Marshall Football: Herd Bowl Eligible, Charles Huff Retained

On Saturday, the Marshall Thundering Herd beat Arkansas State 35-21 to improve their overall record to 6-6. Marshall have now been eligible for a bowl game in

© Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

On Saturday, the Marshall Thundering Herd beat Arkansas State 35-21 to improve their overall record to 6-6. Marshall have now been eligible for a bowl game in all three seasons that Charles Huff has been the head coach. Huff is now 21-16 in that position.

However, expectations are high in Huntington and the wins haven't flowed in as consistently as some would like. Marshall Athletic Director Christian Spears addressed those concerns, while simultaneously noting that Huff will continue to be the Herd's head coach, in a statement posted to social media following the win.

Statement from Marshall Athletic Director Christian Spears following Saturday’s win over Arkansas State: pic.twitter.com/HqtsurlCvH

— Marshall Athletics (@HerdZone) November 26, 2023

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"Obviously, we all know that we have work to do," Spears said in the statement. "Coach Huff has committed to do that work and we will support the changes he has made and will continue to make. We are confident that, together, we can get back to championship-level football with Coach Huff as our Head Coach."

Marshall started the season 4-0, including a win over Virginia Tech, before dropping six of their final eight games. 

"Really proud of the players, really proud of the entire organization," Huff said following the win. "It's been a really really really good year. And I say good year because we learned a lot. Maybe we didn't meet the expectations of winning the Super Bowl or whatever everybody thought we were supposed to do. But I'm a firm believer in 'you are what your record says you are.' We learned a lot about our team, we learned a lot of areas we need to improve, but at the end of the day, I can't say by any means I am satisfied, I can't by any means say I am disappointed."

Huff went on to point out his, so far, perfect record of taking Marshall to the postseason.

"We're building in the right direction. Are we there yet? No. Do we need to go faster? Yes. Are there some things that we all need to improve? Absolutely. Is it dark and gloom? No. We are in a tough conference, we got some strides to make. Again, I think the administration is doing a heck of a job of moving the needle. We've got to continue to do that on the field. But super proud of everybody in the entire organization and we got an opportunity for one more."

Marshall is 1-1 in bowl games under Huff.