— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Earlier this month, Louisiana-Monroe was the feel-good story of the Sun Belt Conference when it secured a 21-19 win against James Madison.
The Warhawks followed up that victory with a win over struggling Southern Miss.
But things changed dramatically for UL Monroe last Saturday, as the Warhawks were throttled on the road at South Alabama, 46-17.
After the Warhawks led 17-12 at halftime, it was all Jaguars from that point forward as they piled up impressive rushing numbers in the runaway win. South Alabama had two 100-yard rushers in Kentrel Bullock and Fluff Bothwell, who combined for 260 yards and four scores on 35 carries.
One of few bright spots for the Warhawks in defeat was the play of freshman tailback Ahmad Hardy, who totaled 104 yards on the ground.
“We made some mistakes in the second half and didn’t capitalize on opportunities,” first-year UL Monroe head coach Bryant Vincent said. “I thought we prepared well and came back ready to play, but we didn’t do enough in the second half. We have to own it, and we have to move forward.”
Marshall (4-3, 2-1) welcomes Louisiana-Monroe (5-2, 3-1) at 3:30 p.m. Saturday for a contest at Joan C. Edwards Stadium that can be seen on ESPN+.
Vincent took the job after serving as New Mexico’s offensive coordinator last year. Vincent also had coaching stops at UAB and South Alabama, including serving as interim head coach at UAB in 2022.
Besides the noteworthy victory over JMU, Vincent led the Warhawks to non-conference victories against UAB and Jackson State. The Warhawks fell 51-3 on September 21 to then-No. 1 Texas.
While seeking a turnaround from his team, Vincent knows battling Marshall in Huntington will be a major hurdle, especially with the Thundering Herd being 4-0 at home this season.
“When you watch Marshall, you see a really good football team,” Vincent said. “Their losses are to Ohio State, a good Virginia Tech team and they were up 20 points in the fourth quarter at Georgia Southern and lost there in a wild ending.”
Vincent says he’s impressed with what the Herd have displayed on both sides of the ball.
“Marshall’s really good defensively with great speed and athleticism,” Vincent said. “Their defensive line is what stands out and they’ve made big improvements over last year. Offensively, they’ve got a really good running game and their offensive line is solid. We have to have a great week of preparation and put together a solid four quarters to have a chance to win.”
Vincent notes that his team is facing a well-rested Marshall squad, something that has unfortunately become the norm for the Warhawks.
“We’ve faced three straight teams that have had at least 10 days to get ready for us,” Vincent said. “I think it’s an advantage for them and a disadvantage for us.”
The Warhawks are a relatively young team, with underclassmen providing much of the production.
Offensively, two freshmen are featured in quarterback Aidan Armenta and Hardy.
Hardy is third in the Sun Belt in rushing with 604 yards and has six touchdowns. Other key ball-carriers for Vincent’s team are Taven Curry and James Jones.
Armenta is a transfer from New Mexico, who was given the starting quarterback job during the James Madison game. He’s played in all seven games, throwing for 630 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions.
His main receiving targets are New Mexico transfer Jake Godfrey (13 catches for 191 yards, 1 TD), Davon Wells (18 catches for 168 yards, 2 TD) and Javon Campbell (8 catches for 176 yards, 1 TD).
Monroe’s top defenders are safety Wydet Williams and linebacker Carl Glass. Williams is the Warhawks’ leader in tackles with 58, followed closely by the 55 tackles of Glass. Williams has picked off three passes and recovered two fumbles. Glass has a forced fumble and two quarterback hurries.
Safety Carl Fauntroy is another major contributor to the defense with 43 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble.
Max Larson has been solid in his role as a kicker, making 9-of-11 field goals, with both misses having been blocked.
Punter Makenzie Ryan averages nearly 40 yards per punt this season, with 15 of those punts landing inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.
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Vincent brought in 73 new players for the 2024 season. He and his staff signed 35 new players (junior college players and transfers) just two weeks after he got the head coaching job in early December 2023. Eleven recruits were added in February and 27 more players arrived after spring practice. The Warhawks lost nine offensive starters and seven defensive starters from the 2023 squad.