2003 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

The 2003 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. Despite achieving bowl eligibility with an 8–4 record, Marshall did not make a bowl game for the first time since 1997 due to the Mid-American Conference not having enough bowl tie-ins for its members.^[1] The Thundering Herd's upset against sixth-ranked Kansas State highlighted the season.

2003 Marshall Thundering Herd football
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Division	East
Record	8–4 (6–2 MAC)
Head coach	Bob Pruett (8th season)
Offensive coordinator	Mark McHale (2nd season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Larry Kueck (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Bill Wilt (2nd season)
Home stadium	Joan C. Edwards Stadium
Seasons ← 2002 2004 →

2003 Mid-American Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 10 Miami (OH) x$		8	–	0					13	–	1
Marshall		6	–	2					8	–	4
Akron		5	–	3					7	–	5
Kent State		4	–	4					5	–	7
UCF		2	–	6					3	–	9
Ohio		1	–	7					2	–	10
Buffalo		1	–	7					1	–	11
West Division
No. 23 Bowling Green x		7	–	1					11	–	3
Northern Illinois		6	–	2					10	–	2
Toledo		6	–	2					8	–	4
Western Michigan		4	–	4					5	–	7
Ball State		3	–	5					4	–	8
Eastern Michigan		2	–	6					3	–	9
Central Michigan		1	–	7					3	–	9
Championship: Miami 49, Bowling Green 27
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	4:30 pm	Hofstra*	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	ESPN+	W 45–21	25,141
September 6	4:00 pm	at No. 12 Tennessee*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	ESPN2	L 24–34	106,520
September 12	7:00 pm	Toledo	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	ESPN	L 17–24	31,511
September 20	12:40 pm	at No. 6 Kansas State*	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS	FSN	W 27–20	46,700
September 27	6:00 pm	at Troy State*	Movie Gallery Stadium Troy, AL	ESPN+	L 24–33	26,000
October 11	4:30 pm	Kent State	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV		W 49–33	33,537
October 18	1:00 pm	at Buffalo	UB Stadium Amherst, NY	ESPN+	W 26–16	10,118
October 25	2:30 pm	at Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium Kalamazoo, MI	FSN	W 41–21	15,878
November 1	4:30 pm	Akron	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	ESPNGP	W 42–24	29,884
November 12	7:30 pm	at No. 23 Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN2	L 6–45	26,286
November 19	7:30 pm	at UCF	Florida Citrus Bowl Orlando, FL	ESPN2	W 21–7	18,141
November 28	12:00 pm	Ohio	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV (Battle for the Bell)	FSN	W 28–0	19,113
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Roster

2003 Marshall Thundering Herd football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 82 Josh Davis Jr QB 4 Stan Hill Jr TE 90 Jason Rader Sr WR 40 Darius Watts Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 50 Johnathan Goddard Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Bob Pruett Coordinators/assistant coaches Lou Anarumo (Defensive backs) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Game summaries

Kansas State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Thundering Herd	7	9	0	11	27
#6 Wildcats	7	3	3	7	20

^[2]

Team players drafted in the NFL

The following players were selected in the 2004 NFL draft.^[3]

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Darius Watts	Wide receiver	2	54	Denver Broncos