Marshall
Marshall

Marshall Team Report

Updated: April 26, 2012 02:49 EST

Year three is a crucial time for any college football coach -- especially as expectations appear to remain high and the timetable to turn around a program appears to get shorter and shorter. Last year, several Football Bowl Subdivision coaches were dismissed after only two seasons on the job, an unprecedented short amount of time.

Even though Marshall did win its final three games last season, including a bowl, in 2011, there's plenty of room for the Thundering Herd to improve under current coach Doc Holliday. Critics can point to Marshall's cumulative record under Holiday -- 12-13, still below the .500 mark. They also can cite an offense that ranked among the worst in the entire Football Bowl Subdivision in multiple statistical categories.

Still, there is strong evidence that Marshall is on the right track. The Herd went 7-6 last season, beating seven different Football Bowl Subdivision opponents for the first time in program history since 2003.

Marshall brings back 13 total offensive and defensive starters, but this will be one of the youngest teams in the country in 2012. The current tentative roster for this coming season includes only six seniors.

The biggest thing to watch this spring? The tempo of the offense, which is finally looking like the fast-paced, no-huddle scheme Holliday promised when he was hired at Marshall after the 2009 season.

"Going fast is the hardest thing to do, so that's the thing we'll have to spend most of our time on," offensive coordinator Bill Legg said. "Then we'll do our normal tempo and then our slow-down tempo. Everybody's doing it. We're not reinventing the wheel, but we're trying to do some things that put our guys in the best position to be successful and maximize the stress on the defense."

--Marshall made three changes on its coaching staff, with the most intriguing addition the hire of Lytrel Pollard to coach cornerbacks. Pollard is a veteran of Conference USA, spending nine seasons at Southern Miss and two at Memphis before serving as defensive coordinator of Tennessee-Martin, an FCS team, in 2011.

The Herd also hired Geep Wade, who will coach the offensive guards and centers. The addition of Wade shifts the position-coach duties of offensive coordinator Bill Legg, who now instructs the offensive tackles and tight ends.

Marshall also has a new defensive line coach in J.C. Price, who spent the previous eight years coaching at James Madison.

--The Herd signed 30 players in their 2012 recruiting class, the largest total haul in the entire Football Bowl Subdivision. Half of that sizable contingent already is enrolled at Marshall and consists of junior-college transfers, grayshirts and players who were academic non-qualifiers at other schools. The latter category includes RB Kevin Grooms, who was bound for Miami; DT Steve Dillon, who originally signed with USC; and DB/KR Shawn Samuels, initially an Arkansas signee.

SPRING MOVERS:

WR Aaron Dobson -- Coach Doc Holliday waited mere minutes after the Herd's win over FIU in the Beef O'Brady's Bowl to anoint Dobson as the face of the program before 2012. That was before Dobson submitted his paperwork to the NFL Draft advisory board to get an evaluation of his status as a pro prospect. Dobson eventually decided to return, and it's a huge boost to get both his leadership and his production -- Dobson tallied 668 receiving yards and 12 TDs last season.

S Donald Brown -- Kicked off the team last year following an arrest on domestic violence charges, Brown remained in school on his own dime in 2011 and was allowed to rejoin the team for offseason conditioning and is listed on the spring roster. Though not fully reinstated to the team and currently under a zero-tolerance policy, he could be a real boon to the back end of the defense, where there's zero experience returning at safety. Brown started every game at safety in 2010 and could factor there or as a nickel back.

QB Rakeem Cato -- After beginning his collegiate career as the starting quarterback, then losing the job only to regain it and finish out the stretch, Cato is trying to lock down full command of the position this spring. The bad news is that Cato currently has literally next to no competition. Blake Frohnapfel, who's still recuperating from shoulder surgery, is the only other QB taking snaps during spring drills.

