The Marshall Thundering Herd have opted out of the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl, according to reports on Saturday.
Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports reported the news of the opt out, and his report was confirmed shortly afterwards by Brett McMurphy of Action Network.
Marshall has notified officials that it is opting out of the Independence Bowl vs. Army, sources tell @YahooSports.
Absent of 6-6 teams, officials are working to determine a replacement thru a ranking of NCAA APR scores of 5-7 teams. Marshall has lost 25+ players in the portal.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) December 14, 2024
Marshall has withdrawn from playing Army in Independence Bowl because of number of players in transfer portal, sources said. The game is Dec 28. Because most players have left campus it may be tough to find a 5-7 team to replace Marshall
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 14, 2024
Marshall won the Sun Belt Championship Game this season, their first as a member of the conference. However, head coach Charles Huff left the following day to take over the same position with the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.
That move, along with the transfer portal opening, has led to a roster shortage in Huntington, W.Va., that the Herd apparently cannot overcome.
It will be interesting to see which team that finished 5-7 this season will fill in for Marshall. It’s a great opportunity for a post-season appearance, but that team will have to scramble to return its players to campus and prepare for the contest.
The 2024 Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 28 at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, La. The other team in that contest is the 11-1 Army Black Knights, who face Navy today in the annual Army-Navy Game.
The college football bowl schedule for the 2024-25 season kicked off earlier today with the Cricket Celebration Bowl in Atlanta, Ga.
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