Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw's 100-Yard Return Lifts Marshall Past Old Dominion 36-23

Old Dominion lined up for a 55-yard field goal on the final play of the first half, hoping to cut a 10-point deficit to seven. Instead, Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw caught the short kick in his own end zone and ran it back 100 yards, and a game that was still within reach turned into a long afternoon in Norfolk.

Marshall beat Old Dominion 36-23 at S.B. Ballard Stadium on Saturday, riding two early touchdown runs from TJ Lester, five Jorge Diaz Nicolas field goals and a defense that intercepted Jaxon Potter three times in the second half. The Thundering Herd improved to 5-3 and 2-2 in the Sun Belt. Old Dominion fell to 2-7 and 1-5.

It was not a tidy win. Marshall rotated quarterbacks all afternoon, threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and committed a string of penalties. But the Herd made the bigger plays in all three phases, and Old Dominion never found a way to string drives together until the game was out of reach.

Lester sets the tone

Marshall's defense handed the offense a gift on Old Dominion's second snap. Kenyatta Hardge sacked Potter and forced a fumble, Cannon Lewis recovered at the ODU 26, and the call held up after an Old Dominion challenge. Four plays later, Lester ran in from 4 yards out, and the Herd led 7-0 with 12:57 left in the first quarter.

Lester's second touchdown came with no buildup at all. After Old Dominion went three-and-out from its own 4, Marshall took over at the ODU 49 following a fair catch, and Lester went straight up the middle for a 49-yard touchdown on the first snap. It was 14-0 with 6:50 left in the first quarter.

Old Dominion answered quickly. Potter hit Josh Rodriguez for 46 yards, a Marshall pass interference flag moved the ball to the 19, and a touchdown pass to Devin Roche was wiped out by an Old Dominion penalty before the Monarchs scored anyway. Potter found Rodriguez and Kendall Harris for 14 yards apiece, and Maurki James ran in from 6 yards out to make it 14-7 with 4:19 left in the quarter.

Zion Turner's 37-yard completion to Turner-Bradshaw set up Diaz Nicolas for a 35-yard field goal, and Marshall led 17-7 after one.

The play before halftime

The second quarter belonged to the kickers. Potter's 42-yard strike to TJ Johnson put Old Dominion at the Marshall 9, but the Herd held, and Andrew Nelms kicked a 21-yard field goal to make it 17-10 with 10:53 left in the half.

Marshall, now with Carlos Del Rio-Wilson at quarterback, answered with a 12-play, 78-yard drive. Del Rio-Wilson's 44-yard throw to Chris Culliver reached the Old Dominion 5, but a false start and a delay of game pushed the Herd back, and Diaz Nicolas settled for a 30-yard field goal and a 20-10 lead with 1:13 left.

Then came the turning point. Potter completed four passes to Roche on a quick drive to the Marshall 37, spiked the ball and sent Nelms out for a 55-yard try as time expired. The kick came up short, Turner-Bradshaw fielded it in the end zone and went the length of the field. Instead of a 20-13 game at the break, it was 27-10.

Old Dominion pushes back, Marshall holds

Old Dominion did make a run. Early in the third quarter, Brandon Crutchfield intercepted Turner at the Marshall 44 and returned it 44 yards for a touchdown, cutting the lead to 27-17 with 13:03 left in the quarter.

Marshall's offense spent the rest of the third quarter going nowhere. A muffed kickoff left the Herd at their own 4, a personal foul pushed them back to the 2, and two straight drives ended in punts, one after an 11-yard sack of Del Rio-Wilson. When Old Dominion drove to the Marshall 34, Potter's throw was intercepted in the end zone by Charles McCartherens. On Old Dominion's next possession, Potter was picked again, this time by Caleb Clark-Glover after McCartherens tipped the ball.

That second takeaway gave Marshall the ball at the ODU 31. Judah Price ran 24 yards to the 7, but Khalil Wilkins was sacked for a 12-yard loss on third-and-goal, and Diaz Nicolas hit from 34 yards to make it 30-17 with 7:15 left in the third.

