Marshall is 4-0 against Jacksonville since October of 2018, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Marshall Mavericks will be playing at home against the Jacksonville Fightin' Indians at 7:30 p.m. Marshall is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 37.5 points per game this season.
Marshall is probably headed into the contest with a chip on their shoulder considering Texas just ended the team's three-game winning streak on Friday. They were just a hair shy of victory and fell 43-42 to the Tigers. The Mavericks have struggled against the Tigers recently, as their game on Friday was their fifth consecutive lost matchup.
Despite the loss, Marshall got top-tier performance from Alton Henderson, who rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.1 yards per carry, and also threw for 193 yards and a touchdown. Those 113 rushing yards gave Henderson a new career-high. Raijon Sims was Henderson's top target, picking up 122 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Even though they lost, Marshall was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 316 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 152 rushing yards in six consecutive matches.
Even if they lost, Marshall's defensive line still kept up the pressure with five sacks. Texas' QB won't forget Jayden Cooks anytime soon given he sacked him twice. Cooks is also on a roll when it comes to sacks, as he's now sacked two or more in the last three games he's played dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Jacksonville was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fifth straight defeat. They came up short against Whitehouse, falling 38-14. While losing is never fun, the Fightin' Indians can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 599th, while the Wildcats are ranked 186th).
Jacksonville's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Didier Mares, who rushed for 130 yards, and Radarrius Sirls, who rushed for 84 yards.
Marshall's defeat dropped their record down to 4-2. As for Jacksonville, their loss dropped their record down to 1-6.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Marshall has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 325.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Jacksonville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 204. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Marshall against Jacksonville when the teams last played back in October of 2021, as the squad secured a 64-21 win. In that contest, Marshall amassed a halftime lead of 57-14, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
