Morris on the mend

Marshall quarterback Bernard Morris wore a protective boot on his left foot Monday, but he could return for Saturday’s game against Memphis. “I’m feeling OK right now,” Morris said Monday. Should Morris’ mobility be compromised, Jimmy Skinner will start in his place. Either way, expect the Thundering Herd offense to stick to its run-first approach. Like Morris, defensive tackle Juan Underwood likely will miss most or all of practice this week. His status also is uncertain.

Big trouble in Big D

There are tough losses and then there’s what happened Saturday in Dallas. Frankly, it’s tough to explain the fourth quarter sequence in Marshall’s 31-21 loss at SMU. The Thundering Herd played mostly clean through three quarters, but three late turnovers left Marshall at 1-5. I’ll share this much. The postgame feel outside the locker room was more anger than disappointment. Players were down after the UCF loss; they were ticked on Saturday. It will be interesting to see how they react in the season’s second half. Feel free to vent here.

Raining on Marshall's parade

It seemed appropriate that a downpour descended upon Joan C. Edwards Stadium minutes after Wednesday night’s game. What was setting up as a memorable, landmark win with the “We Are Marshall” key players looking on morphed into a what-just-happened defeat. Marshall was a fourth down stop away from kicking off Conference USA play at 1-0, but instead is staring straight at 1-4. Parity reigns in C-USA this season, but can the Herd pick itself up and salvage the 2006 season. This is your sounding board. I welcome your thoughts, positive and not so much, and will respond as often as I can. Here’s my take: Wednesday night was a huge blow, and no one inside Marshall’s locker room expected anything but a resounding win. There are seven games remaining, however, and players, by their postgame comments, remain confident in a C-USA East Division title run.

Must-win situation, or not

Depending on whom you ask (yeah, it’s whom), Wednesday’s game against Central Florida either is or might not be a must-win matchup. With consecutive games at SMU and UAB coming up, I’ve got to lean toward the must-win contingent. This team is as healthy as it’s been this season, and it’s enjoyed extra preparation time. What are your thoughts? Is this a game that could propel a new start to the season or could it end postseason hopes in the first week of October?