Marshall’s Zion Turner (1), JacQai Long (6) and Carlos Del Rio-Wilson (7) run through a quarterback drill on the first day of practice on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025, at Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington.
Marshall’s Zion Turner (1), JacQai Long (6) and Carlos Del Rio-Wilson (7) run through a quarterback drill on the first day of practice on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025, at Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington.
HUNTINGTON — Marshall football had its first scrimmage of fall camp Saturday and Thundering Herd coach Tony Gibson said that it’s a good benchmark of progress before the team's matchup at No. 5 Georgia on Aug. 30.
“Today was a really big day for the guys, and I told them that last night in the team meeting,†Gibson said on Saturday. “Today is where we’re at with coaches off the field. For us to see where we progress through the week -- we put a game plan together and scheme it up a little bit. Let’s go execute. I saw it both ways, but I felt like the offense got the better of the defense at the end of the day. I’m happy to see that.â€
Gibson said the offense is ahead of the defense. No matter who was in play, the unit was capable of driving at any moment. All three quarterbacks in contention, JacQai Long, Zion Turner and Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, worked out of drives starting at just about any field position.
“I thought, offensively, we did some really good things,†Gibson said. “The thing I’m disappointed in is that we put the ball on the ground a few times. We have to clean up our ball security. We had some third-down penalties that kept drives alive on defense, and we took big plays off the board with some offensive penalties.
“It’s great for the coaches to be off the field. We let them play, and then we go watch the film. It’s never as good or bad as what you think. We’ll watch film and see where we’re at.â€
From the quarterbacks specifically, Gibson praised Long’s first week of camp highly.
“I think all three guys did good stuff. JacQai, again, stood out. He’s had a great week. I’ve said it from the day I got here that the best players will play, and the quarterback battle is heating up,†Gibson said of the former Hurricane High School standout. “I’m excited about that.â€
Gibson said he’s seen himself transition from being a defense-first coach to being one happy to see the offense get going against his defense.
“As a head coach, you want to see that. As a defensive coordinator, I didn’t want to see a yard get given up. Now, I want to see both sides succeed and have success and do different things to get confidence,†Gibson said. “I think our guys have done that, and it’s been a battle every other day. The defense had a really good day [Thursday], and the offense [Friday] and [Saturday] has been better. We just have to keep building it and get these guys on the same page.â€
Long said he looked forward to the scrimmage as it was a chance to show what he has learned.
“We get the coaches off of our backs to think on our own and play on our own,†Long said. “We get to make plays, and it was good to see everyone come out here collectively and get the job done.â€
That preparation, in Long’s eyes, is his biggest strength.
“One thing that helped me a lot is that I’ve prepared a lot more seriously. I felt like the more I was prepared, the more confident I could play,†Long said. “I’m coming out here, and I’m not nervous. I know exactly what’s going on. I know where my guys are at. I know what the defense is doing. It’s helped me a lot. I think I could bring that to the table. I know what’s going on and know that we’re always in the right play.â€
Long, son of former Marshall wide receiver Jerrald Long, is capable of breaking open on broken plays. His scrambling ability was always on display at Hurricane, and it’s transitioned to the collegiate levels.
“He’s a lot more athletic than what people give him credit for, too. He can run. He has a great understanding of football,†Gibson said. “You can tell that he comes from a football family and has been around the game. He works as hard as anyone on the team. I’ve been really, really impressed with him this week.â€
The Herd will have another scrimmage on Saturday. Gibson said he gave some players days off to see as many options as possible.
“We had some key guys that didn’t play today. Toby Payne didn’t see the field. [Javae] Gilmore didn’t play today. Jalil [Rivera-Harvey] didn’t play today. [Antonio] Harmon didn’t play,†Gibson said. “That’s all a coach’s decision. It’s like what the NFL calls a vet day. Those guys needed a day and have played a lot of football, so I wanted to see some of the other guys in there.
“We have to keep getting better, and that’s the mission for this week. We want to learn from our mistakes today, come out next Saturday and have our last line of scrimmages before we go to Georgia.â€
Tyler Kennett is a sports writer for HD Media. Reach him at tkennett@hdmediallc.com. Follow @tylerkennett on X.
