Blue Raiders fall on the road to Marshall

Saturday, September 12

Huntington, WV

6:00 PM

Middle Tennessee

1-1 , 0-0

Marshall

1-1 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Middle Tenn.	7	6	7	6	26
Marshall	7	7	0	14	28

9/12/2026 9:37:00 PM | Football

Box Score Game Book Post-Game Notes Photo Gallery

By: Willie Phaler, MTSU Athletic Communications

HUNTINGTON, W. Va.- Middle Tennessee football (1-1) fell 28-26 to Marshall (1-1) in its first road contest of the year after a late fourth quarter comeback attempt came up short.

Trailing 28-20 with a 4th & 10 from the Marshall 33-yard line with under two minutes to play, Redshirt sophomore quarterback Roman Gagliano danced in the pocket until he found wideout AJ Jones for a 15-yard completion.

Two plays later, the Gagliano-Jones connection hooked up once again, this time for a 15-yard score. The Blue Raiders opted for a two-point conversion as they trailed by two, but Gagliano's pass was incomplete on the right side.

Middle Tennessee hit the scoreboard for the first time in the first quarter, with the defense coming up with a "Scoop N' Score," for the second week in a row.

After an errant snap over the head of Marshall quarterback Carlos Del-Rio Wilson trickled into the endzone, Wilson picked it up and was subsequently punched out by Aidan Butts. Butts' forced fumble led to Kalen Woods falling on it for the score, marking his second fumble recovery for a touchdown in as many weeks.

Middle Tennessee started the second quarter by taking a 10-7 lead with a 52-yard field goal by Dominic Bourgeois. The kick tied for the fifth-longest field goal in program history. Bourgeois drilled his second kick of the night the next drive, splitting the uprights from 50-yards out to bring the game to 14-13 in favor of Marshall.

Gagliano connected with redshirt junior wideout Cam'ron Lacy for an 11-yard score to cap off the second drive of the second half, pushing the Blue Raiders out in front 20-14. Marshall took the lead at 21-20 with a touchdown after third-string quarterback Zion Turner led the Thundering Herd to the endzone.

Trailing by one with 4:35 to play, Gagliano was intercepted by Marshall's Zah Jackon. This led to a two-yard score on the ground, pushing Middle Tennessee's deficit to 28-20, setting the stage for the late-game theatrics.

By the Numbers:

2: Kalen Woods scored his second career touchdown in the first quarter, marking the second defensive score of the season for MTSU. This was also the second defensive score of the Derek Mason era at Middle Tennessee.

9: A week removed from tying his career-high with eight receptions, Cam'ron Lacy reset his personal best after hauling in nine catches.

13: Linebacker Korey Smith set his career-high for total tackles in a game, after recording 13 against Marshall. This marks the second game in Smith's career with double-digit tackles, following an 11 tackle effort last season against WKU.

MTSU Game Notes
• Middle Tennessee has had first quarter touchdowns in back-to-back games for the first time since Oct. 29 and Nov. 8, 2025
• Blue Raiders have tallied defensive touchdowns in back-to-back games for the first time under Derek Mason.

Offensive Player Notes
#3 | Cam'ron Lacy | WR | r-Jr.
• Set career high with nine receptions on the night, totaling 72 yards.

#6 | AJ Jones | WR | r-Sr.
• Scored his first touchdown of the season in the fourth quarter on a 15-yard throw from Gagliano.

#16 | Roman Gagliano | QB | r-So.
• Recorded his fifth-straight 200+ yard throwing performance in as many career starts.
• The last quarterback to throw for 200 or more yards in his first five career starts was Austin Grammer in 2014.
• Led the team in rushing yards with 58 yards.

#83 | Koraun Perdue | TE | Gr.
• Set personal Blue Raider high with 14 receiving yards.

Defensive Player Notes
#0 | Kalen Woods | S | r-Sr.
• Scored his second touchdown in his second game as a Blue Raider on another scoop and score off a Marshall fumble.
• Has tallied the only two defensive touchdowns in the Coach Mason era and has done so in back-to-back games.
• Recorded first career pass breakup in the fourth quarter

#11 | James Johnson | S | So.
• Tallied first career tackle-for-loss, combining with Gumbo Gaskins in the third quarter.

#26 | Korey Smith | LB | Jr.
• Set new career high with 13 tackles on the night, four of those being solo

#93 | Aidan Butts | DE | Jr.
• Matched his career high with one tackle-for-loss and forced a fumble for the first time in the first quarter.

#95 | Zeion Simpson-Smith | DT | r-So.
• Made a career-high eight tackles against the Herd.

Special Teams Player Notes
#91 | Dominic Bourgeois | PK | Sr.
• Made his 27th- and 28th-consecutive field goals in the second quarter.
• His first score was a 51-yard kick that ties for the fifth-longest made field goal in MTSU history and sits tied for the sixth-longest by any FBS kicker this season.

Postgame Interviews

Up next: The Blue Raiders will return back to the 'Boro for week three to host an opponent from the Mountain West as the Nevada Wolf Pack (1-0) heads to Middle Tennessee.

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