Week 10
Marshall University Thundering Herd @
University of Central Florida Knights
Bright House Networks Stadium – Orlando, FL
Capacity: 45,301
Kickoff: 3:30 pm ET
Line (As of 10/30) : UCF -14
Television: CSS – Available to Comcast and Cox Cable Subscribers
Radio: AM 740 (Orlando), 1350 (Cocoa & Dade City), 1340 (Daytona) 1240 (Melbourne)
UCF Record: 5-3 (3-1), last win against Southern Miss. Last loss against USF.
Opponents Record: 1-7 (1-3), last win against Rice. Last loss against Southern Miss.
Series Record: Marshall leads the series 3-2 (record spans MAC and C-USA).
UCF Depth Chart:Click Here To See
Marshall Depth Chart:

Analysis by: punk0mi of the ucflj community.

Whew! October is finally over…
And UCF survived with only 2 losses. Simply amazing isn’t it? Things are looking a lot brighter these days…

UCF is now officially in second place in C-USA only half a game back from ECU. All we can do is hope that some one knocks off ECU so UCF will move into first place in the C-USA East. Even though the conference race isn’t over, there is one thing that is looking for sure: UCF is on track for a bowl game.

I am still a little giddy over that win at Southern Miss. Does anyone know how big last weekends win really was? Well let me tell ya:
1. – It was a solid win on the road against a very good team.
2. – It was the only college football game on in the nation - live on ESPN.
3. – It was against a team UCF has never beaten.
4. – Kevin Smith put on a show for the Heisman voters and jumped back to 2 nd in the nation in rushing.
5. – It put us back on track for a possible Conference championship.
6. – It put one more tick in the win column to send UCF to a bowl game.

However, let’s not get too excited about the future, UCF still has some games to play.

And just incase you live under a rock, this weekend is Homecoming at UCF. Here is the schedule of events for this week on campus:
Saturday (10.28-29) – Carnival Knight @ VAB Parking
Monday (10.29) – Movie Knight @ the UCF Arena – featuring I Now Pronounce you Chuck and Larry
Tuesday (10.30) – Comedy Knight @ the UCF Arena – featuring Bruce Bruce and Benji Brown
Wednesday (10.31) – Skit Knight @ the UCF Arena – Always fun to see
Thursday (11.1) – Concert Knight @ the UCF Arena – Featuring: Fall Out Boy, Gym Class Heros, Plain White T’s, and Cute is What We Aim For.
Friday (11.2) – Spirit Splash @ the reflection pond in front of Millican Hall – Awesome tradition and pep rally equipped with a concert and everything.
Saturday (11.3) – Homecoming Parade, B-Ball Exhibition Game, and Football Game – The parade is at 9:30am starting at the corner of Libra and Gemini and will be going around Gemini Blvd. The UCF Men’s B-Ball team is hosting St. Leo in a pre-season exhibition game at the new UCF Arena at 11AM. Then the homecoming football game at 3:30 against Marshall

As I mentioned last week – please stay after the football game and sing the Alma Mater with the band (especially students!). I know it sounds silly, but that is one of the most traditional things to do in College Football, especially during homecoming! If you do not know the words I have put them down right here for you:

On to the pre-game analysis…

What can we expect from Marshall?
Marshall has deep roots in college football and countless NFL stars have risen out of Huntington, WV, However, things aren’t like the days of old anymore. After 8 consecutive losses, Marshall just scooped up their first victory of the season last week at home against Rice. Marshall is a team that doesn’t give up despite what their 1-7 record may tell you. The Herd plays surprisingly hard and to the whistle. Most of the issues facing Marshall is due to the youth and inexperience of players in the areas that matter.

What can we expect from UCF?
Can UCF play a third straight game where there are no turnovers, fumbles, or interceptions? You betcha! This team has found what it needs to win, and as long as they keep doing it then I expect the rest of the season to be quite successful. On Saturday, expect another stellar performance from both Kyle Israel and Kevin Smith. Israel has finally broken out and emerged as a leader and is playing some of his best games to date. Look for another great day for Kevin Smith. Expect the streak of UCF making picks and recovering turnovers. Expect another sell out crowd! Expect a loud student section rocking the joint.

