Field Level Media
Dec 20, 2018
Keion Davis rushed for two touchdowns, and Marshall pulled away for a 38-20 win over South Florida on Thursday night in the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl at Tampa, Fla.
Isaiah Green, Anthony Anderson and Brenden Knox had one rushing score apiece for Marshall (9-4), which notched all five of its touchdowns on the ground. The Thundering Herd improved to 6-0 in bowl games under head coach Doc Holliday.
South Florida wide receiver Randall St. Felix hauled in two touchdown passes -- one from quarterback Blake Barnett and another from fellow wide receiver Tyre McCants. The Bulls (7-6) lost their final six games after opening the season with seven straight wins.
Green completed 17 of 25 passes for 221 yards.
Barnett provided similar numbers for South Florida, completing 11 of 23 passes for 212 yards and a score.
Davis helped put the game out of reach with his second rushing touchdown. He sprinted in from 16 yards out to increase Marshall's lead to 38-20 with 6:24 remaining in the fourth quarter.
South Florida pulled within 31-20 entering the fourth quarter. Barnett tossed a 33-yard touchdown pass to St. Felix with 3:16 to go in the third.
Kickers Coby Weiss of South Florida and Justin Rohrwasser of Marshall traded field goals earlier in the third quarter.
Marshall led 28-10 at halftime.
The Thundering Herd notched two touchdowns in 37 seconds to seize a 14-0 lead. Green scored first on a 10-yard run, and Marshall linebacker Darius Hodge recovered a fumble two plays later and returned it to the South Florida 1-yard line.
That opened the door for Anderson to score on a 1-yard run.
South Florida cut the deficit to 14-7 on a trick play when McCants found St. Felix for a 38-yard score.
Marshall answered with back-to-back touchdowns once again to push its lead to 28-7. Knox scored on an 8-yard run and Davis scored from 5 yards out.
Weiss hit a 22-yard field goal in the waning seconds of the first half for South Florida.
Marshall finished with a 282-92 advantage in rushing yards.
--Field Level Media