HUNTINGTON — Marshall University football's wide receiver group is so deep that hearing Zay Bradshaw describe their skill sets comes off like a tongue-twister.
“We have a bunch of different guys we can put on the inside and outside. We can motion inside to outside and motion outside to inside,†Bradshaw said. “Lot of guys with speed, lot of tall guys, short guys; tall, fast guys; tall, slow guys; short, slow guys; short, fast guys and everything you want. It’s great to have that in a receiver room, because you can count on whatever.â€
In New Orleans at Sun Belt Conference media days, Thundering Herd quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson said he thinks he’ll be able to show his arm off a little more. Wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey said it started with constructing a room with a variety of receivers to give Marshall more options in the pass game under offensive coordinator Rod Smith.
“That was the goal for coach Smith and I, to try to build this thing like a basketball team,†Stuckey said. “You got a point guard, two-guard, forward and center. Big power forward guys that have different abilities, and they all work together. The more you can do, we talk about the NFL style, the better it is for you. We don’t want to be a one-trick pony. The guys have bought into that. The guys here for the second year and the new guys coming along are really embracing their roles.â€
Retention has also been key for installation. The Herd returns Stuckey, Smith, running backs coach Rod McDowell and offensive line coach Bob McClain. Tight ends coach Gunter Brewer returns as well to Tony Gibson's staff to make for a player pool that returned more than 1,000 yards in every category alongside its entire staff.
“It helps with knowing the personalities and what coach Smith wants, what coach McDowell wants, what coach Bob wants and what coach Gibby wants,†Stuckey said. “We all know the personalities, and we get along really well. The players on offense have fed off of that and seen that. They’re extremely cohesive, and it’s been instrumental in the progression we’ve made so far.â€
Marshall returns two of its top three wide receivers by yardage in De’Andre Tamarez and Adrian Norton. Norton said he’s taken on a role to lead the newcomers, including potential standouts Owen Sweeney and Chris Culliver.
“The receiver room is deep, especially with the outside guys,†Norton said. “We’ve got guys from all over the East Coast, and there’s some ballplayers that we have in the room. Any given day and rep in practice, we have guys making plays across the field. It’s a great room with a lot of skill.
“We’re taking strides, leaps and bounds as a room, in terms of the mental stuff. We’re getting a lot of stuff down. With that, we’re able to react quicker and make better choices in terms of routes, configurations and concepts. Physically, we’re running around for two and a half hours in the sun. We’re going to feel it, but everybody is doing their job of taking care of their bodies and getting back out.â€
Part of Norton's role in leadership is giving his own experience. He finished 2025 with 363 yards and five touchdowns, but had his best game to end the season, with 160 yards and a touchdown against Georgia Southern.
“For me personally, it’s hard from a general perspective to grasp how good you are,†Norton said. “When you’re not seeing it on the stat sheet, you’re watching stuff on film where you’re doing the right things but the ball doesn’t necessarily come your way. You have to find ways to help the team out. Toward the end of the season, we had more opportunities to showcase that I’m a guy that can help us win. I want to keep that momentum going forward.â€
Stuckey said Norton’s ability to teach shows a mastering of his own skills.
“You’re teaching him, but you’re also reiterating yourself,†Stuckey said. “If I know it and can teach it, I truly understand it. Keep doing that. The better you do, the better it will be for yourself. He’s done a great job.â€
Bradshaw, son of Marshall Hall of Famer and Super Bowl champion Ahmad Bradshaw, looks to be the rising star from last season’s group. A video posted from practice to Marshall’s social media showcased his speed past the defense for a touchdown in late-practice reps.
“I was able to break free, break behind the defense and see ’Los scramble out,†Bradshaw said. “He saw me over the back behind the defense. He layered the ball over the me and was able to get me in stride. I took it to the end zone for my second touchdown of the day.
“I think the whole team has gotten more comfortable. For myself, coming in from Virginia Tech, I put it on myself to get comfortable with a new team. Here now, this whole staff and team is more comfortable and we’re here for each other.â€
Bradshaw said he took a different approach in his redshirt senior season and focused on strength training along with his patented speed during the offseason.
“This whole summer, I’ve depended on gaining weight and lifting. These past few offseasons, I went strictly field work to work on speed,†Bradshaw said. “By running and lifting this summer, I maintained my speed while getting stronger.â€
Those tall-and-fast guys that Bradshaw talked about include Sweeney, a transfer from VMI who totaled 723 yards and eight touchdowns a season ago. He agrees that the depth gives Marshall weapons but that it also allows for more competition for improvement in camp.
“Our room is super-deep. We have guys of every single archetype or build. I’m 6-foot-4, and Zay is probably the fastest guy on the team around 5-foot-10,†Sweeney said. “We have a bunch of guys that have different assets and play styles. That’ll help us in this offense.
“I take advantage of every rep I get. It’s a really good battle between the offense for who gets the starting job and who’s going to prove themselves the most. It pushes you to work harder and play better.â€
Stuckey said improvement at this point is centered on “one more."
"It’s the 'one more thing' you want to get better,†Stuckey said. “From top to bottom, guys have really bought in. It’s one guy this day and another the next. We’re trying to see little increments before looking at a macro standpoint of how each individual can get better.â€
The focus on details is important for an offense that seems ahead of schedule.
“You can get in a habit just from human nature of writing things down and going to the next, but this year, we want to put one more down,†Stuckey said. “I want to give you approval that you’ve accomplished it and go on to the next. We want to get the one thing first before having a bunch of different ones.
“If it’s top of my route on a vert read for a week, let’s work on that one more. I want to continue to get better and continue stacking. Then, you look back over the course of camp and over the course of a month, where you’ve gotten tremendously better at those little things.â€
Norton said Marshall has a fourth-quarter emphasis. The Herd lost five one-possession games in 2025 in a 5-7 finish.
“We’ve been emphasizing finishing throughout the offseason phase. All of our workouts and everything we’re doing is the fourth quarter,†Norton said. “Whatever energy we have left, we want more. To do that in a game setting like the end of practice is awesome.â€