Who, What, Where, Why, When, How?
Simply put - Marshall is struggling. A team doesn’t go 1-7 because it wants too. This is a team that has not scored a touchdown in the first quarter of a game this season. Head coach Mark Snyder has a lot of work to do before Marshall poses any threat to anyone. However, last weekend’s win at home against Rice was a start. The Herd’s offense is led by Orlando native quarterback Bernard Morris (Sr.). Morris is averaging around 268 yards per game and has a high completion percentage of 64.1%. Morris led the way against Rice last week with 227 passing yards, another 120 yards on the ground, and two touchdowns. The best receiver for the Thundering Herd is Sophomore TE Cody Slate who has managed to pull down 42 receptions for 576 yards and 5 TD’s on the season, and leads the C-USA in numbers for tight ends. Following shortly behind Slate is WR Darius Passmore (Jr.) who has nabbed 40 receptions for 566 yards and 5 TD’s. The running game is led by Darius Marshall (Fr.) and Chubb Small (Jr,) each of which is averaging 5.1 and 6.3 yards per carry respectively. What do the Knights need for defense? Marshall is a passing team as can be seen by the 2,197 passing yards on the season. Putting the heat on Bernard Morris will be a must for this game. The Marshall O-line in full of big boys, but eventually the blitz or rush tactics of the UCF D will penetrate. Also, the UCF secondary will also need to put Slate and Passmore on ice for this game. If both of those tasks are met, then Marshall will have great difficulty moving down the field. Expect the Marshall O-line to put up a bit of a fight until the UCF D-line wears them out. Lastly, UCF linebackers need to keep their eyes peeled for any running plays from Darius Marshall or any bad passes that could be brought down as INT’s.

Marshall’s defense looks like Swiss cheese. Currently, the Herd is allowing 463.9 yards per game and an average of 35.4 points per game. Bleh. Despite those nasty numbers, Marshall has at least 2 playmakers on defense and excellent linebackers. Look big stops from Junior safety C.J. Spillman. Spillman is the Herd’s top tackler with 35 solos, 37 assists, and 2 forced fumbles. Also look for big plays from Senior LB Maurice Kitchens. Kitchens has tallied up 20 solos, 38 assists, 1.5 sacks, 1 INT, and 1 forced fumble. Others to watch for are LB Ian Hoskins (Jr., 5 TFL’s and 2.5 sacks) and DL Byron Tinker (Sr., 4 TFL’s and 2 sacks). Overall, the Marshall defense is weak and is more than likely the reason they haven’t been able to win more than 1 game this season. What does the UCF offense need to do? Simply show up. The UCF O-line should be able to handle the best that Marshall can throw at them. With that being so, expect nicely developed pass plays from Israel and lengthy runs from Smith. Expect the UCF receiver core to expose the weaknesses in Marshall’s backfield and to consistently make nickels and dimes down the field, if not more. Also, maintaining this streak of turnover-free games will help tremendously.

Other Contributing Factors: There are many contributing factors that will affect Marshall. Home Field Advantage and Homecoming - The home field advantage is going to be there. Perhaps even a third sellout crowd this season? Either way, you can make a sure bet that the student section will loud. This is also the Homecoming game…the most traditional of events in all of college football. Expect the crowd and students to be fired up with all the pre-game festivities that will be taking place on the days before kickoff. Picking up steam - UCF is building up steam for what is starting to look like a great end of the season run! Expect the team to come together and play some of their best games yet. Conference USA Game - Only being back half a game from ECU makes things interesting. If UCF wants a shot at that title, they have to win out! Weather looks good for a game: - Forecast calls for a daytime high of 78 with a 30% chance of showers, and a overnight low of 62 with a 10% chance of showers. Winds are expected to be out of the NE at a stiff 13-15 MPH with a humidity of 71%. Sunset is at 6:39 PM.

Summary:
If UCF continues to play as they did against Tulsa and Southern Miss, this game will more than likely be out of reach by halftime. Expect to see a confidant bunch of UCF players take the field after knocking off one of the best teams in the conference last week on the road. Expect the excitement of homecoming week to be with the players as well. Expect Marshall to be distracted by the noise in the stadium. But, like I said earlier, do not be surprised to see Marshall fight till the bitter end either.

Last but not least, I leave you with the Keys to the Game and Players to Watch.

Other C-USA Action This Weekend :
ECU Pirates @ Memphis Tigers, UTEP Miners @ Rice Owls, Southern Miss Golden Eagles @ UAB Blazers, Tulsa Golden Hurricane @ Tulane Green Wave, Southern Methodist Mustangs @ Houston Cougars
Go Knights!