SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 8, 2014
No. 23 Marshall 63, Southern Miss
17: Rakeem Cato threw for a pair of scores and ran for another as the
Thundering Herd stayed unbeaten with an easy victory over
the host Golden Eagles.
Cato was 13-of-19 for 186 yards
while also rushing for 92 yards for Marshall (9-0, 5-0 Conference
USA), which racked up 521 yards of total offense. Steward Butler
rushed five times for 118 yards and two scores, Remi Watson ran for
three touchdowns and Tommy Shuler had five catches for 80 yards and a
touchdown.
Ito Smith rushed 27 times for 141
yards and two touchdowns for Southern Miss (3-7, 1-5), which turned
the ball over three times. Cole Weeks finished 11-of-19 for 114 yards
and an interception, completing passes to nine different receivers.
Southern Miss started the game
well, going 75 yards in 13 plays on the opening drive - capped by a
2-yard Smith touchdown run - and executing an onside kick and driving
for another Smith touchdown run for a 14-0 lead less than 10 minutes
into the contest. From then on, though, it was all Marshall as the
Thundering Herd scored 21 straight points, with Watson catching a
touchdown pass and running 7 yards for a score.
After Corey Acosta kicked a
35-yard field goal for the Golden Eagles, Cato found Shuler from 2
yards out midway through the second and ran for a 10-yard score
midway through the third to push the lead to 18 points. Watson scored
from 7 yards out late in the third quarter before Butler scampered 83
yards for a touchdown in the first minute of the fourth quarter and the
rout was on.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Butler's 83-yard
touchdown run was the longest of his career. กญ Marshall is the only
team in the nation to score at least 35 points in every game this
season. กญ The 63 points allowed is the most by the Golden Eagles
since giving up 63 to Brigham Young in 1976.