FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEhoteles Jurmala - September 04, 2004
ERROR MSGContact: David Schmidt
dschmidt@thelifewave.com

Troy suffocates Marshall offense, upends Herd, 17-15 in opener

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Trojan defense held Marshalls offense to its lowest offensive output in history at Joan C. Edwards Stadium to win the Troy University football teams first season opener since moving to Division I-A and to hand the Thundering Herd their first loss in a home opener since 1983, 17-15.

   The Trojans (1-0) held the Herd (0-1) to 177 yards on 62 plays, including 25 yards on 34 rushes, and sacked Marshall quarterback Stan Hill eight times for a loss of 43 yards, three by senior defensive end Demarcus Ware, and tallied 261 yards offensively, just enough to lift them to their second-straight win over Marshall and their first in Huntington. The Trojans now trail the series, 3-2.

It was definitely not perfect, but it was a complete team effort, Troy head coach Larry Blakeney said. Our defense played great, and our offense made some plays to take advantage of some mistakes. The offense held onto the ball more in the second half to give our defense some rest, and we fixed some problems in our kicking game. We had a great punt from Thomas Olmsted late in the game.

 Ware forced two fumbles, and his three sacks for a loss of 25 yards tied his career high for sacks in a game. The Auburn, Ala., native recorded five tackles for a loss, passing current New York Giant Osi Umenyioras 40 for the school record in career tackles for a loss. Ware now has 44 in his career.

Senior Aaron Leak completed 13-of-26 passes for 196 yards and an interception to lead the Trojan offense. Junior Jermaine Richardson led the Trojans rushing attack with 46 yards on 16 carries. Senior DeWhitt Betterson ran for 26 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. Leak also scored a rushing touchdown, a 15-yard scamper on the Trojans opening drive.

hoteles Salzburgo Ware had a total of seven tackles, as did junior Bernard Davis, who had one sack for a seven-yard loss. Senior Robby Farmer accounted two of the Trojans three turnovers forced, falling on a fumble and recording his first career interception.
   

The Trojans struck first on their first possession, a three-play, 53-yard drive that started with a 38-yard pass from Leak to senior Jason Samples and was capped by a 15-yard touchdown on an option keeper by Leak with 10:36 left to play in the first quarter. Freshman Greg Whibbs converted the point-after attempt, his first career kick, to cap off the 1:13 drive.
   

five star hotel in GmundenSenior Robby Farmer intercepted Hill on the Herds ensuing drive to give the Trojans the ball at the Marshall 30, but Olmsted was wide left on a 45-yard field goal attempt four plays later.
   

The Troy defense held Marshalls offense at bay for the remainder of the quarter, but Marshall cut the lead to 7-3 on a 32-yard field goal by Ian OConner with 13:49 to play in the half to cap off a 16-play, 75-yard drive that ate 7:35 off of the clock. OConner cut the lead to 7-6 with a 30-yard field goal with 6:48 on the clock after    Royals first interception gave the Herd the ball at the Troy 13-yard line.
 

The Trojans took the one point lead into the locker room after holding Marshall to just 77 yards of total offense. Troy had 127 yards in the first half, 54 on the ground and 73 passing.
   

Marshall claimed the lead for the first time in the game with 12:04 to play in the third on OConners third field goal, a 20-yard kick after the Trojan defense held Marshall on three plays following a blocked punt that gave the Herd the ball inside the Troy 10-yard line.
   

The Trojans put together an 11-play, 52-yard drive on the ensuing possession that ended with a 43-yard field goal by Whibbs with 7:57 to play in the third quarter, his first career attempt, to give Troy a 10-9 advantage.
   

Ware forced his second fumble of the game on his third sack of Hill, and Cedric Sullivan recovered the loose ball to give Troy the ball at the Herd 11-yard line. Two plays later, DeWhitt Betterson punched it in from one-yard away to give the Trojans a 17-9 lead.
   

The Herd scored their final touchdown with 2:05 left in the third when hill connected on a 10-yard pass to Josh Davis that capped a 38-yard drive that included six plays.
   

The Trojans ran the clock in the final quarter and seemed to have been stopped on downs on the Marshall 30-yard line with 2:55 to play. However, an illegal participation penalty gave the Trojans and automatic first down, and they ran the clock down to 24 seconds remaining before surrendering the ball to the Herd.
   

alberghi Bojnice b&bThe Trojans will return to the field on Thursday, when they will host No. 17 Missouri at Movie Gallery Veterans Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., and the game will be televised on ESPN2, Troys first nationally televised game in Troy.