— by David Walsh
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — East Carolina worked some comeback magic in the fourth period, scoring three times to rally for a dramatic 42-38 victory over Marshall on Saturday night at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.
The Pirates had to withstand a final Thundering Herd drive as it reached their 15 with 11 seconds left only to see defensive back Ja’Quan McMillian pick off a Grant Wells pass at the 1-yard line to seal the deal and secure their first win of the season and hand Marshall its first loss in front of 24,833 stunned fans.
East Carolina quarterback Holton Ahlers triggered the frantic rally. He ran five yards for a score, caught a 27-yard TD pass on a throwback from Tyler Snead and directed the game-winning drive following a successful onside kick with Rahjai Harris going over from a yard out with 55 seconds left. The Pirates entered the final quarter facing a 38-17 deficit.
“Hats off to East Carolina,” first-year Marshall coach Charles Huff said. “They found a way to finish. Some things catch up to you if you don’t.”
Ahlers, a lefty and fourth-year player, connected on 30-of-48 passes for 368 yards and two scores.
Freshman Rasheen Ali carried 24 times for a career-best 189 yards and three scores. Wells completed 24-of-39 for 433 yards with one passing TD and one rushing and had two interceptions. Corey Gammage caught eight passes for a career-best 180 yards.
As a team, Marshall racked up 647 total yards, but were outgained 210-101 in the fourth period before the final drive. East Carolina had a season-high 571 total yards. Keathon Mitchell ran for 135 on 13 carries and Shane Calhoun caught eight for 114 yards.
“We didn’t let up,” Huff said. “We did not make enough plays at the end. When you don’t this happens.”
Marshall had a couple of changes to build on the lead, but didn’t. Gammage fumbled the ball at the 2-yard line after a catch and the Pirates recovered in the end zone in the third period. In the fourth, the Herd went for it on a fourth-and-2 at the East Carolina 22, but the Pirates broke up a pass intended for Talik Keaton.
From that point on, it was all Pirates.
“They made some adjustments,” Huff said about East Carolina’s fourth-quarter success. “They got the ball out quicker. Their receivers made some great contested catches. They executed, we didn’t.”
Prior to the game, members of the 1971 Young Herd football team were introduced. This is the 50th season of Marshall football since the plane crash on Nov. 14, 1970. The Young Herd won its first home game in that 1971 season.
East Carolina’s 1970 team (which beat Marshall on Nov. 14) had several players here along with members of Xavier’s 1971 team. The plane bringing the Herd back from the East Carolina game crashed short of the runway at Tri-State Airport on its approach. All 75 on the plane perished.
Marshall won’t have much down time. The Herd will face Appalachian State at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Boone, N.C. Marshall and the Mountaineers are former rivals from their days in the Southern Conference.
Huff said the Herd players would do a stretch later Saturday. Coaches already are breaking down video.
“We’ll rebound quick,” Huff said. “One game doesn’t break a season. We just didn’t get it done tonight. Those guys are hurting. We play a really good football team Thursday night.”
In the second period, Mitchell sprinted 88 yards up the middle for a score and 14-10 East Carolina lead. Ali countered with scores from 26 yards and one yard to put the Herd back on top 24-14.
East Carolina got within three on a 5-yard TD pass from Ahlers to Calhoun with eight seconds left. The Pirates converted twice on fourth down to keep the march alive. Ahlers hit Audie Omotosho for eight yards on fourth-and-3 at the Herd 46 and hit a 4-yarder to C.J. Johnson on a fourth-and-2 at the Marshall 9.
This was East Carolina’s first true road game of 2021. The Pirates now lead the overall series 11-5, have won seven of the last 10 meetings and are now 4-4 all-time in Huntington.