By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The transfer portal has closed in college football and seems to have yielded mixed results for Marshall ahead of Tony Gibson’s second season as head coach.
The Herd added 25 players and lost 22 this time around.
Several notable departures are now with power conference programs, a list that includes the likes of kicker Lorcan Quinn (Alabama), punter Nathan Totten (Virginia Tech), running back Antwan Roberts (Arizona) and defensive linemen Sid Kaba and Naquan Crowder (Minnesota).
A number of Herd players in 2025 to enter the portal remain without a new home and several could eventually find their way back to Huntington. That group includes long snapper Brock Walters, defensive lineman Ali Abbasi, linebacker Jaydyn Johnson and offensive lineman Henry Harden.
Gibson and his staff were able to pick up several players they hope can become major contributors in the fall in the latter stages of when the portal remained opened, including a pair of West Virginia transfers in quarterback Khalil Watkins and wide receiver Christian Hamilton.
Watkins originally joined the WVU program with Neal Brown as head coach and stuck on for a season when Rich Rodriguez replaced Brown.
As a redshirt freshman in 2025, Wilkins finished 16-for-36 for 185 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions across six games, including one start at BYU. He netted 243 yards on 58 carries with a pair of touchdowns on the ground.
Hamilton, who has two years of eligibility remaining, began his career at North Carolina for two seasons, before moving on to West Virginia last fall. He had three receptions for 20 yards with the Mountaineers.
Marshall has also added a pair of former Kentucky skill players in wide receiver Aumad Edwards and running back Jamarion Wilcox.
Edwards is looking for a new start after not recording a statistic while redshirting last season with the Wildcats. He has four years of eligibility left.
Wilcox is a speedy 5-foot-10, 191-pound back who played a lot in 2024 and redshirted in both 2023 and 2025.
Two seasons back, Wilcox rushed for 590 yards on 92 carries and two touchdowns.
Marshall was able to pick up a big body late in the portal process — 6-2, 336-pound defensive lineman Terry Nwabuisi-Ezeala. He originally enrolled at North Carolina, but moved on to Vanderbilt after spring practice in Chapel Hill. He did not see action for the Commodores last fall and has four years of eligibility remaining.
The Herd had a late add from the FCS ranks in former Central Connecticut State defensive back Brayden Hall, who has past experience as a returner as well. Hall had a solid junior season last fall, recording 51 tackles (29 solo), one tackle for loss, one forced fumble, and 10 passes defended, tops among Northeast Conference cornerbacks. He also returned 22 punts for 200 yards as the primary punt returner.
Hall was a second-team all-Northeast Conference selection last season.
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Marshall has announced it will host the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs in the upcoming season on September 26 at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. The Bulldogs fill a hole in the Herd schedule that was created when Eastern Michigan asked to delay a previously scheduled 2026 visit to Huntington to a later year.
Marshall also announced a four-game series with an old Mid-American Conference rival in Toledo. The Herd and Rockets will play in four consecutive seasons, starting with a game at Toledo’s Glass Bowl on September 7, 2030. The Herd will visit the Rockets again in 2032 and host Toledo in Huntington in the 2031 and 2033 seasons.
The two teams have met 41 times in a series that started in 1938. Toledo leads the all-time series by a count of 22-18-1, but Marshall owned a 3-1 record against the Rockets in MAC Championship Game matchups from 1997-2004.
Marshall’s Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison is excited about the Herd and Rockets renewing their rivalry.
“This series gives Marshall a highly-respected opponent while renewing one of our most storied rivalries in a regional matchup that fans can travel to enjoy,” said Gerald Harrison, Marshall Vice President and Director of Athletics. “Some of the most memorable moments in Marshall football history have come against Toledo, and we’re excited to welcome them back to the schedule. We’re also pleased to finalize our 2026 non-conference slate with the home matchup against Gardner-Webb, allowing Herd Nation to begin planning their trips to The Joan!”