LB Devin Arrington -- If Marshall wanted to hold a senior meeting for its defensive players, it would be a small session. Arrington is the solitary senior on that side of the ball. The linebacker was forced to play safety out of necessity last season, but he is headed back to his natural position. The coaches hope it's a fairly quick transition for Arrington, especially given the pass-happy offenses that populate Conference USA.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't think you have to be a senior to lead. One of the greatest leaders I've ever been around was Philip Rivers. He walked on campus at N.C. State when he was a freshman and became the leader of that football team. I constantly talk about it." -- Marshall head coach Doc Holliday

2012 OUTLOOK: The Herd played one of the toughest cumulative schedules in the entire Football Bowl Subdivision last year and faced three ranked opponents in a single season for the first time in program history. The 2012 docket is still challenging with games against West Virginia and Purdue on the non-conference agenda. If Rakeem Cato can bring some consistency to the quarterback position, Marshall has a good chance at equaling last season's win total. Otherwise, the Thundering Herd is headed for its second losing record in three years in Doc Holliday's tenure.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: The receiving corps is solid, with three seniors among the top six candidates for playing time at wideout. Two of those seniors, Anatvious Wilson and Aaron Dobson, already have combined for 56 career starts. Cato is back at QB, as is top rusher Tron Martinez. The offensive line has a solid core in the trio of Chris Jasperse, Garrett Scott and John Bruhin, all battle-tested veterans. Jordan Jeffries and Josh Lovell appear earmarked for the two vacancies at the starting offensive tackle positions. Marshall has to be more productive this season. In 2011, the Herd ranked among the bottom 220 teams in the FBS in total offense, first downs, fourth-down conversion percentage and rushing touchdowns.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: The Herd is going to really miss All-American DE Vinny Curry, a possible second-round NFL draft pick who was the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year in 2011. Marshall has no individual players poised to replace Curry's disruptive contributions, and even the entire group of defensive linemen may have trouble filling Curry's shoes. Devin Arrington faces a major burden as the only senior on the defensive side of the ball. Coach Doc Holliday has challenged CB Darryl Roberts to both raise his game and become a strong leader. Last year's team ranked among the top 20 in the FBS in tackles for loss, fumbles recovered, turnovers gained and red-zone efficiency defense.

SCOUTING THE SPECIAL TEAMS: There's an almost entirely brand-new cast of characters in the kicking game. The only returnee with experience is PK Justin Haig, and he's made only one start. Haig is slated to get the first chance at replacing departed senior PK Tyler Warner, but there's no clear-cut choice for the backup. Three walk-ons are competing to replace departed senior P Kase Whitehead. Troy Evans, the Herd's top return man, also must be replaced, as well as long snapper Tyson Gale. Marshall already has a successor to Gale in mind when freshman Matt Cincotta arrives on campus this summer.

TOP NEWCOMERS:

CB A.J. Leggett -- A huge get for the Thundering Herd, Leggett was ranked as the No. 9 cornerback prospect in the country by Rivals. The Miami native spurned several schools from BCS automatic-qualifier conferences to sign with Marshall and could end up playing right away. The big potential hurdle? Getting academically eligible.

OL Gage Niemeyer -- The junior-college transfer is expected to immediately jump into the rotation on Marshall's offensive front.

LB Devon Johnson -- A real dark-horse prospect. He played his high-school ball at tiny Richlands High School in Virginia, but Johnson's skills are legit. He has speed and athleticism to boot, racking up more than 4,000 rushing yards and 63 touchdowns on offense and totaling 40 points and 26 rebounds in a single high-school basketball game this winter.

ROSTER REPORT:

--QB A.J. Graham was expected to challenge Rakeem Cato for the starting job, but he was dismissed from the program in early March for an undisclosed violation of team rules.

--DE Trevor Black also has been dismissed from the program.

--RBs Tron Martinez and Travon Van are sitting out spring practice after both underwent multiple surgical procedures this offseason. The duo combined for 77 percent of Marshall's rushing output last season.

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