July 28, 2008
• Watch the CBS College Sports Preview of Marshall's Season 
The Marshall Offense will be under the direction of first-year offensive coordinator John Shannon who will have the task of finding a replacement for departed quarterback Bernard Morris. The Herd will also look to fill holes along the offensive line where it must replace All-Conference USA center Doug Legursky as well as tackle John Inman. The good news for Shannon is that Marshall returns nearly all of its skill players, including a stable of running backs led by 2007 C-USA All-Freshman selection Darius Marshall. Veterans also abound on the outside as Marshall brings back a number of vertical threats including tight end Cody Slate and wideouts Darius Passmore and Emmanuel Spann.
Quarterback
• The Herd will have to replace senior Bernard Morris who accounted for 3,637 yards of total offense in 2007.
• Sophomore Brian Anderson is Marshall's lone returner with starting experience (1 career start). Junior Wesley Beardain has two career pass attempts.
• Two signal-callers - junior Ga. Tech transfer Johnathan Garner (Daytona Beach, Fla.) and highly touted redshirt freshman Mark Cann (Landrum, S.C.) are also battling to become the starter.
Running Back
• Marshall returns its three primary producers at running back, including 2007 Conference USA All-Freshman team member Darius Marshall.
• Seniors Chubb Small and Kelvin Turner also return to complete a unit that should provide a consistent attack for the Herd offense.
• Redshirt freshman Terrell Edwards (6''2" 211) will also push for playing time.
Wide Receiver
• The Herd returns several experienced receivers this season, led by seniors Emmanuel Spann and Darius Passmore who combined for 1,102 receiving yards and seven touchdowns last season.
• In addition to Passmore and Spann (who is also the Herd's top punt and kick returner), senior E.J. Wynn and junior Courtney Edmonson combined for two touchdowns and 585 yards on 52 catches in 2007.
Tight End
• The tight end position has been a strong point for Marshall for the past two seasons and looks to be as potent as ever in 2008 with the return of All-Conference USA and Mackey Award candidate Cody Slate (pictured) who led the Herd with 818 receiving yards and five touchdowns in 2007.
• Marshall did lose the tenacious run blocking of tight end Brian Shope and will rely on junior Lee Smith to take his place.
• The Herd is also aided with the addition of highly touted junior college signee Maurice Graham, who was rated as the number one JUCO tight end in the nation by some recruiting services.
Offensive Line
• Marshall returns a solid mix of veterans and young talent from a year ago, headlined by a standout pair of sophomores, left guard Josh Evans (pictured, left) and left tackle Brandon Campbell (right), who started for the Herd as redshirt freshmen in 2007. Senior Brian Leggett has started every game in the past two seasons and will look to fill in at center for the departed Doug Legursky.
• Marshall must replace right tackle John Inman - junior Daniel Baldridge looks to be one of the leading candidates after starting 10 games last season, but he is expected to be pushed by redshirt freshmen C.J. Wood and Brandon Curry as well as JUCO transfer Jimmy Rogers.
• Evans returns at left guard where he was a C-USA All-Freshman selection in 2007. Senior Matt Altobello will compete for the other interior position along with Chad Schofield.
The Marshall Defense
The Marshall defense is looking to rebound from a 2007 season that was filled with injuries and new defensive coordinator Rick Minter looks to have a quality pool of players to work with. The defensive line should get a huge boost from the return of 2006 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year Albert McClellan and senior defensive lineman Montel Glasco who were sidelined a year ago with injuries. A stable of talented young players that benefited from significant playing time a year ago, and the return of impact players like All-C-USA selection C.J. Spillman at safety and Maurice Kitchens at linebacker give Marshall fans plenty to be excited about on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, Marshall returns its top four and seven of its top 10 tacklers from a year ago.
Defensive Line
• Marshall must replace defensive tackles Byron Tinker and Ryland Wilson up front. Looking to fill those holes will be junior Montel Glasco who missed most of last season due to injury, Johnny Jones and James Burkes, who all logged significant time last season.
• Junior Albert McClellan was limited in spring drills but is expected to return to his spot on the outside this fall at 100%.
• The Herd should be deep on the edges as it returns 2007 starters Michael Janac and John Jacobs.
Linebacker
• Senior Maurice Kitchens will take over the middle backer spot he held down in fine fashion late last season.
• The Herd also returns standouts Ian Hoskins (Sr.), Mario Harvey (Jr.) and Corey Hart (So.) who were all valuable performers last season.
• The linebacking corps will be bolstered by redshirt-freshman Kellen Harris and sophomore Howard King.
Defensive Back
• Senior C.J. Spillman led the Herd with 131 tackles and headlines a veteran corps of defensive backs, that includes John Saunders and Ashton Hall who accounted for 68 and 66 tackles last season, respectively. Seniors Aaron Johnson and Phillip Gamble also have significant experience.
• Marshall has experienced players at corner with the return of veterans Zearrick Matthews and D.J. Wingate who all earned starts last season. Talented redshirt freshmen Dequan Bembry and T.J. Drakeford will push for playing time.
Special Teams
• Marshall will look to replace departed senior kicker and punter Anthony Binswanger. Top candidates at kicker are Craig Ratanamorn who was a goalkeeper for Marshall's soccer team, and sophomore Elliot Boyd. Cody Ochoa (So.) and Calvin Purchase (Fr.) enter the fall as Marshall's punters.
• Sean McClellan returns at long snapper.
• Senior Emmanuel Spann (above) and running back Darius Marshall return as the team's top kick and punt return specialists. Marshall returned one kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown against Southern Miss and opened the West Virginia game with a 77-yard return last season.
