Football 2025 Roster Reload: Marshall

Marshall is one of the top brands in the Group of 5, but nobody is immune to the sufferings of the transfer portal era.

The portal opened on Dec. 9, just two days after Marshall defeated Louisiana 31-3 in the Sun Belt Championship Game. While Herd fans were celebrating their first conference championship since 2014, news broke that head coach Charles Huff had accepted a job at Southern Miss.

Within days, Marshall’s active roster was down to 41 student-athletes, a level that was deemed unsafe to field a team for the Independence Bowl against American Conference champion Army.

The Sun Belt Conference went on to fine Marshall $100,000 for failing to fulfill its obligations to play the game.

Since Marshall won the SBC Championship on Dec. 7, the Herd hired head coach Tony Gibson (previously defensive coordinator at NC State and WVU) and athletic director Gerald Harrison (previously the AD at Austin Peay).

Just a guy from Van, WV

We are just 12 days until the @CoachTonyGibson era‼️#LLTB pic.twitter.com/4oVJcHE8mD

— Marshall Football (@HerdFB) August 18, 2025

Gibson was tasked with arguably the largest roster turnover in the nation. According to ESPN’s SP+ Post-Spring Returning Production Rankings, Marshall ranks dead last in FBS with only 27% of 2024’s production remaining on the roster.

Fans in Huntington are excited for a new era with Gibson, but the ultimate success of this team will depend on how well everyone meshes together with their new teammates.

Departures

Each season, 247Sports compiles a list of transfer prospects for each team, including both departures and arrivals. In Marshall’s case, eight of the top 10 prospects left the program: corner Josh Moten, tailback A.J. Turner, wideout Christian Fitzpatrick, quarterback Braylon Braxton, linebacker Landyn Watson, corner Jacobie Henderson, defensive lineman Chris Thomas and linebacker Jaden Yates.

Only two of the those eight landed at Southern Miss, while the other six transferred to Power 4 programs.

Josh Moten is arguably the biggest loss for the Thundering Herd defense. Pro Football Focus had Moten ranked as the No. 1 cornerback in the country following the 2024 season with a PFF Grade of 91.1. Edge Jabari Ishmael and JJ Hawkins join Moten at Southern Miss. The Herd’s top departing linebackers, Landyn Watson and Jaden Yates, landed at Kentucky and Ole Miss.

In an era of inconsistent rosters, the quarterback position is arguably the most important to maintain some consistency in offense from one year to the next. Braylon Braxton was undefeated as a starter at Marshall, accumulating an impressive stat line of 19 touchdowns and only two interceptions while earning him the 2024 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year award. He was voted the 2025 SBC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in July.

Five of Braxton’s favorite targets will be alongside him at Southern Miss next season. Elijah Metcalf, Tychaun Chapman, Bralon Brown, Chuck Montgomery and Carl Chester made the move to Hattiesburg in the offseason.

Receiver Christian Fitzpatrick transferred to Oklahoma State after gaining an additional year of eligibility.

On top of players transferring, Marshall lost multiple starters to graduation and the NFL. Mike Green was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2nd Round of the 2025 NFL Draft after leading the nation with 17.0 sacks in 2024 (a Sun Belt record).

J.J. Roberts is making noise with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as he attempts to make the 53-man roster. Roberts was ranked as the No. 2 safety in the country by Pro Football Focus, however he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Bucs.

Arrivals

With 56 new arrivals in Huntington, Marshall’s roster will look entirely different, to say the least. The Herd bring in the 6th-ranked transfer portal class in the Sun Belt, according to 247Sports.

Four of the top five transfer classes in the SBC are held by East division foes JMU, Georgia State, Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State. The top spot is held by Southern Miss, who recorded 54 new arrivals.

Carlos Del Rio-Wilson (Syracuse) and Zion Turner (Jax State) are considered to be in the running for starting quarterback when Marshall takes the field against Georgia. Neither QB has seen significant playing time.

Del Rio-Wilson played in seven games for Syracuse, starting only two of them. He missed 2024 with injuries, but was 26-for-51 with three touchdowns and six interceptions in 2023.

Turner played 13 games for UCONN in 2022, but has six pass attempts in 2023 and 2024 combined. Turner was 149-for-258 for 1,407 yards with 9 TD and 10 INTs in his 2022 campaign.

𝑫𝒐𝒂𝒌 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒖𝒐!!

Marshall RBs Jo’shon Barbie and Tony Mathis, Jr., have been named to the 2025 @DoakWalkerAward Watch List, given to the nation’s top running back. pic.twitter.com/X4Po7sYTa3

— Marshall Football (@HerdFB) August 5, 2025

The running back room should be deep for the Herd with additions of Justin Williams-Thomas (California), Tony Mathis Jr. (Houston), Jo’shon Barbie (McNeese) and Michael Allen (UNLV). Throw in returning tailback Antwan Roberts and that gives offensive coordinator Rod Smith a lot of options.

Smith’s offense ranked 12th nationally with 36 points per game and third in rushing yards per contest.

There are a handful of new wide receivers, but none with more production than Akron transfer Adrian Norton. Recipient of All-MAC Second Team honors in 2024, Norton recorded 43 receptions for 831 yards and seven touchdowns. His 19.3 yards per reception ranked fourth amongst FBS receivers with 40+ receptions.

Joining Norton are transfers such as Antonio Harmon (Mississippi State), Xavier Turner-Bradshaw (Virginia Tech) and Demarcus Lacey (Jax State).

Returning defensive line coach Ralph Street will be looking to fill the gap left behind by Mike Green’s departure to the NFL. The room saw the addition of large, versatile athletes from a wide range of schools. KaTron Evans (Charlotte) was the 10th-ranked defensive tackle in the class of 2021. Other additions include Jamaal Whyce Jr. (South Carolina), Jalil Rivera-Harvey (WKU) and Naquan Crowder (Cal PA), among others.

The linebacker room includes transfers that either know Tony Gibson’s defensive system or those who contributed for their prior teams. Names to know include Cannon Lewis (NC State), Jayland Parker (NC State), Jibreel Al-Amin (Jax State), Javae Gilmore (Mississippi State) and Kerion Martin (Youngstown State).

While the Herd secondary lost a few starts in the portal, it does gain notable transfers such as cornerbacks Darrell Sweeting (Temple), Boogie Trotter (Tennessee State) and Marvae Myers-Glover (Middle Tennessee).

Fortunately for Marshall, Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team tight end Toby Payne is back. Payne recorded 17 receptions for 168 yards and six touchdowns in 2024. If he can stay healthy, look for him to be an integral piece of this Marshall offense.

Returning offensive lineman Jalen Slappy is the only other Marshall player to receive preseason awards.

Although Moten was a big loss for the Marshall secondary, the Herd did retain Caleb Clark-Glover and Jadarius Green-McKnight, two players who saw action in most, if not all games, in 2024.

An interesting player to keep an eye on is quarterback JacQai Long. A three-star recruit out of Hurricane, W. Va., Long signed with Marshall in 2023 after receiving interest from schools such as Memphis, Toledo and Miami (OH).

While Long was further down on Charles Huff’s depth chart, he has found favor from Gibson. In recent interviews, Gibson seems happy with Long’s progress, and it’s unlikely he would mention a third-string QB if he was not in contention for playing time.

Marshall saw more turnover than any other team at the FBS level. The turnover was enough to cause its peers to pick the Herd to finish sixth in the Sun Belt East division.

Marshall opens the season in SEC country against the Georgia Bulldogs on Aug. 30. The Herd have not lost a season-opener since WVU in 2012. They begin their defense of the Sun Belt title at Louisiana on Sept. 27.