HUNTINGTON, W.Va.— Coming off a shutout in its last game, the Marshall defense must stay aggressive yet disciplined against Cincinnati on Saturday.
Marshall (3-1) is coming off a bye that followed a 21-0 win over Kent State. The front seven is ready for the bevy of screen passes, said linebacker Marquis Couch.
“I noticed a lot of screens on film, that is something we have to be prepared for,” Couch said. “We just have to read and react, and not try to do too much outside of our individual jobs.”
Defensive lineman Ryan Bee said focusing on the offensive lines blocking technique will be crucial to limit big plays.
“The blocking technique is different — they just let you go by — and you have to feel that,” Bee said. “They aren’t going to just let you hit the quarterback, so when we feel that we have to cover down and stop those screens.”
The Bearcats (2-2) share one common opponent with Marshall this season as both beat Miami, Ohio. Both have lost to Power 5 teams on the road. Cincinnati fell 36-14 at Michigan and the Herd ost 37-20 at N.C. State.
Marshall will look to take advantage of Cincinnati’s run defense with new starting running back Tyler King, who delivered a 105-yard performance against Kent State in just the second half.
“That fourth quarter against Kent, our guys blocked well and Tyler King came in and gave us a big spark,” Coach Doc Holliday said. “Hopefully he can give us that same spark Saturday against their defensive front.”
Quarterback Chase Litton said having King back from injury boosts the whole offense and makes the team more balanced as a whole.
“He runs like there is no tomorrow,” Litton said. “Even in practice, we will be going through walk-throughs and I’ll go to hand the ball off and he will already be past me. He is a 110-percent guy everyday. He wants to be successful for this team.”
Marshall (2-1) at Cincinnati (2-2)
Kickoff: 7 p.m., Saturday in Cincinnati, Ohio (ESPN3)
When the Herd has the ball: Can Marshall establish the run game early with Tyler King and Keion Davis? The Bearcats defense ranks 122nd against the run after yielding 569 yards rushing to Navy last week.
Davis is averaging 5.5 yards per carry, while King is averaging 7.2. Neither back has gotten more than 20 carries on the season, and coming off their bye week, should be well rested and read to receive a heavy workload.
Cincinnati’s defense is known for their high percentage of blitzing, something Chase Litton and the offensive line have handled well so far this season, with the Herd holding opponents to just two sacks on the season so far.
“They mix (their blitzes) up a lot,” Litton said. “There is times where their linebackers are coming up the middle, times where the corners come off the edge, they are very aggressive and they love to mix up their blitz packages.”
Middle linebacker Jaylyin Minor and safety Malik Clements have combined for 82 tackles on the season.
When the Bearcats have the ball: Hayden Moore threw for 381 yards in the loss to Navy, and Cincinnati running backs Mike Boone and Gerrid Doaks have combined for over 300 yards and three touchdowns while averaging over 4yards per carry.
The Bearcats’ top receiver, Kahlil Lewis, has caught four of the team’s eight passing touchdowns and is the only receiver averaging above 50 yards per game.
The Herd will need a strong showing from linebackers Chase Hancock, Frankie Hernandez, Artis Johnson, and Omari Cobb.
If Marshall can play a clean game and get their 68 penalty yards per game down on the road, there’s an excellent chance of moving to 3-1.
Wildcard: Marshall has played Cincinnati 12 times dating back to 1906. Marshall has never scored more than 14 points in any of their meetings.
Line: Cincinnati favored by 3.5
—By Troy Alexander