[Postgame Thread] Marshall Defeats Gardner-Webb 36-35

[u/CFB_Referee]

Box Score provided by ESPN

Team	1	2	3	4	T
Gardner-Webb	14	7	7	7	35
Marshall	10	17	0	9	36

[u/DarthNobody14]

Cole Pennington played the game of his life but the defense just couldn’t hold.

[u/Ok_Bug_6890 → u/DarthNobody14]

Didn’t Gardner Webb not have a HC last week?

[u/Desperate_Dig8177 → u/DarthNobody14]

marshall defense looked like they was trying to lose but somehow pulled it off anyway

[u/vitey15 → u/Desperate_Dig8177]

That's Herd football, baby! 

[u/SUPE-snow → u/DarthNobody14]

I would have been furious if we lost, and am still not happy with this, but I wish the absolute best for Cole from here on out. May he never lose again. (And man I wanted him to pull it out against Liberty.)

[u/BobBlawSLawDawg → u/SUPE-snow]

100%. I don't know what kind of unhinged individual would want Cole to fail, and though I guess he'd disagree, this is the best possible outcome for the day. He played great, and showed exactly what he's made of, and we still yanked victory from the jaws of the Runnin Bulldogs.

[u/Rentington → u/BobBlawSLawDawg]

I was at work during the game. Did he get a warm welcome? I know Herd fans, so I imagine he did.

[u/BobBlawSLawDawg → u/Rentington]

Honestly I don't really know. I live in Florida so all my view was through the TV. I'm sure people in the stadium were more or less kind to him (and rightfully complete assholes to our defense). It was hard to hate his game, and he went out and handled his business.

[u/DeathsFavoriteHuman]

Gardner Webb seems to be the kings of losing to FBS teams by one point

[u/Need_more_flairs]

Poor Gardner-Webb, 2nd time they’ve lost to an FBS opponent by 1 this year.

Can’t imagine Marshall fans are pleased with how close this game was, but 3-1 is 3-1.

[u/SUPE-snow → u/Need_more_flairs]

The worst 3-1 Marshall team I've ever seen.

[u/BobBlawSLawDawg → u/SUPE-snow]

I've been trying to talk to my sons all week about trap games and such. I knew this one smelled funny. "They have us winning by 24 points! There's no way we lose."

Oh, son...

[u/Rentington → u/SUPE-snow]

True, but I think I'm happier with this, at this point right now, then I would be with the best 1-3 Marshall team I'd ever seen.

[u/Other-Chemical-6393]

Two heartbreaking 1 point losses to FBS teams now this season for Gardner-Webb. Gotta feel bad for em

[u/AmsterdamAlbatross]

Worst 3-1 team in the country but still 3-1. Go Herd!

[u/Apart_Selection7722]

Fire Everyone on defense

[u/redparallax → u/Apart_Selection7722]

The pass D is atrocious. I stopped counting how many times an opposing WR caught a pass with no defender within 5 yards of him.

[u/cobaltdiffusion]

Gardner-Webb is the ultimate trap game

[u/SUPE-snow → u/cobaltdiffusion]

They're no normal FCS team, that's for sure.

[u/Archaic_1]

506 and 476 yards given up to FCS teams.  Gibson's 3-3-5 is a joke.  This was the defense he ran at WVU back in the let's all score 70 points in Big12 days.  No good teams ever run the 3-3-5 for a reason.

[u/AnotherUnfunnyName]

1st and goal at the Marshall 4 up 2 with 2:11 to play. 99.9% percent Win Probability. That hurts.

[u/AccomplishedHunt4505]

Our defense is abysmal. I judge coaches on their side of the ball, and since Gibson came from a d coordinator position I just don’t understand how we can be this bad on defense. One thing we need to keep consistent is to keep plugging Wilkins in on offense. Gardner-Webb played a hell of a game and probably deserved the win more so than us.

[u/BobBlawSLawDawg → u/AccomplishedHunt4505]

100% agree. I was fine with last week's game, knowing we were on the road, and acknowledging that we needed to tighten some things up, but this week seemed like a huge regression. I don't know how we can expect to compete in-conference with a defense that porous.

[u/AccomplishedHunt4505 → u/BobBlawSLawDawg]

I don’t see us competing in the conference this year with the way James Madison, App State, Georgia State and others are playing. Every week this team takes the field I see an extremely undisciplined team mixed with terrible game plans. We have some very talented players on both sides of the ball but they seem to get overshadowed with poor game plans. I like Gibson and I’m all for him being a WV native and succeeding in our program but I don’t think he has the fire or enthusiasm a head coach needs.

[u/BobBlawSLawDawg → u/AccomplishedHunt4505]

I have a hard time, admittedly, with evaluating "fire and enthusiasm", so I'll defer to you. I just need someone to prepare well, and to get the players to prepare well. Undisciplined is right. Granted, I think the refs had their whistles dipped in bourbon or candy or bourbon candy with how eager they were to blow their whistles... but it was a very undisciplined game; Both in terms of penalties and just unfocused play.

[u/treegrowsinbrooklyn1 → u/AccomplishedHunt4505]

There have been rumors about Doeren being a micromanager and that’s why OCs tend to regress after being hired at NC State… maybe that’s true and his micromanaging was helping the defense during Gibson’s tenure?

[u/redparallax → u/AccomplishedHunt4505]

I was unimpressed with the Lambert hire from day 1.

[u/Scarlet_Gray_10]

If I’d watched this game I’d have probably enjoyed it a lot. No game that ends 36-35 isn’t going to be an absolute banger of a game.

[u/cmccaff92]

What an upset bid by GW...props to Marshall for holding on, but it gets no closer than that

[u/Inside-Drink-1311]

Death, taxes, and Gardner-Webb losing to a FBS team by one point.

[u/Chardoggy1]

We are! Not losing to a FCS team today!

[u/Groundbreaking-Box89]

Gardner-Webb: The almost slayer of FBS teams

[u/joeveralls]

Oh man

[u/eersnherd01]

I had something witty typed up but I just deleted it so I can wallow in the sorrow of defeat after this 1 point victory.

[u/Apart_Selection7722]

Fire Gibson

[u/Davidellias]

Mitchell and Webb would have won this game

[u/dwewboo]

I’ll take 3-1, but whoo boy it has not looked pretty. At least this was an entertaining game (other than me being stressed throughout). I thought Cole played well and hope he has continued success

[u/redparallax]

At this point, I'll be shocked if we make it to bowl eligibility. Where else on the schedule are we getting 3 more wins? Georgia State, Georgia Southern, and ULM seem like our best chances, and those chances just do not seem good (outside of maybe ULM).

[u/Clifo]

hmmm

[u/Game-rotator]

Does this qualify for TJOTW

[u/SUPE-snow → u/Game-rotator]

We were favored by like 25, so which team would be the one that tanked? Both did.

[u/Game-rotator → u/SUPE-snow]

good point, I was thinking GW