Wikipedia

1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

The 1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 12–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the SoCon. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs for the fifth straight season, where they defeated Jackson State in the first round, Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals, and McNeese State in the semifinals, before losing to Montana in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football
ConferenceSouthern Conference
Ranking
Sports NetworkNo. 6
Record12–3 (7–1 SoCon)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorChris Scelfo (3rd season)
Captains
Home stadiumMarshall University Stadium
Seasons
← 1994
1996 →
1995 Southern Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 2 Appalachian State $^8–0–012–1–0
No. 6 Marshall ^7–1–012–3–0
No. 15 Georgia Southern ^5–3–09–4–0
Furman5–3–06–5–0
East Tennessee State4–4–04–7–0
VMI3–5–04–7–0
Chattanooga2–6–04–7–0
Western Carolina2–6–03–7–0
The Citadel0–8–02–9–0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

Regular season

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Marshall was quarterbacked by true freshman and future NFL starter Chad Pennington after starting sophomore quarterback Mark Zban re-injured his knee delivering a touchdown pass to future NFL starter Jermaine Wiggins. Starting running back Chris Parker set the Marshall single season rushing record with 1,833 rushing yards.

Postseason

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Marshall advanced to the 1995 NCAA I-AA playoffs with an at large bid, but held home field advantage for the first two games, defeating Jackson State and Northern Iowa in Huntington before going on the road against McNeese State in the semifinal game. Marshall defeated McNeese State and advanced to the I-AA National Championship game, which was held at Marshall's stadium against the Montana Grizzlies. This was the fourth consecutive I-AA National Championship game hosted by Marshall. Marshall lost the championship game, 22–20.

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
August 31at NC State*No. 2
L 16–3344,259[1]
September 9Tennessee Tech*No. 3
W 45–14[2]
September 16No. 13 Georgia SouthernNo. 4
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
W 37–719,983[3]
September 30at ChattanoogaNo. 3
W 35–328,576[4]
October 7VMINo. 3
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
W 56–2119,702[5]
October 14at Western CarolinaNo. 3
W 42–33,858[6]
October 21No. 2 Appalachian StateNo. 3
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV (rivalry)
L 3–1026,982[7]
October 28at The CitadelNo. 7
W 21–1911,833[8]
November 4East Tennessee StateNo. 7
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
W 52–018,749[9]
November 11at FurmanNo. 7
W 31–610,688[10]
November 18No. 7 Hofstra*No. 6
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV
W 30–2817,080[11]
November 25Jackson State*No. 6
W 38–813,035[12]
December 2No. 18 Northern Iowa*No. 6
  • Marshall University Stadium
  • Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)
W 41–2414,472[13]
December 9at No. 1 McNeese State*No. 6
W 25–1318,018[14]
December 16No. 8 Montana*No. 6
L 20–2232,106[15]

References

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  1. ↑ "Wolfpack builds steam, wins". The Charlotte Observer. September 1, 1995. Retrieved February 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Marshall rambles past Tech". The Tennessean. September 10, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Marshall rips Georgia Southern". The Macon Telegraph. September 17, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Marshall 35, UT–Chattanooga 32". Johnson City Press. October 1, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Marshall thumps VMI". Asheville Citizen-Times. October 8, 1995. Retrieved February 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Parker sets new records as Herd stampedes WCU". The Salisbury Post. October 15, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Appalachian wins battle". The State. October 22, 1995. Retrieved November 28, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "'Citadel of old' marshals strong fight". The State. October 29, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Marshall shreds ETSU". Elizabethton Star. November 5, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Marshall pummels Furman". The State. November 12, 1995. Retrieved September 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Hofstra makes point in loss". Newsday. November 19, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Marshall thunders to victory". The Charlotte Observer. November 26, 1995. Retrieved August 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Marshall sacks Panthers". The Des Moines Register. December 3, 1995. Retrieved February 7, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Marshall advances to I-AA final". The Charlotte Observer. December 10, 1995. Retrieved March 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Grizzlies silence Thundering Herd, 22-10". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. December 17, 1995. p. 5B.
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