The Mavericks opened the 6-5A slate with a convincing 38-7 win over longtime rival Nacogdoches . Marshall rolled up 437 yards of offense on the night while holding Nac to 208, The win improves Marshall to (2-2) and (1-0). PHOTO CREDIT GEOFF McKAY
Marshall used a grueling ground game and a bend-but-don't break defense Friday night in a 42-7 win over the Garland Owls in the home opener at Maverick Stadium. The win gave Marshall their first win of the season to improve to (1-2). They open district this Friday when they host Nacogdoches. PHOTO CREDIT GEOFF McKAY- MARSHALL NEWS MESSENGER
Dave Campbell tapped the Mavs for fourth place in their new district. Terrell is their favorite for the District Championship followed by Texas High. Mount Pleasant has been picked for third and Marshall for fourth. Should the prediction hold, it would be the lowest finish for Marshall since 2020. The Mavs have been the #2 seed for the last five consecutive seasons.
The Mavericks opened the 6-5A slate with a convincing 38-7 win over longtime rival Nacogdoches . Marshall rolled up 437 yards of offense on the night while holding Nac to 208, The win improves Marshall to (2-2) and (1-0). PHOTO CREDIT GEOFF McKAY
WEEK 4: NACOGDOCHES Vs. MARSHALL
MAVERICKS OPEN DISTRICT WITH DOMINATING WIN OVER NACOGDOCHES DRAGONS
PHOTO CREDIT GEOFF McKAY
The Marshall Mavericks used a stingy defense and a balanced offense to slay the Nacogdoches Dragons 38-7 in the District 6-5A opener for both teams.
Nac opened the game with an impressive time-consuming drive that went 75 yards and ended in a 7-0 lead with nearly half of the quarter gone at 6:56 remaining in the first.
Marshall answered quickly with 62 drive of their own thanks to the legs of Doug Johnson to tie the game up 7-7 with 3:27 left in the opening quarter.
After a bobbled punt the Dragons started deep in their own territory at the 14. The Mav defense would stiffen and force Nac to punt.
Doug Johnson would find pay dirt again as the Mavs took their first lead of the game 14-7 with 9:42 before halftime.
Nac came out firing on their next possession and connected on a 42 yard pass to get deep into Maverick territory but Marshall's defense again shut them down and forced another punt.
Marshall offense would sputter on their next possession and punt the ball back to Nac but Ayden Thompson got a huge interception to stop the Dragons once again.
The final minute before halftime would prove to be a wild one.
Following the interception the Mavericks were unable to convert on a 4th down at the Nac 25.
The Dragons return the favor and go a quick 3 and out and are forced to punt with just 42 second left in the half.
Marshall threaded a screen pass that appeared to be headed to the end zone until a Nac defender stopped the receiver from scoring with a horse-collar tackle with 0:00 left on the clock. The penalty allowed the Mavericks an untimed down and they kicked a 22 yard field goal to go up 17-7 at the break.
The Maverick passing game again came to the rescue with a touchdown pass to Aiden Green for a 24-7 Marshall lead midway through the third.
While the offense got a little drowsy in the third with a couple of punts, the Mav defense kicked it into high gear with several sacks of the Nac quarterback.
Marshall found the end zone again early in the fourth to up the score to 31-7 with 11:15 remaining in the game.
One final score was tallied at 6:45 for the final of 38-7.
The Mavericks finished the night with 433 total yards. 297 on the ground and 136 through the air.
Running back Doug Johnson finished with 241 yards on 36 carries.
The Marshall defense held Nac to 208 total yards; the Dragons had -6 yards in the third quarter.
The Mavericks improve to (2-2) on the season and more importantly (1-0) in 6-5A play.
They will now travel to Texarkana to take on the Texas High TIgers in the annual grudge match.
WEEK 5: MARSHALL Vs. TEXAS HIGH
MARSHALL LOOKING FOR RARE WIN AT GRIM STADIUM VS ANCIENT RIVAL TEXAS HIGH
PHOTO CREDIT JOSHUA BRAGGS----- jbraggs.jpeg
Marshall and Texas High have been battling it out on the gridiron for 115 in yet another one of the oldest rivalries in Texas.
The 2026 Maverick schedule is peppered with multiple programs that Marshall shares over 100 years of history AND over 100 games in the series including Tyler, Longview, and Texas High.
The 2026 version of Marshall Vs. Texas High is another potential barn-burner to add to the lore of the series.
The Mavericks enter the game (2-2) overall and (1-0) in district. Marshall opened the season with losses to 5A Divsision I Tyler and 6A Longview before rebounding with wins over 6A Garland and district rival Nacogdoches last week.
Texas High is in unfamiliar territory at (1-3) and (0-1) . The Tigers opened the season with a win over 6A Tyler Legacy but three consecutive losses to Wylie East, West Mesquite, and Terrell have THS hungry for a win.
Texarkana has owned the district since joining with six consecutive district championships.
Marshall has had to settle for the #2 seed five of those six seasons, losing to the Tigers each time.
The Mavericks are looking to get their first win at Grim Stadium since 2017.
Marshall looking to improve to (2-0) before returning home to host cross-county rival Hallsville.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 at Tiger Stadium at Grim Park (aka....Grim Stadium).
SEE THE GAME DAY PAGE FOR ALL THE HISTORY AND STATS.
MAVERICK REPORT CARD
A
MAVERICK OFFENSE
This is the most balanced offensive game Marshall has had all season with 136 passing and 297 on the ground.
Doug Johnson is a BEAST.
A
MAVERICK DEFENSE
The defense continues to improve after a tough start Vs. Tyler and Longview.
They have only given up 14 points in the last two games.
A+
SPECIAL TEAMS
5-5 on PATs. 11-11 last two games.
A22 yard FG with 0:00 left before halftime was HUGE; putting Marshall up 17-7 at the break.