NEW ORLEANS — Marshall University football’s fall camp is scheduled to begin Saturday morning.
With it, it might be time to put tropes of unanswered questions and impossible challenges to rest.
New Thundering Herd coach Tony Gibson’s Sun Belt Media Days podium time was spent largely answering versions of the same question: “You lost a lot; what are the challenges?â€
If anything, Gibson has already finished that task and answered that question with his actions.
“We have challenges of raising money. We had the challenge of retention for our rosters. I got here, and I didn’t know that we would have 100 guys on our first spring roster or not. We set a majority of our team in the portal,†Gibson said. “The things that make Marshall who we are are the people.
“Whatever we’ve needed, they are there to help. We’re all going to have challenges. It is what it is. We have to move on, or we’re going to be left behind. Our school is ready to adapt to all the new things, along with us as a staff and our players. We have to put our heads down and grind it out.â€
After Gibson gets the “new players†question, he then gets the “jell†question: “How are the new guys coming together?â€
Herd offensive lineman Jalen Slappy is more than happy to take that one.
“I feel like they’re doing better than I’ve expected,†Slappy said. “All of the new guys have now been playing with each other. We’re doing way better than expected, especially this summer. Coach says he feels like the biggest part is fall camp because of no school, but I felt like the summer was the biggest part when it came to establishing that brotherhood.
“I feel like they’re doing really well with it, especially the offense. They don’t ask us [to spend time together]. We just do it, especially the offensive line. It’s the closest I have been around in the four years I’ve been here.â€
Gibson said the staff has put together team activities, in the interest of building a foundation. After that, Cam Smith said they didn’t need guidance.
“If I’m honest, coach didn’t need to have much of a part,†Smith said. “We just be with each other and work out with each other every day. We have no choice but to talk to each other and do our own talking outside of the facility.â€
Slappy said a mix of both works best.
“I feel like the stuff that we do outside of football has really boosted us,†Slappy said. “With things like paintball and swimming, the events really topped it off for us and started making a way for how we can reconnect this summer as a new team — we’re a brand-new team.â€
If anything, Gibson is probably ready to get rid of any sympathy surrounding his team. Marshall has become the poster of transfer portal disgust — a team ripped apart by an unforeseen challenge that is impossible to overcome. By getting that treatment, the Herd has also met with low external expectations.
“We’re excited for the challenge. We’re excited to be in this league with great coaches, great programs and great players,†Gibson said. “We’re going to go out every week and see where we’re at.â€
For the Herd, it’s no longer that the challenge exists, it’s how it adapts. If you ask Slappy, Marshall is the best place for the fight.
“I feel like we’re really in a good spot,†Slappy said. “Every year, we get picked to be the lowest seed — it doesn’t matter. It’s how we go out every play and every game and fight. I really understand that. That’s part of the reason why I stayed — this team, this university and this school have a lot of fight. That’s what we need.â€