Marshall leaned on its running game to open the fourth. Price and Wilkins took turns at quarterback on a 13-play, 68-yard drive that ate 6:33, and Diaz Nicolas added a 30-yard field goal for a 33-17 lead with 12:34 to play.

Old Dominion's best chance to get back in it ended a few minutes later. A Marshall penalty on the kickoff gave the Monarchs the ball at their own 43, and Potter moved them to the Marshall 32. Two straight incompletions brought up fourth-and-8, and Braydin Ward sacked Potter for a 6-yard loss to turn the ball over on downs with 10:30 left.

After a Marshall punt, the Herd's defense struck again. Daytione Smith intercepted Potter at the Old Dominion 25 on the next play and returned it 13 yards to the 12 with 8:05 to play. Marshall could not punch it in from there, but Diaz Nicolas kicked a 24-yard field goal, his fifth of the day, for a 36-17 lead with 5:52 left. Old Dominion scored once more after a Marshall personal foul on the kickoff set the Monarchs up at their own 45, and James ran 14 yards for a touchdown with 3:54 to play. The two-point pass failed.

Old Dominion's onside kick failed, and Marshall took over at the ODU 46, but a 12-yard sack of Turner forced a punt that went out of bounds at the Old Dominion 19 with 2:24 left. Potter hit Rodriguez for 24 yards twice to reach the Marshall 33, but Hardge and Kelvon McBride sacked him on two of the next three snaps. Potter's fourth-and-27 pass from midfield fell incomplete with 57 seconds left, and Marshall ran out the clock.

By the numbers

Marshall won without much of a passing game. The Herd completed 8 of 18 passes for 142 yards, split among three quarterbacks: Del Rio-Wilson went 3 of 9 for 66 yards, Turner was 4 of 8 for 53 yards with the interception, and Wilkins completed his only throw for 23 yards. Culliver's two catches covered 67 yards.

Marshall ran 54 times for 196 yards. Price led the way with 82 yards on 15 carries, and Lester needed only eight carries to pile up 76 yards and both touchdowns. Diaz Nicolas made all five of his field goal tries and all three extra points, good for 18 points.

Potter threw for 329 yards on 23-of-44 passing, but he had no touchdown passes and three interceptions. Old Dominion ran for 80 yards on 29 carries, and James scored both of its rushing touchdowns. Rodriguez caught nine passes for 143 yards, and Roche added six catches for 41. Old Dominion outgained Marshall 409-338. Marshall converted only 2 of 14 third downs and was flagged 12 times for 94 yards, but it won the turnover battle 4-1.

Brayden Hall led the Marshall defense with 11 tackles, and Caleb Clark-Glover and Cannon Lewis added eight apiece. Hardge finished with two sacks, and Ward and McBride had one apiece.

What it means

For Marshall, this was a second straight Sun Belt win, and it looked a lot like the 20-13 win over South Alabama, when the walk-on Price scored the late winner and Wilkins carried the decisive drive. Tony Gibson's team has not settled on one quarterback, but the formula worked: run the ball, win the field position battle and let the defense make plays. Marshall heads to Georgia Southern on Nov. 7.

For Old Dominion, the losing stretch continues. A week after a 26-0 loss at Louisiana Tech, Ricky Rahne's team found some offense, but its mistakes were costly. The missed field goal at the half cost the Monarchs at least 10 points, and Potter's three second-half interceptions, one of them in the end zone, kept the Monarchs from getting closer than 10 points after halftime. The Monarchs visit Coastal Carolina on Nov. 7.

The last word

Old Dominion had its chances to make this a one-score game. It was down 20-10 with a kick to end the half and within 10 early in the third quarter. Both times, Marshall answered with a big play, first a 100-yard return and then two interceptions. On a day when the Herd's offense often stalled, those plays were the difference.

Sources: ESPN box score and play-by-play. More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Marshall Athletics.