrieved September 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Marshall thunders to victory". The Charlotte Observer. November 26, 1995. Retrieved August 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Marshall advances to I-AA final". The Charlotte Observer. December 10, 1995. Retrieved March 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Grizzlies silence Thundering Herd, 22-10". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. December 17, 1995. p. 5B.

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[1] "Wolfpack builds steam, wins". The Charlotte Observer. September 1, 1995. Retrieved February 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "Marshall thumps VMI". Asheville Citizen-Times. October 8, 1995. Retrieved February 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

[3] "Appalachian wins battle". The State. October 22, 1995. Retrieved November 28, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.

[4] "Marshall pummels Furman". The State. November 12, 1995. Retrieved September 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

[5] "Marshall thunders to victory". The Charlotte Observer. November 26, 1995. Retrieved August 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Marshall advances to I-AA final". The Charlotte Observer. December 10, 1995. Retrieved March 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "Grizzlies silence Thundering Herd, 22-10". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. December 17, 1995. p. 5B.

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