1988 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

1988 Marshall Thundering Herd football
SoCon co-champion
NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal, L 9–13 vs. Furman
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	11–2 (6–1 SoCon)
Head coach	George Chaump (3rd season)
Captain	John Spellacy, Sean Doctor
Home stadium	Fairfield Stadium

1988 Southern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Furman +^	6	–	1	–	0			13	–	2	–	0
No. 6 Marshall +^	6	–	1	–	0			11	–	2	–	0
No. 14 The Citadel ^	5	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Appalachian State	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	1
Chattanooga	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
VMI	1	–	5	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
East Tennessee State	1	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Western Carolina	1	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1988 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1988 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by third-year head coach George Chaump, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 11–2 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, sharing the SoCon title with Furman. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs, where they beat North Texas in the first round before losing to Furman in the quarterfinals.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	at Morehead State*	No. 10	Jayne Stadium Morehead, KY	W 30–17	9,500	[1]
September 10	Ohio*	No. 10	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV (rivalry)	W 31–14		[2]
September 17	No. T–3 Eastern Kentucky*	No. 10	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	W 34–32		[3]
September 24	at VMI	No. 3	Alumni Memorial Field Lexington, VA	W 24–20	6,750	[4]
October 8	No. 11 Furman	No. 4	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	W 24–10	19,371	[5]
October 15	at East Tennessee State	No. 4	Memorial Center Johnson City, TN	W 50–14		[6]
October 22	Chattanooga	No. 3	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	W 38–7	13,298	[7]
October 29	No. 11 Appalachian State	No. 2	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	W 30–27	16,447	[8]
November 5	at No. 19 The Citadel	No. 1	Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC	L 3–20	20,011	[9]
November 12	at Western Carolina	No. 6	E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	W 52–45	11,128	[10]
November 19	at Youngstown State*	No. 7	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	W 38–15	6,225	[11]
November 26	No. 10 North Texas*	No. 6	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 7–0	15,086	[12]
December 3	No. 4 Furman	No. 6	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	L 9–13	16,829	[13]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "Morehead rally falls short as Marshall wins 30–17". Lexington Herald-Leader. September 4, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Darby, Marshall roll past Ohio U." The Ironton Tribune. September 11, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Marshall field goal at :09 spoils Eastern rally 34–32". Lexington Herald-Leader. September 18, 1988. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Thundering Herd runs past Keydets". Daily Press. September 25, 1988. Retrieved February 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Furman falls to Marshall for first time in 13 games". The Charlotte Observer. October 9, 1988. Retrieved September 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Marshall pounds East Tennessee State". The Greenville News. October 16, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Marshall 38, Tennessee–Chattanooga 7". The Charlotte Observer. October 23, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Appalachian falls to Marshall rally". The Charlotte Observer. October 30, 1988. Retrieved November 18, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Citadel defense stifles Marshall". Florence Morning News. November 6, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Marshall scores 21 in 4th to win, 52–45". The Times and Democrat. November 13, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Marshall takes game, playoff berth". Sun-News. November 20, 1988. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Marshall blanks N. Texas". Abilene Reporter-News. November 27, 1988. Retrieved October 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Furman marches past Herd". The Greenville News. December 4, 1988. Retrieved September 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.