Marshall Football Coach Charles Huff Talks Recruiting Southern Ohio
The Marshall Thundering Herd are off to a 3-0 start thanks, in part, to a huge win over Virginia Tech this past weekend.
The Herd currently have approximately six players from the southern half of Ohio, including transfers. That includes starting quarterback Cam Fancher, who prepped at Wayne High School in Huber Heights. As Marshall head coach Charles Huff prepares to build his roster for the next few years, he understands that this part of the neighboring Buckeye State will continue to be important for him in that regard.
"I think that's going to be big for us," Huff said in last week's Sun Belt Media availability. "There's a lot of really good football in that area. I think our brand resonates in that area. Obviously, we're not going to have the success in the deep south as some of the schools in this conference, so we've got to balance that by having success in the north and the midwest."
Marshall currently has the #3 recruiting class in the Sun Belt for 2024, per 247 Sports. Two three-star recruits from Cincinnati and Dayton are committed to that class. Those two players are 6'2" cornerback Corey Myrick from Colerain High Shcool and 6'5" EDGE Javon Hammonds from Wayne, same as Fancher.
"I think there is a lot of talent in that area," Huff stated. "My time in the Big Ten and the MAC conference developed a lot of relationships with high school coaches and trainers and people in those areas, which has paid some dividends. We got some really good players committed to us. We're recruiting some other really good players. I think again, our brand makes sense. You talk about being less than two and a half hours, maybe a little over that, from that area, you talk about the student-athlete being able to come and have an unbelievable experience, and to be able to keep his support system intact."
Another benefit of continuing to build with players from Cincinnati, Dayton, and other nearby towns is the situation it puts his future players in. At a time where concern for student-athlete well being mainly centers around travel and associated efforts, Huff thinks this approach puts his program in a uniquely attractive position for players from adjoining states.
As Huff notes, the talent is nice to have as well.
"Obviously, we've got to be able to nationally recruit in order to be competitive," Huff remarked. "But it makes it a little bit tougher when a kid's got to get on two flights to get home, or his family's got to get on two flights to come see him. So that area's going to be great for us."