— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall held its first scrimmage of fall practice on Saturday at Joan C. Edwards Stadium, and third-year head coach Charles Huff believes it helped identify where depth is or isn’t lacking on a roster with 40 new faces participating in preseason camp.
“The guys who do what we ask them to do in practice from a technique and energy standpoint did a lot of good things,” Huff said. “Even making mistakes for them and getting it on tape is a way to improve in practice, but if they do what is asked and they get it on tape, it’s a chance to move on and learn more.”
Huff says that his team remains healthy through 10 practices with no major injuries. He’s also satisfied with Herd the preparation level from veterans on the Thundering Herd roster.
“Guys are vocal and ready to practice everyday, but when you say scrimmage, they get anxious and treat it like a final exam,” Huff said. “That’s good because you get a chance to coach those young men through how to prepare for a game, because the intensity needs to be the same for practices and scrimmages.
“Everyone needs work, even an all-conference player like Owen Porter and Rasheen Ali, but we’re figuring out what the other guys can do before they have to go into a game.”
Among the 25 players added to the roster by way of transfer is a local product in former Cabell Midland High School and Wake Forest defensive back J.J. Roberts.
“He’s probably a lot more vocal and he’s more comfortable with who he is and who we are,” Huff said. “He’s found his niche on the team and he’s challenging guys more as a leader. He has the confidence of knowing what he’s walked into.”
The Herd will have its second scrimmage Saturday at 1:45 pm at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. The third and final scrimmage is scheduled a week before Marshall’s season opener against Albany on September 2.
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Marshall redshirt senior cornerback Micah Abraham has been selected to the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Watch List, as announced by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame.
Abraham was one of 35 players named to the watch list for The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award, which is given annually to the nation’s best defensive back.
The announcement continues a long list of preseason accolades for Abraham, who finished the 2022 season tied for third in FBS in interceptions with six and also ended the season in the top-10 in FBS in passes defended with 16.
The senior from Tampa, Florida, was named as a Preseason All-American Fourth Team selection by Phil Steele Publications and also was a 2022 Phil Steele Publications All-American Honorable Mention selection.
Abraham’s 16 total passes defended in 2022 marked the second consecutive season that he has ended with 15 or more passes defended, making him one of only two players in FBS that can boast of that distinction (Donte Kent, Central Michigan).
One of his top games came in the upset of No. 8 Notre Dame last season when Abraham logged three tackles, a half-sack, one interception and a pass breakup in a 26-21 win over the Fighting Irish.