SOUTH BEND, Ind. — A late fourth quarter interception returned for a touchdown by Steven Gilmore and 163 yards on the ground from Khalan Labron help the Marshall Thundering Herd shock No. 8 Notre Dame 26-21 on Saturday.
The loss was a crushing one for rookie head coach Marcus Freeman, as he has now become the first Fighting Irish coach to lose his first three games.
Gilmore, the brother of Stephon Gilmore of the Indianapolis Colts, picked off a pass by Tyler Buchner with 4:35 left in the game, raced into the end zone and leapt into the stands where Marshall fans began the victory celebration.
Marshall (2-0), became the first Sun Belt Conference team to play at Notre Dame Stadium. However their win on Saturday was not their first win over a top 10 ranked team, as the Thundering Herd beat No. 6 Kansas State 27-20 in 2003.
Quarterback Henry Colombi was 16-of-21 passing for 145 yards and the Thundering Herd rushed for 221 yards on 49 carries.
Notre Dame (0-2), struggled offensively a week earlier during their 21-10 loss to Ohio State with a play-it-safe, ball-control game plan. They attempted to open the playbook against the Herd but still struggled to get much going.
The Irish took a 15-12 lead early in the fourth quarter when Buchner nosed in from 1 yard. He called his name on the two-point conversion, on a keeper and running wide right to into the end zone. But the Irish couldn't mount much of an offense after that.
The Herd would take the lead back when Henry Colombi completed a 3-yard touchdown pass to Devin Miller give Marshall a 19-15 lead with 5:16 remaining in the game. The score was set up by a 42-yard run by Laborn, who broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage and juked by another Irish defender before breaking free.
Any hope of an Irish comeback were nearly ended when Owen Porter intercepted a pass by backup Irish quarterback Drew Pyne with three minutes remaining. Pyne would throw a touchdown pass with 14 seconds left to cut the Marshall lead to five points.
Buchner was 18-of-32 passing for 201 yards with two interceptions. Buchner also led the Irish in rushing with 44 yards on 13 carries, Michael Mayer had eight catches for 103 yards.
Freeman also said after the game that quarterback Tyler Buchner was replaced in the closing minutes because of a shoulder injury. He said he doesn't know how severe it is.
The Thundering Herd travel to Bowling Green next Saturday to face the Falcons for the first time since 2010.
Marshall 0 9 3 14 = 26
Notre Dame 0 7 0 13 = 21
Second Quarter
MRSH — Khalan Laborn 4 run (Rece Verhoff PAT failed), 14:18 ND — Tyler Buchner 1 run (Blake Grupe kick), 3:00 MRSH — Rece Verhoff 21 field goal, :15
Third Quarter
MRSH — Rece Verhoff 20 field goal, 3:54 Fourth Quarter
ND — Tyler Buchner 1 run (Tyler Buchner run), 14:57
MRSH — Devin Miller 3 pass from Henry Colombi (Rece Verhoff kick), 5:16
MRSH — Steven Gilmore 37 interception return (Rece Verhoff kick), 4:35
ND — Michael Mayer 5 pass from Drew Pyne (Pass failed), :14
Comments